High Wind — Kern River Valley, California

2024-03-14 · Kern River Valley, California

Event narrative

Public report of an 18 inch diameter tree being toppled an nearly hitting a house in Onyx. A nearby utility company weather station reported a wind gust of 62 mph near the time the tree fell.

Wider weather episode

An upper low pressure system dropped slowly southward over Nevada and into southeast California on March 14. This low produced strong northeast winds over the Sierra Nevada and the Kern County Desert areas. Several stations measured winds gusts exceeding 45 mph with some stations picking up gusts in excess of 60 mph. The winds decreased in intensity by the evening of March 14 and dissipated by the afternoon of March 15.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1156222. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.