A Pacific trough and associated strong jet stream brought high winds to the Owens Valley and western Mojave Desert.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 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.
A Pacific trough and associated strong jet stream brought high winds to the Owens Valley and western Mojave Desert.
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 Dec 21, 3:00 PM PST, 3 hours 30 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 300 PM PST MON DEC 21 2015 .SYNOPSIS...AN ENERGETIC NORTHWEST FLOW PATTERN WILL BRING STRONG WINDS TO THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE AREA OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. PERIODS OF THICKER CLOUD COVER ARE EXPECTED ALONG WITH RAIN AND SNOW IN THE SIERRA AND SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN MOUNTAINS. GUSTY WINDS, A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND COLDER TEMPERATURES ARE ON THE WAY FOR THE THE END OF THE WEEK. && .SHORT TERM...THOUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON. A DIRTY NORTHWEST FLOW IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN IN PLACE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS WITH SOME EMBEDDED PIECES OF ENERGY PUSHING THROUGH THE NORTHERN GREAT BASIN. AFTERNOON RADAR IMAGERY SHOWING PRECIPITATION PUSHING SOUTHEAST INTO THE SOUTHERN SIERRA. LOCAL WEBCAMS WERE SHOWING SHOW SHOWERS JUST EAST OF THE CREST WITH JUST VERY LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS FURTHER EAST. HOWEVER THERE WAS A REPORT OF VERY WINDY CONDITIONS NEAR ASPENDELL SO IT LOOKS LIKE THE DOWNSLOPE WINDS WERE STARTING. OBSERVATIONS TO THE EAST WERE IN THE 30-40 MPH RANGE...BUT DO EXPECT THOSE NUMBERS TO INCREASE OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF HOURS. THE CURRENT WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR THE EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES LOOKS GOOD WITH GENERAL SNOW AMOUNTS OF 6-10 INCHES NEAR THE CREST AND AROUND 3-5 INCHES AROUND THE 8000-9000 FOOT LEVEL. HIGH WINDS HAVE NOT YET MATERIALIZED FURTHER DOWN THE EAST SLOPES TOWARD THE OWENS VALLEY...BUT WE ARE STARTING TO SEE EVIDENCE OF ROTOR CLOUDS AND CURRENT HIRES MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A STRONG SIGNATURE DECENDING TOWARD THE OWENS VALLEY...ESPECIALLY AROUND SUNSET AND BEYOND. MOST OF THE PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED TO BE INTERCEPTED BY THE SIERRA OVERNIGHT...BUT AS A PIECE OF ENERGY MOVES THROUGH NORTHERN NEVADA OVERNIGHT SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE LATE TONIGHT AND TUESDAY ACROSS THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE FORECAST AREA...MAINLY CENTRAL NYE AND ESPECIALLY NORTHERN LINCOLN COUNTY. SHOWERS WILL GRADUALLY MOVE SOUTH AND EAST DURING THE DAY WITH MAINLY LINCOLN AND MOHAVE COUNTIES SEEING THE HIGHEST PROBABILITY OF SEEING RAIN/SNOW. SOME SHOWERS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...BUT THOSE ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN FAIRLY LIGHT. INITIALLY THERE IS NOT A LOT OF COLD AIR WITH THIS FIRST WAVE OF ENERGY SO SNOW LEVELS WILL GENERALLY REMAIN ABOVE 7000 FEET. ACROSS THE WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE OVERNIGHT AND BECOME RATHER WINDY TUESDAY INTO TUESDAY NIGHT. SURFACE GRADIENTS WILL TIGHTEN SIGNIFICANTLY ACROSS WESTERN PORTIONS OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY AND WINDS THERE ARE EXPECTED TO REACH HIGH WIND WARNING CRITERIA...ESPECIALLY AROUND THE FORT IRWIN/BICYCLE LAKE AREAS. HAVE UPGRADED THAT WATCH TO A WARNING. THINK THAT WINDS WILL ALSO INCREASE ACROSS THE MORONOGO BASIN REGION...BUT ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE QUITE AS STRONG. WENT WITH AN ADVISORY FOR THAT LOCATION FROM TUESDAY MORNING INTO TUESDAY EVENING. BY CHRISTMAS DAY A STRONG COLD LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM IS FORECAST TO START PUSHING SOUTH ALONG THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST. THIS WILL TURN THE FLOW MORE WESTERLY AND EVENTUALLY MORE SOUTHWEST BY LATE AFTERNOON. THIS WILL KEEP TEMPERATURES CLOSE TO NORMAL...BUT ALSO BRING GUSTY WINDS TO THE AREA. SOME AREAS COULD SEE WINDS STRONG ENOUGH FOR WIND ADVISORIES ESPECIALLY ACROSS PORTIONS