Nevada, 1997

Flash Flooding in Nevada, September 3, 1997

September 3, 1997 · NWS VEF · 3 events in 1 county or zone

A second day of heavy rain producing thunderstorms lead to more flash flooding in the Pahrump Valley. At 11:35 am PST, the Nevada Highway Patrol reported a wall of water crossing State Route 160 near mile marker four.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$2.7 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS VEF wrote it up.

A second day of heavy rain producing thunderstorms lead to more flash flooding in the Pahrump Valley. At 11:35 am PST, the Nevada Highway Patrol reported a wall of water crossing State Route 160 near mile marker four. The road remain closed for several hours. At 12:32 pm PST, the Pahrump Fire Department reported a number of roads flooded and barricaded in and around Pahrump. By 1:40 pm PST, a state of emergency had been declared for Pahrump due to numerous road closures and damage caused by the flooding.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Nye

When
September 3, 11:35 AM PST
Where
Nye County, Pahrump
Coordinates
38.042, -116.472 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Nye

When
September 3, 12:32 PM PST
Where
Nye County, Pahrump
Coordinates
38.042, -116.472 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flash Flood, Nye

When
September 3, 1:40 PM PST
Where
Nye County, Pahrump
Property damage
$2.7 million
Coordinates
38.042, -116.472 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Nevada in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, September 1997

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5620183, 5620184, 5620185.