Strong Wind — Visalia - Porterville - Reedley, California

2024-12-24 · Visalia - Porterville - Reedley, California

Event narrative

California Highway Patrol reported a power pole and power lines downed at the intersection of SR 63 and El Monte Way in Orosi.

Wider weather episode

A large upper trough pushed across California on December 24 producing a period of moderate to locally heavy precipitation as well as a period of strong winds during the late morning and early afternoon. Much of the San Joaquin Valley picked up a quarter to half an inch of rainfall during the day which resulted in a few reports of nuisance flooding. Much of the Sierra Nevada and adjacent foothills picked up between four tenths and eight tenths of an inch of liquid precipitation with snow above 6500 feet. Several SNOTELs in the higher Sierra Nevada picked up an estimated 4 to 8 inches of new snowfall. Eastern Kern County was mainly impacted by strong winds as several stations reported gusts exceeding 50 mph. The Tehachapi Mountains generally picked up between two and four tenths of an inch of rainfall while the Deserts picked up a tenth of an inch or less due to rain shadowing. The trough moved to the east of the area by late afternoon and winds diminished during the evening.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1221325. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.