Strong Wind — Northern San Joaquin Valley, California

2024-12-14 · Northern San Joaquin Valley, California

Event narrative

California Highway Patrol reported multiple big rigs toppled over and vehicle spinouts due to strong winds that led to closure of Interstate 580 in both directions for approximately 5 hours until the winds subsided and vehicles could be turned upright.

Wider weather episode

Active weather brought periods of heavy mountain snow, rain and gusty winds from December 12th through December 17th as multiple storms moved through the area. The strongest storm moved through over the December 13th through 14th timeframe and brought over 2 to 3 inches of rain, over 2 feet of heavy snow above 5000 feet, and gusty southerly wind gusts of 35 to 65 mph. Numerous downed trees and thousands of power outages were reported during this time, along with mountain highway closures and chain restrictions, with roadway flooding in the Central Valley.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1224524. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.