Thunderstorms caused isolated flash flooding in the Mojave Desert.
Every event with a place to put it. 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.
Thunderstorms caused isolated flash flooding in the 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 May 4, 2:15 PM PST, 1 hour 56 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 315 PM PDT MON MAY 4 2015 .SYNOPSIS...SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS REMAIN POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON BEFORE SLOWLY WINDING DOWN OVERNIGHT. LESS SHOWER AND STORM COVERAGE IS EXPECTED TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY WITH GREATEST CHANCES ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS OF INYO COUNTY AND THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN. ANOTHER LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL BRING MORE UNSETTLED WEATHER AND MUCH COOLER CONDITIONS TO THE REGION THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. && .SHORT TERM...THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT ACTIVE AFTERNOON TODAY WITH WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRING AS A SOUTHERN STREAM CLOSED LOW MOVES ACROSS THE DESERT SOUTHWEST. FORECAST GUIDANCE SUPPORTS THIS ACTIVITY CONTINUING THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING HOURS SUPPORTED BY A DIFFLUENT FLOW ALOFT ON THE NORHEAST QUADRANT OF THE LOW. GREATEST CHANCES OF STORMS LOOK TO IMPACT SOUTHERN CLARK...MOHAVE AND FAR EASTERN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES THIS EVENING. THIS LOW WILL SLOWLY PUSH EAST TONIGHT TAKING THE ENHANCED CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS EASTWARD WITH IT. MUCH DRIER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TUESDAY BUT SOME SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL REMAIN POSSIBLE ACROSS THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN AND EASTERN MOHAVE COUNTY WHERE RESIUDAL INSTABILITY WILL BE IN PLACE AND MAY SUPPORT SOME ADDITIONAL ACTIVITY. TEMPERATURES WILL BE NEAR SEASONAL AVERAGES. .LONG TERM....WEDNESDAY MORNING THROUGH MONDAY. SUBTLE SHORTWAVE RIDGE IN THE WAKE OF THE FIRST SOUTHERN STREAM SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE OFF TO THE EAST...GIVING WAY TO YET ANOTHER SHORTWAVE EMBEDDED IN THE SOUTHERN BRANCH OF THE JET. THIS...COUPLED WITH INFLUENCES FROM A SIGNIFICANT TROUGH BEGINNING TO DIG SOUTHWARD ACROSS CENTRAL CALIFORNIA AND LINGERING MOISTURE FROM THE FIRST SYSTEM WILL KEEP CHANCES FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS IN THE FORECAST FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON...MAINLY ACROSS NORTHERN INYO AND THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN ZONES AS THE BEST UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT AND INSTABILITY WILL BE PRESENT HERE. POPS WILL AGAIN BE THE HIGHEST THESE AREAS ON THURSDAY...AS THE MID/UPPER LEVEL LOW CONTINUES TO DIG SOUTHWARD OVER CENTRAL CALIFORNIA AND STRENGTHEN...WITH CURRENT OPERATIONAL MODEL GUIDANCE DEPICTING A ~550 DM CLOSED LOW THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY. GOOD MODEL AGREEMENT CONTINUES THIS AFTERNOON IN KEEPING THE DEEPEST MOISTURE AND BEST INSTABILITY UNDER THE UPPER LOW...WITH A DRY SLOT DEVELOPING TO THE EAST OF THE LOW ON LATE THURSDAY/FRIDAY...INHIBITING PRECIPITATION CHANCES ACROSS SAN BERNARDINO...CLARK...LINCOLN...AND MOHAVE COUNTIES. LITTLE CHANGES WERE MADE TO POPS ON THURSDAY AND EARLY FRIDAY AS A RESULT. CONFIDENCE CONTINUES TO INCREASE IN FRIDAY BEING THE MOST ACTIVE DAY AREA-WIDE...AS THE JET STREAK ROUNDS THE BASE OF THE TROUGH AND BEGINS TO EJECT THE MID/UPPER LOW OUT OF CALIFORNIA. EXPECT WIDESPREAD SHOWERS WITH EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS...AS 500MB CHARTS CONTINUE TO INDICATE TEMPS RANGING FROM -25C TO -30C AT THE CORE OF THE LOW AS IT TRACKS OVER THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN. IT IS NOTED THAT THE 12Z MODEL GUIDANCE DIGS THE