Low pressure moved over west-central Nevada on the 21st, bringing slow-moving thunderstorms with heavy rainfall to the southern Dixie Valley during the afternoon.
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The episode as NWS REV wrote it up.
Low pressure moved over west-central Nevada on the 21st, bringing slow-moving thunderstorms with heavy rainfall to the southern Dixie Valley during the afternoon.
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 21, 2:06 PM PST, 2 hours 9 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV 306 PM PDT SUN SEP 21 2014 .SYNOPSIS... SOUTHWEST FLOW AND BUILDING HIGH PRESSURE WILL THEN BRING WARMER AND DRIER CONDITIONS TO THE REGION THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK, ALONG WITH SMOKE TO THE REGION FROM THE ONGOING KING FIRE. STRONGER LOW PRESSURE BRINGS INCREASING WINDS AND COOLER TEMPERATURES WITH POSSIBLE RAIN LATER IN THE WEEK. && .SHORT TERM... LIGHT RAINFALL TODAY THROUGH THE SIERRA AND UP THROUGH FAR NORTHWEST NEVADA AS THE LOW PRESSURE PIVOTED THROUGH THE AREA. THE AREA THAT RECEIVED THE HIGHEST RAINFALL WAS IN EASTERN PERSHING AND CHURCHILL COUNTIES LAST NIGHT WHERE UP TO 0.50" FELL. OTHERWISE, ONLY LIGHT RAIN WAS REPORTED FOR OTHER AREAS. A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED IN WESTERN NEVADA THIS AFTERNOON. ONE SHOWER THAT MOVED INTO FERNLEY EARLIER PRODUCED BRIEF, BUT HEAVY RAINFALL IN THE AREA. THIS GOES TO SHOW THAT THE MOISTURE CONTENT IN THE AIR IS VERY HIGH, WITH EFFICIENT PRECIPITATION. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS, THEN TAPER OFF AS LOW PRESSURE MOVES OUT OF THE REGION. ABUNDANT CLOUD COVER HAS REMAINED OVER THE REGION ALL DAY, KEEPING TEMPERATURES A BIT COOLER AND KEEPING THE AIR FROM MIXING. THIS WAS A BIG FACTOR IN THE SMOKE IN THE TRUCKEE AREA NOT BEING ABLE TO MIX OUT DUE TO THE LACK OF HEATING. WINDS AT RIDGE LEVEL HOWEVER ARE SHIFTING TO THE SOUTHWEST AND WILL BRING ADDITIONAL SMOKE INTO TAHOE BASIN AND RENO-CARSON-MINDEN AREAS AS WELL. A DENSE SMOKE ADVISORY HAS BEEN ISSUED THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON IN ANTICIPATION THAT SMOKE WILL BECOME WORSE OVER THE NEXT 24 HOURS. SMOKE DENSITY WILL ALSO DEPEND HIGHLY ON FIRE ACTIVITY OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS, SO THE DENSE SMOKE ADVISORY WILL NEED TO BE REEVALUATED EACH AFTERNOON. BUT, WITH THE SOUTHWEST FLOW EXPECTED TO CONTINUE, SMOKE WILL REMAIN IN THE FORECAST THROUGH AT LEAST WEDNESDAY. DRY AND WARM CONDITIONS WILL RETURN TO THE REGION MONDAY AND TUESDAY AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS OVER THE REGION AND SOUTHWEST FLOW RETURNS ALOFT. EXPECT TEMPERATURES TO INCREASE TO ABOVE NORMAL AGAIN WITH MID TO UPPER 80S IN WESTERN NEVADA AND 70S IN THE SIERRA. HOON .LONG TERM...WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY... A TROUGH OVER THE EAST PACIFIC WILL PROVIDE BREEZY SOUTHWEST WINDS BY MIDWEEK AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT WHICH WILL PROVIDE COOLER CONDITIONS AND CHANCES FOR SHOWERS THE SECOND HALF OF THE WEEK. THE FORECAST CONFIDENCE IN THE EXTENDED IS GOOD FOR WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY BEFORE DEGRADING SIGNIFICANTLY OVERNIGHT THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY DUE TO LARGE DISCREPANCIES IN TIMING THE EJECTION OF THE UPPER LOW. FOR WED-THU, AXIS OF THE UPPER TROUGH WILL REMAIN JUST OFF THE WEST COAST WITH GUSTY WINDS MAINLY CONCENTRATED NORTH OF INTERSTATE 80 AS THE UPPER LEVEL JET BEGINS TO DROP ACROSS NE CALIFORNIA. STRONGER WINDS LOOK TO BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD BY THURSDAY