A Pacific storm system brought locally high winds to portions of southeast California and southern Nevada.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 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 storm system brought locally high winds to portions of southeast California and southern Nevada.
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 Apr 22, 9:03 AM PST, 3 hours 11 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 1003 AM PDT FRI APR 22 2016 .SYNOPSIS...A SERIES OF PACIFIC STORM SYSTEMS WILL BRING COOLER TEMPERATURES, PERIODS OF WINDY CONDITIONS, AND CHANCES OF PRECIPITATION TO PORTIONS OF THE REGION THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. THE BEST CHANCES OF PRECIPITATION APPEAR TO BE IN THE SIERRA AND SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN TONIGHT AND SATURDAY AND AGAIN ON MONDAY. && .UPDATE...THE CENTER OF THE APPROACHING UPPER LOW WAS MOVING INTO THE NORTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST THIS MORNING. AUTOMATED SENSORS WERE INDICATING SOUTH-SOUTHWEST WINDS WERE BEGINNING TO RESPOND WITH GUSTS OF 30-45 MPH ACROSS CENTRAL NYE COUNTY AND PARTS OF INYO AND WESTERN SAN BERNARDINO COUNTIES. GUSTY WINDS OVER 40 MPH WILL BECOME MORE WIDESPREAD THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. BASED ON THE LATEST HIGH RESOLUTION WIND MODELS...THE MAIN CHANGE THIS MORNING WAS TO INCLUDE THE EASTERN MOJAVE DESERT OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY IN THE WIND ADVISORY. ALSO...THE ADVISORY TIME WAS EXTENDED FOR THE WESTERN MOJAVE DESERT AND SPRING MOUTNAINS/RED ROCK CANYON UNTIL 3 AM PDT SATURDAY. THE REST OF THE FORECAST TRENDS DETAILED IN THE PREVIOUS DISCUSSION LOOK OKAY. && .PREV DISCUSSION...230 AM PDT FRI APR 22 2016 .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT. A DEEP TROUGH WILL MOVE INTO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA THIS AFTERNOON BRINGING A FEW SHOWERS AS FAR SOUTH AS THE SOUTHERN SIERRA ALONG WITH PORTIONS OF ESMERALDA AND CENTRAL NYE COUNTIES. MOST OF THESE SHOWERS WILL REMAIN LIGHT AND SNOW LEVELS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN ABOVE 8000 FEET IN THE SIERRA INITIALLY AND THEN FALL TO AROUND 6000 FEET LATE THIS EVENING. THE BIG STORY WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL BE THE INCREASE IN SOUTHWEST WINDS THROUGHOUT THE DAY. WINDS WILL INCREASE SIGNIFICANTLY LATE THIS MORNING ACROSS INYO...CENTRAL NYE...LINCOLN...NORTHEAST CLARK COUNTY...AND NORTHERN MOHAVE COUNTIES WHERE WIND GUSTS BETWEEN 40-50 MPH ARE LIKELY. THE LATEST HIRES MODELS ALONG WITH NUMERICAL GUIDANCE CONTINUES TO POINT AT STRONG WINDS DEVELOPING THIS EVENING AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF CLARK AND MOHAVE COUNTIES. WENT AHEAD AND ISSUED NEW WIND ADVISORIES FOR THOSE AREAS RUNNING FROM 3PM TO 3AM. WILL ALSO HAVE TO WATCH FOR THE POSSIBILITY OF STRONG DOWNSLOPE WINDS DEVELOPING OVER THE EAST SLOPES OF THE SPRING MOUNTAINS LATE THIS EVENING THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. HIRES MODELS REALLY HIT THE WESTERN HALF OF THE LAS VALLEY VALLEY HARD WITH THE BEST CHANCE OF SEEING THOSE STRONG WINDS BETWEEN 9PM AND 2AM WITH WIND GUSTS BETWEEN 40-50 MPH. WINDS WILL DECREASE FAIRLY QUICKLY BEHIND THE FRONT THAT IS FORECAST TO MOVE THROUGH SOUTHERN NEVADA JUST BEFORE SUNRISE. THIS WILL USHER IN MUCH COOLER AIR AND THE HIGH TEMPERATURES ON SATURDAY ARE EXPECTED TO BE ABOUT 10-15 DEGREES COOLER THAN FRIDAYS HIGHS. THERE WILL SOME LINGERING SHOWERS ACROSS THE NORTHERN ZONES SATURDAY...BUT MOST OF THE ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO BE OVER BY SATURDAY AFTERNOON. ANOTHER TROUGH WILL MOVE INLAND SUNDAY BRINGING ADDITIONAL CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION FOR NORTHERN INYO...ESMERALDA...CENTRAL