UPDATE: Thursday, December 6th, 2012
A storm with heavy rains and strong winds passed through central and northern California last week. The storm caused many lane and road closures, flooding, the toppling of trees and power lines, and accidents. Portions of California received over 7 inches of rain within 24 hours, creating many traffic hazards. The following screenshots were collected over several days via the One-Stop Shop as the storm was developing and occurring.
24-Hour Precipitation over Central and Northern California:
.jpg "24-Hour Precipitation of Central and Northern California with a large area of the region receiving 2-7 inches of rain.")
Strong Winds in Northeastern California:
.jpg "High winds in Northern California with speeds reaching up to 77.0 mph.")
OSS showing Forecast Wind Speeds and Directions for Thursday November 29th at 2PM:
.jpg "Forecast wind speed and direction over Northern California for November 29th at 2PM.")
The Forecast shows continued heavy precipitation on Saturday and Sunday.
Amount of Precipitation Forecast for Late Saturday Evening in Northern California:
.jpg "Precipitation forecast for late Saturday Evening in Northern California.")
Amount of Precipitation Forecast for Early Sunday Morning:
.jpg "Precipitation forecast for early Sunday Morning")
Amount of Precipitation Forecast for Mid-Morning Sunday:
.jpg "Precipitation forecast for mid Sunday morning.")
Amount of Precipitation Forecast for Late Sunday Afternoon:
.jpg "Precipitation forecast for Sunday afternoon.")
San Francisco Area:
In the San Francisco area there were numerous incidents of flooding and winds. OSS made it easy to see the incidents, warnings, and resulting heavy traffic areas.
Wind Warning for the Richmond Bridge:
.jpg "Road warning sign displaying: High Winds E-580 on Richmond Bridge.")
Incident showing lanes of US101 flooded and the traffic delay caused by the flooding:
.jpg "Incident report of traffic lanes being flooded.")
CCTV of the Bay Bridge:
.jpg "CCTV showing the conditions of the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge.")
I-680 at Greenbrook:
.jpg "CCTV showing the conditions on I-680 at Greenbrook.")
Another incident indicating large amounts of water on the roadway:
.jpg "Incident report at San Tomas Expy / W Campbell Ave indicating 2-4 inches of water in #1 lane of roadway.")
Santa Cruz Area:
Further South near Santa Cruz the weather looked very similar.
CCTV image of Emeline Ave:
.jpg "CCTV image at Emeline Ave indicating the amount of water on the roadway.")
Salinas 101 at Main St:
.jpg "CCTV at North Main Street and Salinas HWY 101 showing the harsh weather conditions.")
Flood warning along Highway 1:
.jpg "Road warning sign along HWY 1 near Santa Cruz displaying: Caution Flooding Ahead.")
A PGE pole snapped due to high winds:
.jpg "Incident report at SR9 / San Lorenzo Ave indicating that a PGE pole snapped.")
Incident from a tree down on Soquel Dr:
.jpg "Incident report at 10395 Soquel Dr indicating that Madrona closed due to tree/wires down.")
Sacramento Area:
The Sacramento area also suffered from the storm with heavy rain and strong winds:
.jpg "Road warning sign at 8th Street in Sacramento displaying: Watch for Flooding and High Winds.")
CCTV at Harbor Boulevard:
.jpg "CCTV at HWY 50 and Harbor Blvd in Sacramento displaying stormy weather conditions along highway.")
A Semi-Truck accident on the Interstate-5 median near Laguna Boulevard:
.jpg "Road warning sign at I-5 and Laguna Blvd in Sacramento displaying: Accident at 43rd, Use Alt Routes.")
.jpg "CCTV on I-5, north of Laguna Blvd displaying an accident of a Semi-Truck in the median of the interstate.")
.jpg "CCTV on I-5, north of Laguna Blvd displaying heavy traffic from the result of an accident.")
Another Accident on Interstate-5 near the Sacramento Zoo:
.jpg "Road warning sign at I-5 and Sutterville Rd displaying: Accident at 43rd, Expect Delays.")
.jpg "CCTV at I-5 and Sutterville Rd showing heavy traffic due to an accident.")
Mt. Shasta area:
The common road warning message along Interstate 5 near Mt. Shasta:
.jpg "Road warning at I-5 and Black Oak North Bound displaying: Heavy Rains, Reduce Speed.")
Road Wind Warning along Interstate-5 near Mt. Shasta:
.jpg "Road warning sign at I-5 and Abrams Lake North Bound displaying: Wind Advisory, Weed to Yreka.")
RWIS data near Mt. Shasta – note the high wind speeds:
.jpg "RWIS data near Mt. Shasta displaying winds of 33.5 mph and a precipitation rate of 0.127 in/hr.")
Shasta River Bridge:
.jpg "CCTV at I-5 and Shasta River Bridge")
Sims Road along Interstate-5 near Shasta National Forest:
.jpg "CCTV at I-5 and Sims Rd.")
CCTV at Antlers Bridge north of Redding:
.jpg "CCTV at I-5 and Antlers Bridge")
Sacramento Hill along Interstate-5 near Shasta National Forest:
.jpg "CCTV at I-5 and Sacramento Hill")
Be sure to gather as much information as possible from OSS (http://oss.weathershare.org) and all available sources both before and while traveling to help plan for safe trips.
Check back soon for more OSS updates.