Heat — Mariposa - Madera Lower Sierra, California

2024-10-02 to 2024-10-06 · Mariposa - Madera Lower Sierra, California

Event narrative

Daytime highs generally ranged between 98 and 103 degrees each day between October 2 and October 6.

Wider weather episode

A large upper ridge strengthened over California on October 1 and 2 then remained over the region through October 6. This resulted in several days of record heat over the San Joaquin Valley, West Side Hills and Sierra Foothills. October 3 was the hottest day of the heat wave as several long standing all time record highs for the month of October were exceeded. The ridge finally shifted east into the Desert Southwest region on October 7 which reduced the heat impact across the area, but not before 3 additional days with several records being broken. Temperatures finally cooled down to below record levels by October 10 as a weak shortwave trough moved into California.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1208393. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.