NYE...AND LINCOLN COUNTIES. SNOW LEVELS WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL BE LOWER AND ARE EXPECTED TO DROP TO AROUND 5500 FEET IN INYO COUNTY AND 6500 FEET ELSEWHERE. SHOWERS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE AS FAR SOUTH AS THE SPRING MOUNTAINS SUNDAY NIGHT. .LONG TERM...MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. ACTIVE PATTERN CONTINUES WITH TWO MORE STORMS IN THE LONG TERM PERIOD. THE FIRST WILL BE AFFECTING OUR AREA MONDAY. MODELS ARE CURRENTLY IN GOOD AGREEMENT...AND IF THE SOLUTIONS PAN OUT...PRECIP CHANCES WOULD BE ROUGHLY FROM LAS VEGAS NORTH WITH STRONG WESTERLY WINDS FROM LAS VEGAS SOUTH. JUDGING FROM THE CURRENT MODELS...WIND ADVISORIES WOULD LIKELY BE NEEDED AGAIN FOR MUCH OF THE MOJAVE DESERT...BUT WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR FOR ANY NORTHWARD OR SOUTHWARD SHIFTS IN THE STORM TRACK. SINCE THE STORM IS TRACKING EASTWARD RATHER THAN SOUTHWARD...POST FRONTAL NORTHERLY WINDS TUESDAY SHOULD NOT BE SIGNIFICANT. BY WEDNESDAY THE NEXT STORM APPROACHES THE WEST COAST WITH SOUTHWEST WINDS INCREASING AGAIN. THERE IS MORE MODEL SPREAD WITH THE TRACK AND STRENGTH OF THIS STORM...AS IS TYPICAL 6-7 DAYS OUT. A MODEL CONSENSUS WOULD SUGGEST A SIMILAR OUTCOME TO THE MONDAY STORM...EXCEPT PERHAPS SLIGHTLY LESS STRONG WIND. PLENTY OF TIME TO WATCH THIS...WITH THE MAIN MESSAGE AT THIS TIME BEING TO PREPARE FOR WINDY AND RAPIDLY CHANGING WEATHER FOR MUCH OF NEXT WEEK. SPEAKING OF RAPIDLY CHANGING...TEMPERATURES WILL CRASH DOWN TO ABOUT TEN DEGREES BELOW NORMAL AREAWIDE ON MONDAY AND TUESDAY...RISE A BIT WEDNESDAY...THEN GET KNOCKED DOWN AGAIN ON THURSDAY AS THE NEXT STORM ARRIVES. && .AVIATION...FOR MCCARRAN... SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE LATE THIS MORNING AND CONTINUE THROUGH MUCH OF THE AFTERNOON WITH SPEEDS 20-30 KTS LIKELY. WINDS ARE FORECAST TO INCREASE DURING THE EVENING HOURS WITH SOUTHWEST WINDS BETWEEN 25-35KTS POSSIBLE AS THE DOWNSLOPE POTENTIAL OFF THE SPRING MOUNTAINS INCREASES. MECHANICAL TURBULENCE SHOULD BE EXPECTED FRIDAY AND FRIDAY NIGHT, PARTICULARLY DOWNSTREAM OF THE SPRING MOUNTAINS. MOSTLY SCT-BKN HIGH CLOUDS ANTICIPATED AT TIMES THROUGH THE PERIOD. FOR THE REST OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...NORTHWEST ARIZONA...AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA...AS A PACIFIC STORM SYSTEM APPROACHES THE GREAT BASIN TOMORROW, WINDS WILL BEGIN TO INCREASE FROM THE SOUTH OR SOUTHWEST ACROSS THE AREA, ESPECIALLY IN THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN AND OWENS VALLEY. SPEEDS GENERALLY 15-30 KTS WITH HIGHER GUSTS EXPECTED IN THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN. MECHANICAL TURBULENCE AND MOUNTAIN WAVE ACTIVITY IS ANTICIPATED FRIDAY, ESPECIALLY DOWNSTREAM OF HIGH TERRAIN. LIGHT PRECIPITATION IS FORECAST FOR THE SIERRA BY TOMORROW AFTERNOON WITH SLIGHT CHANCES SPREADING EASTWARD INTO THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN FRIDAY NIGHT. MOUNTAIN OBSCURATIONS IN THESE AREAS ARE POSSIBLE. OTHERWISE, MOSTLY SCT-BKN MID AND HIGH CLOUDS CAN BE EXPECTED ACROSS THE AREA. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...SPOTTERS SHOULD REPORT ANY SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. UPDATE...ADAIR SHORT TERM/AVIATION...GORELOW LONG TERM....MORGAN 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, 1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
This gust occurred at Desert Rock (KDRA).
This gust occurred 40 miles E of Beatty.
This gust occurred 1 mile WNW of Rachel.
Strong winds blew down two large trees in northwest Las Vegas.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, April 2016
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: 623791, 623792, 623793, 623794.