An upper low moved through northeast California and far northwest Nevada early morning on the 8th causing nocturnal thunderstorms to develop over the area.
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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.
The episode as NWS REV wrote it up.
An upper low moved through northeast California and far northwest Nevada early morning on the 8th causing nocturnal thunderstorms to develop over the area.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Reno, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 7, 9:39 PM PST, 4 hours 56 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV
1039 PM PDT WED SEP 7 2011
.UPDATE...
CURRENT FORECAST ON TRACK WITH DRY LIGHTNING EVENT LIKELY TONIGHT.
CONVECTION STARTING TO BUILD ACROSS THE REGION AS UPPER LOW MOVES
INTO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AND INCREASED THE MID AND UPPER LEVEL
INSTABILITY. THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING ALONG I-80 BETWEEN FERNLEY
AND LOVELOCK...AND US-95 NORTH OF FALLON. CLOUD TOP TEMPERATURES
WITH THE BAND ARE NEAR -40C...WHICH PUTS THUNDERSTORM TOPS NEAR
32000 FEET MSL. NO REPORTS OF RAINFALL...WITH RECENT OBSERVATION
FROM FALLON SHOWING CLOUD BASES AT 6000 FEET AGL OR 10000 FEET
MSL. SOME RAIN COULD BE REACHING THE GROUND...BUT WITH STORM
MOTION TO THE NORTH NEAR 15 MPH...PROBABLY NOT ENOUGH TO
COMPLETELY WET THE GROUND.
ELSEWHERE...CLOUD TOPS ARE COOLING NORTH OF SUSANVILLE AND
GERLACH...BUT NO CLOUD TO GROUND STRIKES AS OF 1030PM. BRONG
&&
.PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 300 PM PDT WED SEP 7 2011/
SHORT TERM...
SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS UPPER LOW PROGRESSING STEADILY EASTWARD
TOWARD THE NORTHERN CA COAST WITH CUMULUS DEVELOPMENT ALONG THE
LASSEN CONVERGENCE ZONE AND ALONG THE OREGON BORDER AHEAD OF
SYSTEM. SOME DEVELOPMENT WAS NOTED FURTHER SOUTH ALONG THE SIERRA
ALTHOUGH 12Z KREV SOUNDING SHOWED STRONG WARM LAYER JUST UNDER
500MB WHICH WAS CAPPING POTENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AT THIS TIME. MODELS
CONTINUE TO SHOW IMPRESSIVE VERTICAL MOTION ACROSS NORTHEAST CA
INTO NORTHWEST NV LATE THIS EVENING AND GOING INTO EARLY THURSDAY
WITH THE 12Z/18Z NAM CONTINUING TO LEAN ON THE WESTERN ENVELOPE OF
SOLUTIONS WHILE THE GFS/ECMWF/LOCAL WRF INDICATE INITIATION WILL
BE BRIEF OVER NORTHEAST CA WITH EMPHASIS SHIFTING INTO NORTHWEST
NV OVERNIGHT. MEANWHILE THE 15Z SPC SREF SHOWS A DECENT BULLSEYE
OF MUCAPE 100J/KG RIGHT OVER NORTHWEST NV. THIS FORECAST REFLECTS
A COMPROMISE AND BRINGS ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS FURTHER WEST AND
SOUTH AND BIT QUICKER. THE BEST COVERAGE OF STORMS WILL BE NORTH
OF A SUSANVILLE TO PYRAMID LAKE TO LOVELOCK LINE. FAST MOVING
CELLS (600-400MB LAYER WINDS 15-20KT) ALONG WITH WARM AND DRY
BOUNDARY LAYER WILL RESULT IN SOME STORMS PRODUCING LIMITED
RAINFALL. SEE FIRE DISCUSSION BELOW.
