whether the weather: blog 
whether the weather's blog
today in weather history
by IrishiiiPublished Jun. 17, 2009
Views: 37
1988 - Severe thunderstorms produced large hail and damaging winds in the Carolinas. Thunderstorm winds gusted to 75 mph at Eden, NC.
1859 - Santa Ana winds were so hot and dry near Santa Barbara in southern California, the citrus and avocado fruit roasted on the trees.
What are Santa Ana winds?
The Santa Ana winds are strong, extremely dry offshore winds that characteristically sweep through in Southern California and northern Baja California in late fall into winter. They can range from hot to cold, depending on the prevailing temperatures in the source regions, the Great Basin and upper Mojave Desert. However, the winds are remembered most for the hot dry weather that they bring in the fall.
The same thing happens here in the Piedmont of North Carolina. The next time we have strong southwesterly winds, you can almost be assured it’s going to be a hot, dry day. When southwesterly winds come across the Appalachians, the air rapidly descends, adiabatic warming is induced by the compression, and here in the Triangle area, we get a hot and dry day. With strong southwesterly winds going on Friday, this is going to push highs here into the upper 90s.
These are the same weather conditions which helped the rapid spread of the massive Pine Knolls Townhomes Fire in Raleigh in March 2007 that burned over 38 homes.
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