Excessive Heat Warning criteria were reached in Las Vegas on July 1st, and nearly reached on the 2nd and 3rd. Four people died of heat related causes during this period - three in Las Vegas and one in Death Valley.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 VEF wrote it up.
Excessive Heat Warning criteria were reached in Las Vegas on July 1st, and nearly reached on the 2nd and 3rd. Four people died of heat related causes during this period - three in Las Vegas and one in Death Valley.
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 Las Vegas, NV wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 3, 9:05 AM PST, 3 hours 55 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 1005 AM PDT THU JUL 3 2014 .SYNOPSIS...MONSOON MOISTURE WILL PUSH INTO NORTHWEST ARIZONA ON INDEPENDENCE DAY AND SPREAD FARTHER NORTHWEST OVER THE WEEKEND...BRINGING INCREASING CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS AND KNOCKING TEMPERATURES DOWN A FEW MORE DEGREES. THUNDERSTORM CHANCES ARE LIKELY TO CONTINUE AT LEAST THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. && .UPDATE...12Z MODELS ARE INDICATING A BIT MORE MOISTURE AND INSTABILITY IN PLACES TODAY THAN PREVIOUSLY INDICATED OR FORECAST. I UPDATED TO INCREASE POPS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING OVER EASTERN MOHAVE COUNTY AND NORTHERN LINCOLN COUNTY. -HARRISON- && .PREV DISCUSSION... 302 AM PDT THU JUL 3 2014 .SHORT TERM...THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT...SATELLITE LOOP SHOWED SCATTERED MID LEVEL CLOUDS DEVELOPING OVER MOHAVE COUNTY AND SLOWLY EXPANDING TOWARD CLARK AND SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES. SKIES WERE CLEAR FARTHER NORTHWEST. SURFACE OBS SHOWED LIGHT WINDS AND VERY WARM TEMPERATURES. TEMPS WILL BE LESS HOT TODAY THAN THE PREVIOUS COUPLE OF DAYS...THEN THE FOCUS QUICKLY TURNS TO MONSOON MOISTURE AND ASSOCIATED THUNDERSTORM CHANCES. MODELS AGREE ON A GOOD PUSH OF MOISTURE FROM THE SOUTHEAST ON FRIDAY...FOLLOWED BY AN INVERTED TROUGH MEANDERING ACROSS THE DESERTS ON SATURDAY. THIS DEFINITELY SPELLS INCREASING THUNDERSTORM CHANCES...PARTICULARLY IN THE SOUTHERN AND EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA. THE MAIN SOURCE OF UNCERTAINTY IS WHETHER THE DAYS WILL START OUT MOSTLY SUNNY OR PARTLY CLOUDY...THUS ALLOWING FOR PLENTY OF SOLAR HEATING TO HELP TRIGGER STORMS...OR IF SKIES WILL BE OVERCAST IN THE MORNING AND HEATING WILL BE INHIBITED. THIS QUESTION IS RARELY PREDICTABLE WITH ANY RELIABILITY BEYOND A DAY OR SO...THUS THE FORECAST IS A COMPROMISE BETWEEN THE TWO SCENARIOS. IF THE SLOW MOVING INVERTED TROUGH VERIFIES...THERE COULD BE A SIGNIFICANT THREAT OF FLASH FLOODING ON SATURDAY. STAY TUNED. .LONG TERM...SUNDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY...PER THE PREVIOUS DISCUSSION REGARDING THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY IN THE LONG TERM, CONFIDENCE IS STILL NOT INCREASING WITH THE GFS REMAINING WET WHILE THE ECMWF KEEPS THE DEEPER MONSOON MOISTURE PLUME EAST OF THE AREA. WITH THAT SAID, THEY DO SEEM TO AGREE ON MOHAVE COUNTY BEING TARGETED PRETTY MUCH EVERY AFTERNOON/EVENING FROM SUNDAY THROUGH MID WEEK. BASED ON THIS, POPS WERE INCREASED A BIT MORE FROM THE INHERITED FORECAST. WENT AHEAD AND INCREASED POPS TO A SLIGHT CHANCE IN SAN BERNARDINO AND SOUTHERN INYO COUNTIES AS WELL. NOT BECAUSE MODELS FORECAST HIGHER CHANCES IN THESE AREAS THAN PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT BUT BECAUSE THERE IS POTENTIAL FOR OUTFLOW BOUNDARIES FROM THUNDERSTORMS IN MORE FAVORABLE DEVELOPMENT AREAS TO SPREAD INTO LESS FAVORABLE AREAS. IT IS TOO EARLY TO SPECULATE ON PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS AND IT WILL BE LARGELY DEPENDENT ON HOW QUICKLY THE MOISTURE MOVES IN, HOW DEEP IT IS AND HOW FAR WEST AND NORTH IT PUSHES. LOOKING AT OTHER WEATHER PARAMETERS...NO