Going back 46 years to December 20, 1977, an extraordinary wind/dust storm produced severe damage to structures, crops, orchards, vehicles, wildlife, and soils in a large portion of California’s Southern San Joaquin Valley, California. Winds that reached 192 mph in at least one location displaced more than 25 million metric tons of soil from grazing lands alone in only one day. The severe impacts extended at least to the northern end of the Sacramento Valley. In addition, many tons of soil were displaced into adjacent agricultural lands. The wind-stripped land in the Tehachapi and San Emigdio mountains caused accelerated runoff during ensuing rain events leading to excessive flooding in the southern valleys creating numerous gullies that continued the erosion process!
This inconceivable weather event took nine lives and produced tens of millions of dollars in damage.
From Calm To Chaos
There was nothing special about the Monday morning of December 19, 1977, across the San Joaquin Valley of California. The air was chilly as residents prepared for their daily routine. The day remained on the cold side with light winds.
Some atmospheric features had begun to affect the western U.S. during the day and that would lead to significant changes over parts of California over the next several hours. In Bakersfield, the temperature was in the mid-40s by late evening with light winds out of the northwest. As the clock moved closer to midnight, conditions began to change quickly.
The wind switched to the east-northeast and increased rapidly, The temperature began to rise as well. Loads of dust were being picked up by the increasing wind and visibility dropped almost instantly
By Tuesday morning, it was quite windy and dust was being blown around. There were scattered power outages across the valley but most schools were in session and most people went to work.
The wind continued to increase in velocity and before long, it was nearly impossible to see. Schools canceled classes and parents were asked to pick up their children because there was a fear that buses would be blown off the road.
One thirteen-year-old boy who had returned home thought that the world was ending. He climbed to the roof of his house carrying only his sleeping bag anticipating the wind to take him to heaven. Instead, he was blown off of the roof and he suffered a fractured wrist.
The wind became so strong that morning that it was described as a continuous thunderous roar. Only one television station and three radio stations in the area could remain on the air.
The sky alternated between brown and black. Mounds of dirt were piled across Interstate 5 which stalled and even buried cars. Thousands of motorists on Interstate 5 and Highway 58 were trapped. The airport in Bakersfield reported sustained winds of 46 mph with gusts near 65 mph.
The wind ripped roofs off of houses and businesses, completely knocked out windows, and forced many out of their homes, especially those of farmers. Many fled to Bakersfield for safety. Some adults and children thought that it was the “end of the world”.
To the south and southeast of Bakersfield. the winds were far more ferocious. Wind gusts reached an incredible 192 mph at Arvin, California. The paint was stripped off of cars! The dust there was so thick that it looked like the middle of the night. Seventy percent of homes received structural damage in Arvin, Edison, and East Bakersfield. The dust reached almost a mile up into the air!
A photo, taken from a twin-engine aircraft, shows dust rising to almost a mile high over Arvin, California, on December 20, 1977. Photo Credit-U.S. Geological Survey.
Here is a Facebook post from Bill Deaver who witnessed the storm in Tehachapi, California :
Here is another account by Michael Boyt from Bakersfield :
“I worked at Casa De Liqores at 21st and F Street,” “The wind blew the big plate glass window in and all the others out. They went out of business right then and there.”
It was later estimated that 25 million tons of soil (enough to fill over 1,6 million dump trucks) was lifted by the wind. There were reports of livestock getting buried alive, canals becoming filled with dirt, and almond trees toppling, Entire orchards were wiped out resulting in millions of dollars in economic losses.
This event occurred long before the advent of social media so most of the nation had no idea what was going on in the southern San Joaquin Valley.
By afternoon, the scenes were surreal throughout the southern San Joaquin Valley of California. Roadways canals and creeks were buried in dust. The dust had found its way into cracks and crevices of buildings, filling the interior with a layer of dust.
Ironically, the scene was reminiscent of the “Dust Bowl” days of the 1930s. Many relatives of those affected by this storm had moved to the San Joaquin Valley from the southern Plains.
Farther north it began to rain in Fresno. When the dust reached the rain, it turned into mud, and sheets of mud were falling from the sky.
The wind continued to howl through the evening of December 20th.
Another negative by-product of this wind event was the Honda Canyon Fire which spread rapidly by the strong winds. Over 10,000 acres were burned just north of Vandenburg, several firefighters were injured and three lost their lives. Crews had to deal with wind gusts over 100 mph at times and humidity levels below 15 percent. They were finally able to get the fire under control when the winds died down.
An image of the Honda Canyon Fire on December 20, 1977, as crews were deployed to fight it. Image Credit-You-Tube.
After The Storm
The sky was still eerily dark on the morning of Wednesday, December 21st. The wind had blown throughout the night and, it was still blowing hard, and schools remained closed. By afternoon, the wind finally began to subside.
The image shows the front page of the Bakersfield Californian Newspaper following the great wind storm in December 1977. Photo Credit-www.newspapers.com.
The Bakersfield Californian Newspaper indicated that the storm left a “trail of ruin”. It took a few days for many roads to be reopened. People started digging out and cleaning up. Several months later, canals and creeks were still not cleared, and flooding from late winter and spring rain was common.
The storm resulted in nine deaths and $40 million in damages (over 200 million in 2023 dollars), not counting agricultural damage. Governor Jerry Brown declared Kern County a disaster area making it eligible for Federal Aid.
The storm also posed some severe health issues. There was a considerable spike in “valley fever” cases. This disease is a result of fungal spores that become airborne with strong winds. Incredibly, dust from this event was later found in Oregon.
On a lighter note, there were about a dozen live births at the hospital in Bakersfield the following September and they were affectionately called the “Dust Storm Babies”.
Meteorological Conditions
On December 19th, 1977 the makings of this extreme dust storm were already taking place. A strong area of high pressure was building down toward the Great Basin from Idaho. At the same time, an area of low pressure was moving toward the coast of northern California.
There was an extreme pressure gradient (difference in atmospheric pressure between the areas of high and low pressure). The clockwise wind flow around the high sent east to northeast winds into California The winds were squeezed by the Tehachapi Mountains and the gusts became even stronger. “Downsloping ” winds (sometimes referred to as “Santa Ana Winds”) allowed the temperature to rise.
This surface weather map is from December 20, 1977, showing high pressure pushing toward the Great Basin and low pressure off the California coast which created strong offshore winds. Map Credit-NOAA Central Library
There had been a prolonged drought in the area that lasted through the late 1970s. This drought extended across much of the southwest U.S. Several crops like cotton were recently plowed under so there was plenty of loose soil. The dry and loose soil under the influence of wind gusts over 100 mph helped to create this incredible occurrence.
Hopefully, changes in agricultural techniques will keep an event like this from happening again.
