A storm system dumped heavy snow over the mountains of northern Elko county and the Ruby Mountains and East Humboldt Range. Many SNOTEL sites reported between 8 and 20 inches of new snow.
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 LKN wrote it up.
A storm system dumped heavy snow over the mountains of northern Elko county and the Ruby Mountains and East Humboldt Range. Many SNOTEL sites reported between 8 and 20 inches of new snow.
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 Apr 7, 2:48 PM PST, 5 hours 12 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 348 PM PDT TUE APR 7 2015 .SYNOPSIS...A STRONG PACIFIC STORM WILL BRING RAIN AND SNOW TO THE SILVER STATE TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY WITH HEAVY ACCUMULATIONS IN PARTS OF ELKO COUNTY. DRIER AND MILDER WEATHER WILL RETURN LATER THIS WEEK. && .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. STRONG UPPER LOW CURRENTLY SITTING OVER NORTHWESTERN CALIFORNIA WITH SURFACE LOW DEVELOPING IN THE GREAT BASIN OF NEVADA. THE SURFACE LOW WILL SLIDE NORTHEAST INTO UTAH TONIGHT AND THE UPPER LOW WILL SLIDE EAST OVER NORTHERN NEVADA. GUSTY WINDS ARE EXPECTED ON THE SOUTHEAST SIDE OF THIS SYSTEM AND BRIEF ADVISORY-LEVEL GUSTS ARE POSSIBLE IN NYE AND WHITE PINE COUNTIES THIS EVENING...BUT THINK IT WILL NOT BE WIDESPREAD ENOUGH TO WARRANT ANY WIND ADVISORIES. OF MORE CONCERN...IS THAT AS THIS STORM MOVES EAST...A BAND OF RAIN AND SNOW WILL MOVE EAST ACROSS NEVADA THIS EVENING AND A WRAPAROUND BAND OF SNOW WILL THEN SIT OVER FAR NORTHERN NEVADA OVERNIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY. THE TIMING OF CHANGEOVER WITH THE MAIN BAND OF RAIN AND SNOW WILL BE KEY TO HOW MUCH SNOW ACCUMULATES NEAR AND SOUTH OF I-80 TONIGHT...WITH MOST VALLEYS SEEING 1 TO 4 INCHES AND LESS SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 50. UPSLOPE SNOW SHOWERS THROUGH MUCH OF TOMORROW WILL RESULT IN HEAVIER ACCUMULATIONS NEAR AND IN THE RUBY MOUNTAINS/EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE WHERE A WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT...WHILE THE STALLING OF WRAPAROUND SNOWS WILL ALSO RESULT IN WARNING LEVEL SNOWFALL ACROSS NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY TONIGHT INTO WEDNESDAY. WESTWARD EXTEND OF THIS WRAPAROUND BAND LOOKS LIKE IT WILL BE GREAT ENOUGH TO EXTEND INTO HUMBOLDT COUNTY...MAINLY NORTHEASTERN SECTIONS...SO ADDED A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY THERE WITH EMPHASIS ON THE NORTHEAST. STILL THINK THAT THE LOW VALLEYS OF NORTHERN LANDER/EUREKA AND SOUTHEASTERN ELKO COUNTIES WILL KEEP ADVISORY LEVEL SNOW AT BAY THERE...WHILE NORTHERN NYE IS JUST TOO FAR SOUTH OF THE SYSTEM IN GENERAL TO GET MUCH PRECIP. STILL SOME 'MAYBES' WITH THIS FORECAST SUCH AS THE CASE WHERE THE COLD AIR LAGGS AND MORE PRECIP FALLS AS RAIN TONIGHT...OR THE CASE WHERE WRAPAROUND SNOW SAGS FURTHER SOUTH AND SIGNIFICANTLY AFFECTS THE I-80 CORRIDOR ON WEDNESDAY. BOTH LOOK UNLIKELY BASED ON GUIDANCE BUT ARE NOT OUT OF THE QUESTION. LOWS TONIGHT WILL BE NEAR OR A BIT BELOW FREEZING WITH THE SNOW...WHILE HIGHS TOMORROW WILL STRUGGLE TO RETURN TO THE 40S. THERE IS JUST ENOUGH INSTABILITY AS THE SYSTEM MOVES IN TONIGHT TO WARRANT SOME SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDER...BUT DON'T THINK IT WILL BE WIDESPREAD OR COMMON. TROUGH MOVES EAST ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT WITH MOST PRECIP SHUTTING OFF AND LOWS DROPPING BACK BELOW FREEZING. ANOTHER LITTLE SHORTWAVE WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA ON THURSDAY WHICH MAY PRODUCE A FEW CONVECTIVE SHOWERS OVER NORTHEASTERN NEVADA...BUT OVERALL THEIR IMPACT