High Wind — Orange County Coastal Plain, California

2001-01-10 · Orange County Coastal Plain, California

Wider weather episode

This was a two day storm event that began late in the day on January 10 with strong winds and contained several moderate to heavy rain bands. Wind blew two trees onto vehicles and ripped off a roof in the Apple Valley. Along the Orange County Coast mooring lines in Newport Harbor were snapped and a 60 foot boat was blown into a 34 foot sailboat, causing significant damage to both vessels. In Costa Mesa, two large pine trees were snapped in half. In San Diego County, tree limbs were broken in the Ramona area. The first rain band dropped a half to one inch of rain on Orange County during the late afternoon and evening of January 10, resulting in street flooding in several locations. Between 2 and 4 inches of rain fell during the early morning hours of January 11 as a much stronger rain band moved slowly east across the area. In Garden Grove, the roof of one building collapsed under the weight of the pooled rainwater and another business was flooded with 15 inches of runoff. In San Juan Capistrano, runoff from a hillside flooded an underground parking garage to a depth of 5 feet, destroying 15 cars. Pacific Coast Highway was flooded between Sunset Beach and Seal Beach and also in Costa Mesa. Elsewhere in Orange County, mudslides closed Interstate 5, and Highways 74 and 91 for most of the morning hours. Several injuries occurred when motor vehicles flipped after hitting standing water. Standing water was also reported in San Diego County along Interstates 5, 8, and 15 and Highways 67 and 76 during the morning commute hours. Mudslides two feet deep covered Highway 76 in several locations between Rincon and Lake Henshaw. In Sorrento Valley, a mudslide trapped several vehicles. Mudslides also occurred in Alpine, below recently burned hillslides. A 21 foot sailboat moored in Mission Bay, and a 27 foot yacht moored in San Diego Bay were filled by heavy rain and sank. In San Bernardino County, Cajon Creek flooded and trapped the occupant of a pickup truck who tried to cross it. In Apple Valley, six roads in Hesperia and two roads in Victorville were closed due to flooding. In the Inland Empire region of Riverside County, the dry antecedent conditions prevented flooding from occurring.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5229060. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.