ORGANIZED STORMS ASSOCIATED WITH UPPER LOW WILL BE EXITING THE BASIN
AND RANGE LATE THU MORNING WITH DEFORMATION ZONE ELONGATING SOUTH OF
THE OREGON BORDER. WEAK FLOW AND LACK OF DYNAMICS WILL LIMIT
CONVECTION PRIMARILY TO DAYTIME HEATING/INSTABILITY AND THUS
COVERAGE WILL GENERALLY REMAIN ISOLATED. SLOWER CELL MOVEMENT AND
SURFACE BASED DEVELOPMENT WILL ALSO LEAD TO OVERALL WETTER STORMS.
ILL-DEFINED UPPER LOW OVER NV IS THEN FORECAST TO WORK SLOWLY
SOUTHWESTWARD AND INTO SOUTHERN-CENTRAL CA BY SAT. THIS SHOULD KEEP
INSTABILITY AND MOISTURE OVER THE AREA WITH SOME CHANCE OF SHOWERS
AND THUNDER...THE BEST AREA SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 50. A LOT WILL DEPEND
ON EXACTLY WHERE THIS FEATURE TRACKS. FOR NOW HIGHEST POPS WERE
MAINTAINED IN THE SOUTHERN ZONES WITH MORE ISOLATED ACTIVITY FURTHER
TO THE NORTH WHERE AN EAST-NORTHEAST GRADIENT WILL KEEP THE LOWER
ATMOSPHERE A BIT MORE STABLE. TEMPERATURES WILL BE A FEW DEGREES
ABOVE NORMAL. HOHMANN
LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY...
MEDIUM RANGE GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO MAINTAIN A RATHER BROAD AREA OF
LOW PRESSURE OVER CALIFORNIA WITH GENERAL AREA OF INSTBY ACROSS ERN
CA AND WRN NV THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT. THIS WILL KEEP THE THREAT
FOR ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS IN PLACE EACH DAY MAINLY
DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING...ALTHOUGH A FEW LIGHTNING
STRIKES WILL REMAIN POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT AND IN THE MORNING AS INSTBY
DOES NOT COMPLETELY GO AWAY.
WEAK IMPULSES ROTATING AROUND THE MAIN UPPER LOW WITH UNCAPPED AIR
MASS AND DECENT HIGH LEVEL LAPSE RATES AROUND 7.5 DEGREES C/KM WILL
ALLOW FOR TSTM DEVELOPMENT EACH DAY. WEAK FLOW ALOFT WILL KEEP MOST
TSTMS OF THE NEARLY STATIONARY PULSE VARIETY...ALTHOUGH INTERACTIONS
WITH OUTFLOW BOUNDARIES SHOULD PLAY A ROLE IN REDEVELOPING CELLS
INTO THE EVENING. ONE FACTOR WHICH MAY LIMIT TSTM FORMATION WOULD BE
AN EXCESS OF CLOUD COVERAGE WHICH PREVENTS VERTICAL CUMULUS GROWTH
IN THE ABSENCE OF SIGNIFICANT FORCING.
SINCE LOCATION OF SMALL SCALE FORCING AND OUTFLOW INTERACTIONS CAN
NOT BE RESOLVED FROM THE MEDIUM RANGE GUIDANCE...IT IS TOO SOON TO
PINPOINT WHICH AREAS OF THE REGION WILL HAVE A HIGHER TSTM THREAT SO
WILL KEEP A RATHER BROAD AREA OF POPS THROUGH EACH FORECAST PERIOD.
THE LOW MAY FINALLY BEGIN TO SHOW SIGNS OF WEAKENING AND EXITING
CALIFORNIA BY WEDNESDAY AS LOW LEVEL FLOW BECOMES WEST...BUT INSTBY
WILL STILL BE SLOW TO CLEAR OUT OF THE REGION.
HIGH TEMPS EACH DAY SHOULD BE NEAR SEASONAL NORMALS WITH LOWER TO
MID 80S IN MOST VALLEYS...WHILE LOWS SHOULD REMAIN SEVERAL DEGREES
ABOVE NORMAL DUE TO INCREASED CLOUD COVER OVER THE REGION. MJD
AVIATION...
