A powerful storm system brought high winds across much of northern Nevada. Widespread gusts of 60 to 70 mph were reported.
Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 LKN wrote it up.
A powerful storm system brought high winds across much of northern Nevada. Widespread gusts of 60 to 70 mph were reported.
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 Elko, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 24, 4:03 PM PST, 8 hours 57 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 403 PM PST FRI FEB 24 2012 .SYNOPSIS...HIGH PRESSURE IS RAPIDLY ON THE WAY OUT OF THE STATE AS THE NEXT STORM SYSTEM MOVES IN. THIS NEXT SYSTEM MAY BRING A COUPLE INCHES OF SNOW TO NORTHERN NEVADA BUT THE MAIN CONCERN WILL BE THE STRONG WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH A COLD FRONT BEGINNING EARLY SATURDAY MORNING AND EXTENDING INTO SATURDAY EVENING. && .SHORT TERM...ROUGH FORECAST FRANKLY DESPITE MODELS BEING IN GOOD AGREEMENT. RAPID MOVEMENT OF SYSTEM ACROSS THE STATE RESULTS IN SOME TIMING ISSUES. NOT MUCH MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH THE SYSTEM...MOSTLY CONCENTRATED IN THE NORTH...SO ONLY MINOR ACCUMULATIONS MENTIONED IN THE NORTH ZONES AND RUBIES. BIGGEST ISSUE IS WIND...TIMING OF FRONT/STRENGTH OF GRADIENT-WINDS/HOW MUCH GUSTINESS TO USE/ETC. HAVE RESOLVED TO KEEP IT AS SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE WITH A WIND ADVISORY ACROSS HUMBOLDT COUNTY/SOUTHERN ELKO COUNTY/NORTH EUREKA-LANDER COUNTIES THIS EVENING THROUGH SATURDAY AFTERNOON...HIGH WIND WARNING NORTH ELKO...EAST ELKO...RUBIES TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY AFTERNOON...AND WIND ADVISORY SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH SATURDAY EARLY EVENING FOR THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA. EXPECT WINDS WILL GUST HIGHER IN HIGHER TERRAIN..AND ALONG EAST SLOPES OF RUBIES AND IN RUBY/CLOVER VALLEYS. FRONT DEPARTS AREA SATURDAY LEAVING A MUCH WEAKER GRADIENT IN ITS WAKE...EXPECT THE WINDS TO DIE OFF PRETTY QUICKLY...WITH MINOR RIDGING MOVING IN SUNDAY. ANOTHER SYSTEM APPROACHES LATER SUNDAY SO THE LIMITED DRY BREAK IS OVER. THE COLD FRONT IF PRETTY POTENT...SO TEMPS ALL WEEKEND WILL BE COLD .LONG TERM...MONDAY MORNING THROUGH NEXT FRIDAY. COLD AND SNOWY WEEK EXPECTED AS 500MB PATTERN OVER THE WESTERN CONUS WILL REMAIN PROGRESSIVE WITH TWO DEEP TROUGHS EXPECTED TO IMPACT THE GREAT BASIN. MODEL CONFIDENCE IS ABOVE AVG FOR THIS PERIOD WITH GOOD 500MB HEIGHT AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GFS/EC/UKMET. TEMPS WILL RUN BELOW AVG WITH ABOVE AVG PRECIP EXPECTED ACROSS NORTHERN NEVADA. MONDAY MORNING SURFACE CYCLYOGENESIS WILL DEVELOP OVER EASTERN NV AS A POSITIVELY TILTED TROUGH DIGS AND DEEPENS ACROSS THE GREAT BASIN. ALL MODELS ARE NOW HINTING AT A 700MB CONVERGENCE ZONE DEVELOPING ACROSS EASTERN NV FROM 12-21Z ON MONDAY...AS 500/700MB CLOSED LOW DEEPENS CAUSING THE TROUGH TO BECOME SLIGHTLY NEGATIVELY TILTED. THIS SHOULD ALLOW FOR SNOW TE DEVELOP EARLY MONDAY MORNING...WITH WIDESPREAD ACCUMULATING SNOW EXPECTED. THE ONLY MITIGATING FACTOR AT THIS TIME IS MOISTURE IS NOT STELLAR...BUT FEEL RESIDENCE TIME COULD MAKE UP FOR THIS AND ALLOW FOR AT LEAST ADVISORY LEVEL SNOWFALL. DO FELL IT COULD BE A LARGE IMPACT EVENT DUE TO VERY COLD TEMPS ALLOWING ROADS TEMPS TO BE BELOW ZERO DURING MONDAY MORNINGS COMMUTE. WILL HAVE TO WATCH THIS SYSTEM OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS...AS MODELS SOMETIMES UNDER DO THE DEVELOPING 700-500MB FGEN SNOW BANDS IN THE GREAT BASIN. SNOW IS EXPECTED TO TAPER OFF MONDAY NIGHT WITH PARTIAL CLEARING TUESDAY MORNING...AS A WEAK SHORTWAVE RIDGE QUICKLY PUSHES THROUGH THE REGION. QUICK ON ITS HEELS IS THE SECOND 500MB SHORTWAVE OF THE WEEK...THAT WILL QUICKLY OVERSPREAD THE AREA TUESDAY NIGHT INTO THE DAY ON WEDNESDAY. CURRENTLY LOOKS LIKE THIS SYSTEM WILL MOSTLY ONLY IMPACT NORTHERN NV WITH SIGNIFICANTLY ACCUMULATIONS POSSIBLE ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS OF HUMBOLDT AND ELKO COUNTIES. THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY HEIGHTS ARE EXPECTED TO RISE AS A DIRTY RIDGE PUSHES INTO THE REGION...LEAVING NORTHWEST FLOW OVER THE