168
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$13.6M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Riverside County, California: 168 recorded events between 1973 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 88. That places the county #1,340 nationally and #2 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Riverside County, California: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Riverside County is the 2010s, when 48 of the county's 168 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Riverside County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 18.1% of all recorded severe weather across 12 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,340 for this hazard and #2 within California, putting it in the 57.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Aug is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Riverside County with 72 recorded events, while Jun is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 31, 2021 | CHIRIACO SUMMIT | 50 | 0 | 1 | $30K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 18, 2026 | WEISEL | 50 | $0 |
| Sep 18, 2025 | PALM DESERT | 54 | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2025 | BANNING MUNI ARPT | 50 | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2025 | GILMAN HOT SPGS | 63 | $0 |
| Aug 25, 2025 | PERRIS | 36 | $1K |
| Aug 25, 2025 | PERRIS | 66 | $0 |
| Sep 9, 2024 | PERRIS | 62 | $40K |
| Sep 9, 2024 | PERRIS | 47 | $10K |
| Sep 9, 2024 | PERRIS | 43 | $10K |
| Sep 9, 2024 | SUN CITY | 46 | $10K |
Other hazards here
More from Riverside County
- Flash Flood 295
- Flood 132
- Wildfire 96
- Heavy Rain 92
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Estimated 8 million in damage reported from thunderstorms microburst. Up to 20 utility poles downed, snapped or damaged in Imperial Irrigation District. Thunderstorms collapsed on desert floor. Strong winds also brought down a large tree onto a vehicle, trapping a man inside.
Rob Balfour reported strong winds at the Buck Fire base camp at Diamond Lake, with estimated max gusts of 60 mph. The winds destroyed two large tents, several camping tents and some awnings. A few port-a-potties overturned as well.
A severe thunderstorm caused significant straight-line wind damage from a wet microburst on the east side of Perris on Nuevo Road near Menifee Road. Several power poles were snapped completely and fell over like dominoes. Several vehicles were trapped in between the downed poles, though no one was injured. Law enforcement was called in to close off several roads in the area. The wind also tore up some roofing on a few homes in the area. This damage was likely caused by winds from a microburst and not the nearby landspout, though both were the result of the same parent thunderstorm cell.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Riverside County, California?
168 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Riverside County between 1973 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Riverside County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Riverside County measured 88.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Riverside County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Riverside County, California.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/california/riverside-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.