Wind events in Santa Cruz County, California The wind events on record, by date and by year
This page is a county record of past events and claims. It does not show the flood zone or the risk of an address. For the flood map of an address, use FEMA's address search (opens in a new tab).
NCEI has 11 wind events on record for Santa Cruz County, California, from 1955 through 30 Jun 2026.
The newest wind event on record is on 25 Dec 2025.
From 2016 through 2025, NCEI has 7 wind events on record for the county.
The NWS collects event reports from a variety of sources, which include (but are not limited to): county, state, and federal emergency management officials, local law enforcement officials, SKYWARN spotters, NWS damage surveys, newspaper clipping services, the insurance industry, and the general public, among others.
The National Weather Service reports property and crop damage estimates using available data at the time of event reporting. These values should therefore be considered broad estimates. Damage amounts are not adjusted for inflation.
Zone (NWS Forecast Zone): A zone is a geographic area defined by the NWS for issuing forecasts, watches, and warnings. While zones often align with counties, they can also represent smaller or subdivided areas within a county to account for differences in weather conditions, such as elevation or proximity to water. Larger-scale events—such as heat, cold, drought, and winter storms—are typically recorded by zone.
The words of the agency. Source: NOAA NCEI, Storm Events Database, page "Frequently Asked Questions", copied on .
Date of the data: NCEI storm events through . Event types on this page: Thunderstorm Wind, High Wind, Strong Wind.
Newest wind events on record
Thunderstorm Wind67 mph (58 knots, estimated gust)
At REDWOOD GROVE
Thunderstorm Wind91 mph (79 knots, measured gust)
2 miles SE of SANTA CRUZ
Thunderstorm Wind58 mph (50 knots, estimated gust)
1 mile N of CAPITOLA. Damage estimate: $10
Thunderstorm Wind75 mph (65 knots, estimated gust)
2 miles N of ELLICOTT. Damage estimate: $10
Thunderstorm Wind58 mph (50 knots, estimated gust)
1 mile NW of WILDWOOD. Damage estimate: $10
Thunderstorm Wind58 mph (50 knots, measured gust)
3 miles WNW of SWANTON
Thunderstorm Wind46 mph (40 knots, estimated gust)
1 mile SSW of BEN LOMOND
High Wind67 mph (58 knots, measured gust)
On record for the forecast zone
High Wind78 mph (68 knots)
On record for the forecast zone. Damage estimate: $500 thousand
High Wind69 mph (60 knots)
On record for the forecast zone. Damage estimate: $100 thousand
High Wind63 mph (55 knots)
On record for the forecast zone
A place is the text of the NCEI record: a distance and a direction from a reference place. The site does not show a place text that names a private property or reads as a person. Wind speed is in miles per hour, with the knots that NCEI gives.
Wind events by year
| Decade | Year that ends in 0 | Year that ends in 1 | Year that ends in 2 | Year that ends in 3 | Year that ends in 4 | Year that ends in 5 | Year that ends in 6 | Year that ends in 7 | Year that ends in 8 | Year that ends in 9 | All |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1960s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1970s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1980s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2000s | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 2010s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020s | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 (part of the year) | 7 |
A darker cell has a larger count. The number is in each cell.
Thunderstorm wind events are on record from 1955. High wind and strong wind events are on record from 1996. The year 2026 has the events through 30 Jun 2026 only.
By month, all years
- Jan1 event
- Feb1 event
- Mar2 events
- Apr2 events
- May0 events
- Jun0 events
- Jul0 events
- Aug2 events
- Sep0 events
- Oct0 events
- Nov1 event
- Dec2 events
Magnitudes on record
| Wind speed | Level | Events |
|---|---|---|
| under 58 mph | below severe threshold | 4 |
| 58 to 73 mph | severe | 4 |
| 74 to 95 mph | hurricane-force | 3 |
| 96 mph and over | extreme | 0 |
Magnitude for wind speeds (e.g., 81 kts, where 1 kt = 1.152 mph) can be estimated by damage caused or measured by official NWS-approved calibrated anemometers. Common measurement types include Measured Gust (MG), Measured Sustained (MS), Estimated Gust (EG), or Estimated Sustained (ES).
The table has the events with a speed in the record. NCEI gives the speed in knots; 1 knot is 1.151 miles per hour.
Beside the other counties
| Measure | Santa Cruz | All counties of California | All counties of the United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wind events, 1955 to 2026 | 11 | 1,890 | 637,939 |
| Events for each 100 square miles | 2.5 | 1.2 | 18.1 |
| Events for each 10,000 residents | 0.4 | 0.5 | 19.2 |
The columns for the state and the United States total the counties. They count the events of each county in the same way as the county column. A forecast zone with another name than a county counts for the state only.
Official channels
- NCEI Storm Events Database (opens in a new tab)Search the full NCEI record by state, county and date.
- National Weather Service: San Francisco Bay Area, CA (opens in a new tab)The forecast office that issues the weather warnings for the county.
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center: Search By Address (opens in a new tab)Search an address to see its flood map. This site has no flood-zone data.
These links open the pages of the agencies. The site checked the links on .
Cite this page
County Hazards. "Wind events on record for Santa Cruz County, California". https://countyhazards.com/county/ca/santa-cruz/wind/. Data: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database through 30 Jun 2026. Page made on .
Questions
- Which month has the most wind events on record for Santa Cruz County?
- March has 2 of the 11 wind events on record from 1955 through 30 Jun 2026.
- How many wind events are on record for California?
- NCEI has 10,880 wind events on record for California from 1955 through 30 Jun 2026. That count has every forecast zone of the state.
- How does Santa Cruz County compare with the other counties of California?
- The counties of California have 1.2 wind events for each 100 square miles. Santa Cruz County has 2.5.
- How fast is the wind on record for Santa Cruz County?
- 7 wind events have a speed of 58 mph or more. 3 events have a speed of 74 mph or more.