On 5 March 2022 the modelled gust at Fountain Valley hit about 42 mph, well short of the 58 mph severe-wind threshold but strong enough to pull at anything on a roof already loose, so damage that day was possible but not guaranteed and depends on the roof's prior condition.
How strong was the 5 March 2022 wind in Fountain Valley
According to the Open-Meteo ERA5 reanalysis archive, the daily maximum 10 meter gust modelled at Fountain Valley on 5 March 2022 was about 42 mph. That number comes from a reanalysis model at the city's coordinates, not a mast reading off a roof or a backyard weather station, so it will not match what any single instrument on your block recorded that day.
What the figure is useful for is comparison. It lets you line up 5 March 2022 against other days in the storm record for Fountain Valley and see which ones were actually worth worrying about, rather than guessing from memory which storm was the bad one.
Is 42 mph enough to damage a roof
42 mph sits below the 58 mph severe threshold used in the storm record for Fountain Valley. That threshold marks the point where wind starts doing damage to roofing that is in sound condition. Below it, a roof installed correctly and with no existing problems is unlikely to suffer new damage from the wind alone.
The gap between 42 and 58 mph is the part worth paying attention to. It is not strong enough to lift a well-fastened shingle or tear a ridge cap off clean, but it is more than enough to find anything already loose: a shingle with failed sealant, a flashing edge that was never nailed tight, a vent boot that had started to crack. Wind in that band does not create weakness. It exposes it.
What should have been checked on a roof after that gust
After a day like 5 March 2022, the useful check is not for storm damage in the dramatic sense but for small things that moved. Shingle tabs along exposed edges and corners, where wind load concentrates, are the first place to look. A tab that lifted and resealed crooked, or one that did not reseal at all, is easy to miss from the ground.
Flashing around chimneys, skylights, and wall-to-roof transitions is the second place. These are mechanically fastened rather than sealed, so a 42 mph gust can work a loose nail or clip without leaving any obvious sign at ground level. None of this requires a dramatic storm to matter. It requires a roof that already had a weak point for the wind to find.
How does 5 March 2022 compare to other wind days on record
The value of the storm record for Fountain Valley is in the comparison, not in any single day. A 42 mph gust on its own tells you little. Set against the 58 mph severe threshold and against other recorded days, it tells you this was a moderate wind event, not a severe one, and that damage from it would most likely be limited to roofs with pre-existing weak points rather than widespread failure.
If a roof shows new damage that is first noticed after a date like 5 March 2022, checking the modelled gust for that specific day against the 58 mph threshold is a reasonable first step before assuming the wind alone caused it. A gust well under the severe line points toward a roof that had an existing problem before the wind arrived.
What to do if you suspect wind damage from that day
A homeowner who wants a second set of eyes on roof condition after 5 March 2022 can describe the roof's age, any visible shingle lifting, and flashing condition when requesting quotes. The request gets placed in front of local contractors that cover the Fountain Valley ZIP code automatically, in under 60 seconds, and no more than three of them can take it on.
From there it is up to the reader to compare what each contractor says about the roof and decide how to proceed. Describing specific locations, like a corner where shingles look lifted or a flashing edge that looks loose, gives contractors something concrete to assess rather than a general complaint about an old storm.