A rare weather event called “The Palmdale Mountain Wave” buffeted parts of the Antelope Valley Monday, causing sustained winds of more than 50 miles per hour accompanied by gusts of more than 70 mph, forecasters said.
It started about 8 p.m. Sunday and was still blowing after 3 a.m. Monday, well over the “few hours” it usually lasts, National Weather Service Meteorologist Curt Kaplan told City News Service.
The Palmdale Mountain Wave is caused when southwesterly air flowing over the San Gabriel Mountains is met by “an inversion on top that pushes the air down,” Kaplan said. The result is sustained high winds and higher gusts, which were felt in Lake Palmdale, Lancaster, Palmdale, Poppy Park, Grass Mountain and Valyermo, he said.
The event usually occurs before a storm front comes through, which was the case Monday, Kaplan said.
The sustained winds and high gusts have blown down five trees in Palmdale, Sgt. Philip Anderson of the Palmdale sheriff’s station said. The station has also received an increased number of calls due to alarms set off by doors and windows rattling, he said.
A news videographer in Palmdale captured a picture of a car driving into a fallen tree in the 37500 block of 20th Street East and the videographer said he was pushed by the wind while shooting the footage.