REGION. IT SHOULD REMAIN MOSTLY CLOUDY ACROSS THE NORTH WITH AMPLE MID/HIGH LEVEL MOISTURE PUSHING THROUGH THE REGION...BUT TEMPS WILL MODERATE BACK TOWARDS NORMAL WITH HIGHS IN THE 40S ONCE AGAIN. && .AVIATION...A VERY STRONG COLD FRONT WILL QUICKLY PUSH INTO NORTHERN NV TONIGHT. THE LARGEST IMPACT TO TAF TERMINALS WILL BE THE STRONG WINDS ASSOCIATED WITH IT. WINDS WILL BEGIN TO INCREASE AFTER MIDNIGHT OUT OF THE SOUTHWEST AT 20KTS...BEFORE BACKING TO THE WEST BY DAYBREAK BEHIND THE COLD FRONT AND INCREASING TO 30-35KTS. WINDS WILL REMAIN BRISK THROUGHOUT THE DAY ON SATURDAY. IN ADDITION THERE COULD BE SOME LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS IN THE VICINITY OF KEKO...BUT NO MAJOR RESTRICTIONS TO VISIBILITY ARE EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. && .LKN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... HIGH WIND WARNING FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO 4 PM PST SATURDAY FOR EXTREME EASTERN ELKO COUNTY...NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY...RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE. WIND ADVISORY FROM 10 PM THIS EVENING TO 4 PM PST SATURDAY FOR HUMBOLDT COUNTY...NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY...SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY. WIND ADVISORY FROM 4 AM TO 7 PM PST SATURDAY FOR NORTHERN NYE COUNTY...SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY... WHITE PINE COUNTY. && 98/95/95
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 334 PM PST FRI FEB 24 2012 NVZ013-030>037-252345- NORTHERN NYE COUNTY-HUMBOLDT COUNTY-NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY- SOUTHWEST AND SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY- EXTREME EASTERN ELKO COUNTY-RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE- WHITE PINE COUNTY- NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- 334 PM PST FRI FEB 24 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL NEVADA...NORTH CENTRAL NEVADA...NORTHEAST NEVADA...NORTHWEST NEVADA AND SOUTH CENTRAL NEVADA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. THE NEXT WEATHER SYSTEM WILL BRING STRONG WINDS TO THE REGION STARTING TONIGHT. A COLD FRONT WILL AFFECT NORTHWEST NEVADA AROUND MIDNIGHT AND MOVE QUICKLY THROUGH THE REGION. STRONG...POSSIBLY DAMAGING...WINDS WILL PICK UP ACROSS HIGHER TERRAIN FIRST AND DESCEND INTO THE VALLEYS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. WIND WILL BE OF UTMOST CONCERN AGAIN SATURDAY AS A COLD FRONT CONTINUES TO MOVE THROUGH THE GREAT BASIN REGION. WIND GUSTS ARE EXPECTED TO PEAK AROUND 60 MPH AS THE FRONT QUICKLY MOVES THROUGH THE STATE SATURDAY. SNOW ACCUMULATION OF UP TO 2 INCHES IN THE VALLEYS IS POSSIBLE AS THE FRONT MOVES THROUGH. TEMPERATURES COULD FALL TO BELOW ZERO IN SELECTED VALLEY LOCATIONS SUNDAY MORNING. TWO OR THREE MORE STORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH THE SILVER STATE NEXT WEEK...THE NEXT ONE OCCURRING ON MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO REPORT WEATHER PHENOMENA ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
6 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A wind gust to 76 mph was recorded by the Double H RAWS. A gust to 60 mph was recorded at the Golconda NDOT mesonet site. In Orovada winds gusting to near 70 mph damaged trees, blew gated pipelines apart, broke them, and scattered pieces more than 1/2 mile across fields.
A gust to 67 mph was reported by the Pole Creek RAWS, while a gust to 63 mph was reported by the Long Hollow RAWS.
A gust to 64 mph was reported by the Emigrant Pass NDOT mesonet site, and a gust to 63 mph was recorded at the Battle Mountain NDOT mesonet site.
A wind gust to 73 mph was reported by the Warm Springs NDOT mesonet site, a gust to 65 mph at the Pequop NDOT mesonet site, a gust to 63 mph at the Clover Valley mesonet site, and a gust to 60 mph at the Palamino NDOT mesonet site.
A wind gust to 88 mph was recorded at the Ruby Valley RAWS.
A large barn was blown down in Diamond Valley.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, February 2012
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: 361993, 362024, 362037, 362028, 362030, 362039.