Coachella Valley Dodges Thunderstorms As Other Areas See Heavy Rain
The National Weather Service called off warnings issued earlier Thursday afternoon after thunderstorms over the Coachella Valley and Twentynine Palms weakend.
At 3:30pm, the NWS had traced a strong thunderstorm with heavy rain, hail and lightning over the San Jacinto wilderness.
Hail up to the size of pennies and wind gusts of 50-miles-per-hour were whipping through the region with heavy rain and dangerous lightning.
Not a lot of rain had fallen in Palm Springs, where the afternoon high was around 110 degrees.
Around 3 p.m., several lightning strikes were recorded in the Hemet and Anza area, a California Highway Patrol officer said.
“There were several lightning strikes, heavy winds,” said CHP Officer Scott Beauchene. “When I looked outside I could see the lightning cell.”
In the eastern end of the Coachella Valley, high winds had produced a dust cloud that reduced visibility along the 86 Expressway, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The National Weather Service Doppler radar indicated very heavy rain from a thunderstorm near Twentynine Palms. The warning issued there was also canceled by the National Weather Service.