SHOULD BE MINIMAL. TEMPS SHOULD BE NOTICEABLY HIGHER WITH GREATER SUNSHINE AND WARMING TEMPS ALOFT. VERY WEAK RIDGE IS OVER THE REGION FRIDAY WHICH SHOULD KEEP THE AREA DRY WITH ANOTHER UPWARD BUMP IN TEMPS. RCM .LONG TERM...FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY. MODELS ARE IN DISAGREEMENT DURING MOST OF THE LONG TERM PERIOD. DRIER WESTERLY FLOW DEVELOPS OVERNIGHT FRIDAY ACROSS THE CWA WITH PARTLY TO MOSTLY CLOUDY SKIES. MAY SEE SOME LIGHT RAIN OR SNOW SHOWERS ALONG THE BORDER WITH IDAHO SATURDAY...BUT WILL KEEP POPS SLIGHT CHANCES WITH MODEL TIMING AN ISSUE. BOTH THE EC AND GFS INDICATE A WEAK SHORTWAVE MOVING ACROSS NORTHERN NV SUNDAY NIGHT AND WITH THE CONTINUED ISSUE OF TIMING AND PLACEMENT OF QPF...HAVE CONTINUED THE TREND OF SHOWERS MAINLY ALONG THE BORDER WITH IDAHO. WESTERLY FLOW AGAIN MONDAY NIGHT WITH DYNAMICS AND PRECIPITATION REMAINING NORTH OF NV. MODELS DO AGREE SOMEWHAT WITH NEXT SYSTEM SPREADING SHOWERS TO THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF ELKO AND HUMBOLDT COUNTIES LATE MONDAY AFTERNOON FOLLOWED BY RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS NEXT TUESDAY. EC THE STRONGEST AND COLDEST MODEL VERSUS THE GFS. && .AVIATION...A STORM SYSTEM OUT IN THE PACIFIC WILL BRING BREEZY TO WINDY CONDITIONS TO THE CWA THIS EVENING AND BREEZY AGAIN WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. THE STRONGEST WINDS WILL BE AT KELY AND KTPH WITH SPEEDS OF SW15-25G35KT...MAINLY THIS EVENING. LIGHTER WINDS SW10-15G20-25KT WILL BE AT KEKO AND SW5-10KT OVER KWMC. WILL SEE -SHSN/SHRA SPREAD WEST TO EAST...WITH HIGHER INTENSITY SNOW DEVELOPING AFTER 02Z...ESPECIALLY IN THE NORTH. THEREFORE...EXPECT REDUCED VSBY/CIGS OVERNIGHT TUESDAY AT KWMC...KEKO AND KELY...MAINLY THROUGH 06Z. && .LKN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 5 PM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR NORTHERN ELKO COUNTY-RUBY MOUNTAINS AND EAST HUMBOLDT RANGE. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 11 AM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR HUMBOLDT COUNTY-SOUTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND SOUTHERN EUREKA COUNTY-WHITE PINE COUNTY. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 5 PM PDT WEDNESDAY FOR SOUTH CENTRAL ELKO COUNTY-SOUTHWEST ELKO COUNTY. && 93/87/87
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV 255 PM PDT TUE APR 7 2015 NVZ033-036-040-041-082200- SOUTHEASTERN ELKO COUNTY- NORTHERN LANDER COUNTY AND NORTHERN EUREKA COUNTY- NORTHWESTERN NYE COUNTY-NORTHEASTERN NYE COUNTY- 255 PM PDT TUE APR 7 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NEVADA...NORTH CENTRAL NEVADA AND NORTHEAST NEVADA. .DAYS ONE AND TWO...TONIGHT AND WEDNESDAY. A WINTER STORM IS MOVING INTO THE AREA. RAIN WILL CHANGE TO SNOW TONIGHT...BUT ACCUMULATIONS IN THE VALLEYS OF NORTHERN LANDER...NORTHERN EUREKA...NORTHERN NYE...AND SOUTHEASTERN ELKO COUNTY WILL BE MINIMAL...WITH LITTLE OR NO ROADWAY ACCUMULATIONS. HEAVIER SNOW IS EXPECTED IN OTHER VALLEYS AROUND THE REGION WHERE WINTER STORM WARNINGS AND WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES ARE IN EFFECT. .DAYS THREE THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY. NO SIGNIFICANT WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ARE ASKED TO REPORT WEATHER PHENOMENA ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURE. RCM
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Many SNOTEL sites reported between 8 and 20 inches of new snow.
Many SNOTEL sites reported between 9 and 16 inches of new snow.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, April 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: 563465, 563466.