VFR CONDITIONS LIKELY AT THE MAIN AIRPORTS THRU THURSDAY ALTHOUGH
HIGH BASED CUMULUS BUILDUPS WILL PREVAIL EACH AFTERNOON. ISOLD
ELEVATED CONVECTION POSSIBLE WITH CIGS GENERALLY 9000 FT OR HIGHER
MAINLY BTWN 04Z-12Z TONIGHT NEAR KRNO-KTRK-KTVL ALTHOUGH PROBABILITY
FOR DIRECT TSTM IMPACTS IS 10 PERCENT OR LESS. BETTER CHANCE FOR
TSTM DEVELOPMENT TONIGHT AND THURS AM WILL EXTEND FROM NORTH OF I-80
TO THE OREGON BORDER.
FOR THURSDAY...ISOLD TSTMS POSSIBLE AFT 20Z FROM KTVL TO KMMH WITH
PROBABILITY IF IMPACTING EITHER AIRPORT NEAR 20 PERCENT. WILL
PROBABLY KEEP AS CB WITH THE 00Z PACKAGE BUT LATER FORECASTS MAY
CONSIDER VCTS IF SUPPORTED BY NEXT SET OF MODEL GUIDANCE. FOR
KRNO-KTRK...TSTM POTENTIAL THURS AFTN IS A LITTLE LOWER...ABOUT
10-15 PERCENT. MJD
FIRE WEATHER...
NOCTURNAL CONVECTION STILL EXPECTED TONIGHT OVER ROUGHLY THE
NORTHERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA. DEFORMATION ZONE DEVELOPS IN A
LINE FROM ALTURAS TOWARDS GERLACH/SUSANVILLE WITH LARGE 500 MB
RELATIVE HUMIDITY RESPONSE INDICATING BEST UPPER LEVEL DIFFLUENCE
AND LIFT IN THAT AREA. STEERING FLOW WILL BE BETWEEN 15 TO 20 KNOTS
AND WITH THE HIGH BASES...THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE DRY OR PRODUCE VERY
LITTLE RAINFALL. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO A RED
FLAG WARNING FOR NORTHEAST CALIFORNIA AND EXTREME NORTHWEST NEVADA
AND THE NEVADA BASIN AND RANGE.
THUNDERSTORMS WILL BECOME MORE DISORGANIZED THURSDAY AS THE UPPER
LOW MOVES INTO NV AND DYNAMICS MOVE EAST. THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD START
TO PRODUCE WETTING RAINS DUE TO LIGHT STEERING FLOW AND SLOWER STORM
MOTIONS. SO CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS WILL END ALL WESTERN NV
AREAS BY MIDDAY.
BY THURSDAY EVENING AS THE LOW PRESSURE AREA SINKS SOUTHWARD...AN
NORTHEAST TO EAST SURFACE GRADIENT DEVELOPS NORTH OF HIGHWAY 50 AND
WILL BRING LOCALLY GUSTY NORTHEAST WINDS THAT MAY CONTINUE INTO
SATURDAY MORNING. FOR NOW IT APPEARS WINDS WILL STAY BELOW CRITICAL
FIRE WEATHER LEVELS. HOWEVER FIRE PERSONNEL SHOULD BE AWARE OF THESE
WINDS SHOULD ANY NEW FIRES DEVELOP WITH THE LIGHTNING EVENT TONIGHT.
EKL
&&
.REV WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NV...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 8 AM PDT THURSDAY NVZ458.
RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 11 AM PDT THURSDAY NVZ453.
CA...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 8 AM PDT THURSDAY CAZ270-271-278.
&&
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RENOThe national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A spotter in Stagecoach measured a thunderstorm wind gust to 70 mph which caused a power outage and possibly the breaking of a utility pole.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, September 2011
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: 340217.