Strong Wind — Coachella Valley, California

2022-04-24 · Coachella Valley, California

Event narrative

Coachella festival emergency management organizers reported 3 separate dust devils under sunny skies and following the cold strong winds that occurred April 21-22. The most significant dust devil on April 23 occurred during the festival and tossed a tent 50 feet in the air. One dust devil knocked over 2 persons which was captured on security cameras.

Wider weather episode

Another upper-level trough moving through the western US brought strong west winds to much of the Southern California mountains and deserts on April 21st and 22nd. This brought a couple inches of snow to the mountain communities. Thunderstorms also occurred with the main band of precipitation. Coastal and valley locations received 0.10 to 0.25 inches and mountains as much as 0.75 to 1.50 inches of precipitation.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1025173. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.