LOW A LITTLE FURTHER SOUTH THAN YESTERDAYS 00Z RUNS...WHICH WOULD INCREASE THE AMOUNT OF AVAILABLE MOISTURE SOUTH OF THE I-40 CORRIDOR ON FRIDAY. OPTED NOT TO MAKE ANY SIGNIFICANT CHANGES AT THIS TIME...AS ANOTHER 1-2 RUNS OF CONSISTENCY WITH MODEL GUIDANCE IN THE FORECAST LOW TRACK WOULD BETTER JUSTIFY RAISING POPS IN THIS AREA. THE MID/UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL EJECT OFF TO THE EAST ON SATURDAY...BUT LINGERING UPPER LEVEL ENERGY COUPLED WITH MOISTURE ON THE BACKSIDE OF THE LOW WILL KEEP SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS A POSSIBILITY ACROSS MAINLY CENTRAL AND EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE CWA ON SATURDAY...WITH ACTIVITY TAPERING OFF FROM WEST TO EAST THROUGHOUT THE DAY. FLOW WILL TRANSITION TO WESTERLY ON SUNDAY AND EVENTUALLY SOUTHWESTERLY ON MONDAY...YIELDING QUIET WEATHER WITH THE EXCEPTION OF POTENTIAL BREEZY CONDITIONS AT THE END OF THE PERIOD. TEMPERATURES WILL DEPART NORMAL VALUES ON THURSDAY...WITH VALUES FALLING TO AS LOW AS 10-15 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL FOR EARLY MAY ON FRIDAY...WITH HIGHS IN THE UPPER 60S POSSIBLE FOR LAS VEGAS. TEMPERATURES WILL QUICKLY REBOUND 5-7 DEGREES FOR SATURDAY BEFORE RETURNING TO AND EVENTUALLY ABOVE NORMAL AGAIN BY THE END OF THE WEEKEND AND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. && .AVIATION...FOR MCCARRAN...GENERALLY SOUTH-SOUTHWEST WINDS EXPECTED THROUGH THE OVERNIGHT PERIOD IN THE 8-16KT RANGE. SOME VARIATIONS EXPECTED DUE TO SCT SHOWER AND TSTORM ACTIVITY IN THE VALLEY THROUGH 6Z. SCT-BKN CLOUDS NEAR 12K EXPECTED THROUGH 12Z. FOR THE REST OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...NORTHWEST ARIZONA...AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA...SCT -TSRA/-SHRA EXPECTED THROUGH THE LATE EVENING HOURS ESPECIALLY FAR SOUTHERN NEVADA...FAR EASTERN CALIFORNIA...AND NORTHWEST ARIZONA. ERRATIC AND GUSTY SURFACE WINDS AND STRONG UPDRAFTS POSSIBLE NEAR THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY. SHOWERS WILL SLOWLY DIMINISH FROM WEST TO EAST TONIGHT AS LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DEPARTS. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME HOWEVER...SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. . && SHORT TERM/AVIATION...OUTLER LONG TERM...PULLIN FOR MORE FORECAST INFORMATION...SEE US ON OUR WEBPAGE: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/LASVEGAS OR FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK AND TWITTER
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
1235 PM PDT MON MAY 4 2015
...TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
...DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1221 PM HAIL HENDERSON 36.03N 115.00W
05/04/2015 E0.25 INCH CLARK NV PUBLIC
&&
NWS LAS VEGAS NV
IRIS SYSTEMPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
138 PM PDT MON MAY 4 2015
...TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
...DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0138 PM HAIL 3 SSE HENDERSON EXECUTIV35.94N 115.11W
05/04/2015 E0.25 INCH CLARK NV PUBLIC
&&
NWS LAS VEGAS NV
IRIS SYSTEMPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV
220 PM PDT MON MAY 4 2015
...TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
...DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0115 PM FLASH FLOOD 14 NNE DOLAN SPRINGS 35.78N 114.13W
05/04/2015 MOHAVE AZ DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
PIERCE FERRY RD CLOSED DUE TO HIGH WATER
FROM MP 12 TO 22. STOCKTON HILL RD CLOSED
FROM PIERCE FERRY RD TO MP 40.
&&
NWS LAS VEGAS NV
IRIS SYSTEMThe Las Vegas radar (KESX), 73 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:11 UTC.
1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.
Highway 95 was flooded between mile markers 67 and 71. Water, sand, and gravel were across the road.
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, May 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: 565902.