High Wind — Lake Isabella, California

2021-05-20 · Lake Isabella, California

Event narrative

The Walker Pass RAWS measured a peak wind gust of 65 mph.

Wider weather episode

A cold upper low pressure system dropped into northern California during the morning of May 20 carving out a strong upper trough into the western U.S. A cold front associated with this system also pushed through the area during the day and brought a period a very strong winds to the Kern County Deserts as well as to the Tehachapi and Lake Isabella area in the Kern County Mountains. Several stations reported gusts exceeding 60 mph while a few low impact indicator sites briefly measured gusts exceeding 90 mph. Several roads across the impacted area were closed as a precaution between the late morning and the late evening hours of May 20. The winds diminished during the early morning of May 21 as the cold front moved out of the area, leaving an unseasonably cool airmass over the area for a few days. Some instability allowed for some rain and snow showers to develop during the afternoon of May 21 mainly over the Sierra Nevada and adjacent foothills. Precipitation amounts were generally light, mainly up to a quarter inch of liquid precipitation with elevations above 6000 feet picking up at much as 2 inches of new snowfall.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 949784. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.