High Wind — Santa Lucia Mountains, California

2022-12-10 to 2022-12-11 · Santa Lucia Mountains, California

Event narrative

Strong and gusty southerly winds impacted the Santa Lucia Mountains in San Luis Obispo county. Some peak wind gusts from the local mesonet include: TV Towers (gust 66 MPH), Old Creek Road (gust 66 MPH), High School Hill (gust 61 MPH) and Green Valley Road (gust 59 MPH).

Wider weather episode

A powerful winter storm brought heavy rain, mountain snow and gusty winds to Southwestern California. Rainfall totals were very impressive, ranging from 1-4 inches across coastal and valley areas to 4-8 inches across the foothills and mountains. Fortunately, only nuisance urban flooding was reported. Snow levels remained quite high during the bulk of the storm with areas above 6000 feet receiving up to 5 inches of new snowfall. Along with the precipitation, strong southwesterly wind impacted many areas with peak gust in excess of 80 MPH reported across the mountains.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1060230. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.