Dust Storm — Imperial Valley, California

2022-08-08 · Imperial Valley, California

Event narrative

Social media video showed visibility was down to about 1/4 mile in blowing dust from thunderstorm outflow at the Imperial County Fire station at the Airport. No accidents or injuries were reported.

Wider weather episode

An upper-level trough combined with strong instability (SB CAPE of 2000+ J/KG) and high moisture content (PWAT of 1.7+ inches) to result in the development of strong to severe thunderstorms across portions of Riverside and Imperial Counties during the afternoon and early evening hours. A complex of thunderstorms originating from southwest Arizona moved westward through Riverside while intensifying in the process. Another complex of storms then developed near the international border and affected Imperial County.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1052331. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.