OF SAN BERNARDINO...SOUTHERN NYE...CLARK AND MOHAVE COUNTIES. LIKE THIS CURRENT EVENT PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD INTO THE SOUTHERN SIERRA DURING THE DAY THURSDAY AND EVENTUALLY START SPREADING SOUTHEAST ALONG A STRONG COLD FRONT THAT WILL MOVE THROUGH THE AREA THURSDAY NIGHT. .LONG TERM...THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY. UNSETTLED WEATHER IS EXPECTED THROUGH THE MAJORITY OF THE LONG TERM PERIOD. BY THURSDAY EVENING GUSTY WEST TO SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BE IN PLACE ACROSS MUCH OF THE MOJAVE DESERT. A COLD FRONT WILL THEN PLUNGE SOUTH ACROSS THE REGION THURSDAY NIGHT BRINGING A BRIEF SHOT AT PRECIPITATION...GUSTY NORTH WINDS...AND MUCH COLDER TEMPERATURES. THE MAIN CONCERNS WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL BE SNOW LEVELS AND WIND. SNOW LEVELS WILL FALL RAPIDLY BEHIND THE COLD FRONT. FOR THE LAS VEGAS AREA...SNOW LEVELS ARE EXPECTED TO FALL FROM AROUND 6000 FEET THURSDAY EVENING TO AROUND 3000 FEET BY 12Z FRIDAY (WHICH COINCIDES WITH THE COLD FRONT AND THE BEST WINDOW FOR PRECIPITATION). THIS SYSTEM WILL BE FAIRLY MOISTURE-STARVED...SO PRECIPITATION CHANCES AND AMOUNTS WILL BE RELATIVELY LOW. FOR LAS VEGAS THIS MEANS THAT WHILE IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKELY...THERE IS A REMOTE CHANCE OF A FEW SNOWFLAKES OR A RAIN-SNOW MIX...AT LEAST IN THE HIGHER AREAS OF THE LAS VEGAS VALLEY EARLY CHRISTMAS MORNING. PRECIPITATION CHANCES WILL END FROM WEST TO EAST THROUGH THE DAY FRIDAY AS ENERGY DIVING SOUTH EVENTUALLY CUTS OFF AN UPPER LEVEL LOW OVER NORTHERN ARIZONA FRIDAY NIGHT. THE LOW WILL CONTINUE TO PUSH SOUTH INTO NORTHERN MEXICO SATURDAY RESULTING IN INCREASED NORTHERLY FLOW ACROSS THE REGION. THIS WILL LEAD TO WINDY CONDITIONS THROUGH THE WEEKEND... PARTICULARLY IN NORTH WIND PRONE LOCATION SUCH AS THE COLORADO RIVER VALLEY. TRANSIENT SHORTWAVE RIDGING WILL MOVE ACROSS THE AREA MONDAY. HOWEVER ADDITIONAL SHORTWAVE TROUGHS LOOK TO BE IN THE FORECAST INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL FALL BELOW NORMAL FRIDAY AND STRUGGLE TO CLIMB THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE PERIOD. && .AVIATION...FOR MCCARRAN...NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS BETWEEN 5-7KTS THROUGH 02Z THEN TURNING SOUTH OVERNIGHT AROUND 7-8KTS. SOUTHWEST WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE DURING THE MORNING WITH SPEEDS INCREASING TO AROUND 8-10KTS BY 17Z AND THEN INCREASING TO AROUND 10- 15KTS AFTER 18Z. SKIES WILL REMAIN MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH CIGS GENERALLY ABOVE 15K FEET. FOR THE REST OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...NORTHWEST ARIZONA...AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA...GUSTY DOWNSLOPE WINDS EXPECTED OVERNIGHT IN THE OWENS VALLEY AND EASTERN SIERRA SLOPES WITH MODERATE TO SEVERE TURBULENCE AT TIMES. WEST WINDS ARE ALSO EXPECTED TO INCREASE OVERNIGHT AND ESPECIALLY TUESDAY ACROSS WESTERN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY WHERE SPEEDS COULD REACH 45KTS PLUS. OTHER AREAS WILL GENERALLY SEE SOUTHWEST TO WEST WINDS BETWEEN 8-16KTS. PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED OVER THE SIERRA OVERNIGHT AND THEN SPREADING EAST INTO CENTRAL NYE...LINCOLN...AND NORTHERN MOHAVE COUNTIES TUESDAY. THE SIERRA WILL HAVE OBSCURED PEAKS WITH CIGS DOWN TO 6K FEET AT TIMES. OTHERWISE CIGS WILL REMAIN ABOVE 15K FEET. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. && SHORT TERM/AVIATION...GORELOW LONG TERM...WOLCOTT FOR MORE FORECAST INFORMATION...SEE US ON OUR WEBPAGE: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/LASVEGAS OR FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The Bicycle Lake (KBYS) ASOS on Fort Irwin measured high winds for an hour, with the peak gust occurring at 1841 PST.
The Barstow-Daggett (KDAG) ASOS measured high winds for 35 minutes, with the peak gust occurring at 0817 PST.
The high winds were measured at a mesonet site 4 miles NW of Independence. Law enforcement reported that a tree was blown down onto telephone lines nearby.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in California, December 2015
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: 607669, 607670, 607671.