SIGNIFICANT WINDS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE PERIOD OTHER THAN THOSE ASSOCIATED WITH COLLAPSING THUNDERSTORMS. CLOUD COVER WILL VARY TO A GREAT DEGREE DEPENDING ON THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT AND LEFT OVER DEBRIS CLOUDS. TEMPERATURES ARE FORECAST TO GENERALLY BE A FEW DEGREES ABOVE NORMAL EACH DAY AND WITH HIGHER DEW POINT TEMPS FORECAST, IT COULD FEEL SOMEWHAT MUGGY AT TIMES. && .AVIATION...FOR MCCARRAN...VERY HOT TEMPERATURES WILL RESULT IN HIGH DENSITY ALTITUDES AND LOW LEVEL TURBULENCE AGAIN TODAY. CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS WILL INCREASE ESPECIALLY OVER THE MORMON MESA AND PEACH SPRINGS CORRIDORS ON INDEPENDENCE DAY...WITH A SLIGHT CHANCE AT KLAS. THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL LIKELY CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND INTO NEXT WEEK. FOR THE REST OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...NORTHWEST ARIZONA...AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA...VERY HOT TEMPERATURES WILL RESULT IN HIGH DENSITY ALTITUDES AND LOW LEVEL TURBULENCE AGAIN TODAY. THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL INCREASE ON INDEPENDENCE DAY OVER MOHAVE...CLARK AND SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES. THE MAIN THREATS WILL BE LIGHTNING...GUSTY ERRATIC WINDS...AND HEAVY RAIN WITH LOW CEILINGS. THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL LIKELY CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND AND INTO NEXT WEEK. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY. && MORGAN/SALMEN FOR MORE FORECAST INFORMATION...SEE US ON OUR WEBPAGE: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/LASVEGAS OR FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 321 AM PDT THU JUL 3 2014 AZZ001>003-036-CAZ519>527-NVZ014>022-040700- NORTHWEST PLATEAU-LOWER COLORADO RIVER VALLEY-NORTHWEST DESERTS- LAKE MEAD NATIONAL RECREATION AREA-EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES- OWENS VALLEY-WHITE MOUNTAINS OF INYO COUNTY- DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK-WESTERN MOJAVE DESERT- EASTERN MOJAVE DESERT-MORONGO BASIN-CADIZ BASIN- SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY-UPPER COLORADO RIVER VALLEY- ESMERALDA AND CENTRAL NYE COUNTY-LINCOLN COUNTY- NORTHEAST CLARK COUNTY-WESTERN CLARK AND SOUTHERN NYE COUNTY- SHEEP RANGE-SPRING MOUNTAINS-LAS VEGAS VALLEY- SOUTHERN CLARK COUNTY- 321 AM PDT THU JUL 3 2014 /321 AM MST THU JUL 3 2014/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST ARIZONA...CALIFORNIA AND SOUTHERN NEVADA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT TEMPERATURES WILL BE ONLY SLIGHTLY LESS HOT TODAY THAN THE PREVIOUS TWO DAYS. CONTINUE TO STAY COOL AND HYDRATED TO BEAT THE HEAT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY MONSOON MOISTURE MOVING IN FROM THE SOUTHEAST WILL BRING CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS MAINLY TO AREAS SOUTHEAST OF INTERSTATE 15 ON FRIDAY...SPREADING AREAWIDE BY SUNDAY. THE MAIN THREATS WILL BE FLASH FLOODING...ERRATIC GUSTY WINDS AND DANGEROUS LIGHTNING FOR MOST OF THE AREA...BUT A FEW DRY LIGHTNING STRIKES AND WILDFIRE STARTS WILL BE POSSIBLE OVER INYO...ESMERALDA AND CENTRAL NYE COUNTIES. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED TODAY. HOWEVER...SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MORGAN
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 excessive heat. Local standard time, as filed.
One man died of heat stroke in Death Valley. His body was found on the 6th, but he had apparently been dead for three to four days.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excessive Heat, Death Valley National Park | 2014-07-03 | 50 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in California, July 2014
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: 536162.