AHEAD OF A FRONT AS THE SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENT INTENSIFIES AND THE CORE OF 105+ KT JET CROSSES THE SIERRA. SUSTAINED SW-W WINDS IN THE 15-25 MPH RANGE ARE POSSIBLE THURSDAY BEFORE SHIFTING NORTHWEST BEHIND THE FRONT WITH MODELS PUSHING THE FRONT THROUGH OVERNIGHT THURSDAY INTO EARLY FRIDAY. COOLER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED BEHIND THE FRONT WITH POSSIBLE HIGH TEMPERATURES ACROSS WESTERN NEVADA ONLY IN THE UPPER 60S TO LOWER 70S AND LOWER 60S ACROSS SIERRA VALLEYS. CONSIDERABLE UNCERTAINTY EXISTS WITH HOW QUICKLY THE LOW DEPARTS WITH THE GFS BEING MUCH QUICKER THAN THE EC WHICH LINGERS THE LOW OVER THE REGION THROUGH NEXT WEEKEND. THE EC WOULD PROVIDE US WITH A COOLER AND WETTER FORECAST THAN THE WARMER AND DRIER SOLUTION OF THE GFS. LITTLE CHANGE MADE IN THE FORECAST FOR NEXT WEEKEND AS TRENDS AND ENSEMBLE RUNS OFFER LITTLE CONFIDENCE TO MAKE MANY ADJUSTMENTS. WILL MAINTAIN SLIGHT CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND A SLOWER WARMUP IN THE FORECAST BEYOND FRIDAY. FUENTES && .AVIATION... THE KING WILDFIRE ALONG THE WEST SLOPES OF THE SIERRA WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH SMOKE AND HAZE ACROSS THE TERMINALS WITH SURFACE VIS AS LOW AS 1SM POSSIBLE AT KTVL/KTRK AND LESS THAN 3SM POSSIBLE AT KCXP/KRNO. OTHERWISE, BRIEF PERIODS OF MVFR CIGS/VIS IN -SHRA ARE POSSIBLE THROUGH 06Z THIS EVENING BUT CHANCES WILL REMAIN GENERALLY BELOW 15% ACROSS ALL TERMINALS BEFORE DIMINISHING OVERNIGHT. THE MAIN STORY INTO MIDWEEK WILL BE ANOTHER APPROACHING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM THAT WILL INCREASE SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS AND SMOKE TRANSPORT INTO KTVL/KTRK/KCXP/KRNO. MOUNTAIN OBSCURATION AND DECREASED SURFACE VIS WILL BE AN ISSUE AND WILL LIKELY CONTINUE EACH DAY THROUGH AT LEAST THURSDAY ASSUMING THE KING FIRE REMAINS ACTIVE. FUENTES && .REV WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NV...DENSE SMOKE ADVISORY UNTIL 5 PM PDT MONDAY NVZ002-003. CA...DENSE SMOKE ADVISORY UNTIL 5 PM PDT MONDAY CAZ072. && FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RENO (ALL LOWER CASE)
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RENO NV 126 PM PDT SUN SEP 21 2014 NVZ003-004-212100- GREATER RENO-CARSON CITY-MINDEN AREA-WESTERN NEVADA BASIN AND RANGE INCLUDING PYRAMID LAKE- 126 PM PDT SUN SEP 21 2014 ...HEAVY RAINFALL NEAR FERNLEY... AT 119 PM PDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS WERE TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 5 MILES SOUTHWEST OF FERNLEY...OR 15 MILES NORTHWEST OF LAHONTAN RESERVOIR...AND MOVING NORTHEAST AT 10 MPH. OCCASIONAL LIGHTNING...HEAVY RAIN WITH AMOUNTS NEAR ONE INCH PER HOUR...AND SMALL PEA SIZE HAIL...WILL OCCUR WITH THIS STORM. * LOCATIONS AFFECTED THROUGH 200 PM PDT INCLUDE...FERNLEY... WADSWORTH...AND INTERSTATE 80 FROM DERBY DAM TO FERNLEY. HEAVY RAINFALL IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM. EXPECT PONDING OF WATER ON ROADWAYS. IN AREAS OF STEEP TERRAIN...MINOR ROCK SLIDES ARE POSSIBLE. DRIVERS SHOULD SLOW DOWN AND TURN ON THEIR HEADLIGHTS IF ENCOUNTERING HEAVY RAINS. && LAT...LON 3979 11943 3962 11916 3947 11930 3968 11955 TIME...MOT...LOC 2022Z 232DEG 9KT 3958 11930 TF
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 debris flow. Local standard time, as filed.
Up to 2 feet of mud was reported across state highway 121 (Dixie Valley Rd) around 10 miles north of the intersection with highway 50.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, September 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: 542890.