More wind gusts hit Northern California, as fatal Davis incident highlights tree danger
After a windy Tuesday, weather officials warn that portions of Northern California will see even stronger gusts today.
The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday for the entire Sacramento Valley. Sustained northerly winds will range from 20 mph to 30 mph, and gusts could reach 45 mph.
Gusts will accompany sunny, mid-60s weather in Sacramento, NWS forecasts show.
A tragic accident happened Tuesday morning in Davis, when a large tree branch fell on a woman at Slide Hill Park. City officials say the unidentified woman was taken to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, where she died of her injuries.
The city and its police department are still investigating the fatal accident, and neither have identified the cause of the incident.
But it is still a haunting reminder of the danger large tree branches can pose, and NWS officials continue to caution that Wednesday’s wind speeds are strong enough to knock down trees or branches like the one that fell Tuesday.
Many trees and tree limbs may have been weakened in late January, when a strong atmospheric river system brought fierce gusts that peaked over 60 mph near Sacramento.
“Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result” from the wind, NWS forecasters wrote in an overnight bulletin.
Gusts at 45 mph can also make driving difficult, the NWS Sacramento office warns.
Tuesday set heat records
NWS reports that high temperatures Tuesday afternoon broke records in both Stockton and Sacramento.
Sacramento Executive Airport reached 76 degrees, breaking the previous high for the date of 75 set 30 years earlier.
Stockton hit 77 degrees, cruising past a daily record of 73 degrees that was set in 2014.
