A large cold storm system diving out of the Pacific Northwest brought high winds to several areas of the Mojave Desert.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 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 large cold storm system diving out of the Pacific Northwest brought high winds to several areas of 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 Mar 28, 9:00 AM PST, 2 hours 35 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LAS VEGAS NV 1000 AM PDT MON MAR 28 2016 .SYNOPSIS...WIDESPREAD STRONG WINDS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS THE MOJAVE DESERT AND SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN TODAY AS A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM PUSHES INTO THE AREA. THIS WILL ALSO BRING CHANCES FOR SHOWERS TO AREAS FROM LAS VEGAS NORTHWARD TODAY AND TUESDAY. THE SYSTEM WILL THEN SLOWLY PULL AWAY FOLLOWED BY A WARMING TREND THE SECOND HALF OF THE WEEK. && .UPDATE...STILL ANTICIPATING A SIGNIFICANT WIND EVENT PEAKING THIS AFTERNOON WITH WIDESPREAD GUSTS OVER 50 MPH LIKELY...WITH LOCALIZED GUSTS EXCEEDING 65 MPH. BLOWING DUST ALREADY PROBLEMATIC THIS MORNING WITH HENDERSON AIRPORT REPORTING 1 MILE VISIBILITY AT THIS HOUR. NO UPDATE PLANNED THIS MORNING AS THE FORECAST IS IN GOOD SHAPE. -OUTLER- && .AVIATION...FOR MCCARRAN...A SIGNIFICANT WIND EVENT IS ON TAP THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. AN AIRPORT WEATHER WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE TERMINAL AREA FROM 1500 TO 1800 PDT THIS AFTERNOON FOR SOUTHWEST WINDS GUSTING UP TO 52 KTS. THE LATEST COMPUTER MODEL WIND FORECASTS AND THE GENERAL TRACK OF THE APPROACHING LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DIVING FROM CENTRAL CALIFORNIA INTO SOUTHERN NEVADA THIS AFTERNOON HAVE BOOSTED CONFIDENCE THAT GUSTS OF 48-52 KTS ARE LIKELY DURING THIS PERIOD. SOUTHWEST WINDS WERE ALREADY GUSTING 30-35 KTS THIS MORNING AND WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE AND PEAK IN INTENSITY BETWEEN 22Z-01Z. POCKETS OF SEVERE TURBULENCE CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG WITH AREAS OF BLOWING DUST. FOR THE REST OF SOUTHERN NEVADA...NORTHWEST ARIZONA...AND SOUTHEAST CALIFORNIA...A MAJOR WIND EVENT WILL STRIKE THE REGION TODAY RESULTING IN POCKETS OF SEVERE TURBULENCE AND BLOWING DUST AND SAND. STRONGEST WINDS WILL BE ALONG A BELT FROM RIDGECREST TO ELY AND POINTS EAST. WIND GUSTS MAY EXCEED 50KTS AT TIMES. && .SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. A LARGE...COLD UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL PUSH INTO THE AREA TODAY. NOT MUCH CHANCE TO THE GOING FORECAST THIS MORNING...WITH WIDESPREAD STRONG WINDS EXPECTED ACROSS MOST OF THE REGION. THE MAIN NOTABLE CHANGE THIS MORNING WAS UPGRADING THE WIND ADVISORY TO A HIGH WIND WARNING FOR DEATH VALLEY NATIONAL PARK. THE LATEST HIGH-RES GUIDANCE HAS SHIFTED THE CORE OF THE STRONGEST WINDS A HAIR NORTH WITH THE LATEST RUNS...AND IS NOW EXPECTED TO IMPACT AT LEAST THE SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF THE PARK. WIDESPREAD AREAS OF BLOWING DUST IS ALSO LIKELY TODAY...AND REMAINS NOTED IN THE FORECAST. THE PRECIPITATION FORECAST REMAINS FAIRLY CONSISTENT...WITH SHOWERS EXPECTED TO BREAK OUT ACROSS AREAS MAINLY NORTH OF LAS VEGAS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THERE IS SOME WEAK INSTABILITY NOTED ACROSS THE SOUTHERN GREAT BASIN...AND A MENTION OF THUNDER WAS ADDED TO PORTIONS OF LINCOLN...NYE AND ESMERALDA COUNTIES. WINDS WILL DECREASE BEHIND A COLD FRONT THAT WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE REGION TONIGHT...HOWEVER NORTHERLY BREEZES CAN BE EXPECTED THROUGH TUESDAY. THERE IS SOME CONCERN THAT ADVISORY LEVEL WINDS COULD CONTINUE ACROSS THE NORTHWEST PART OF THE FORECAST AREA INTO TUESDAY...BUT RIGHT NOW IT APPEARS MAINLY CONFINED TO THE RIDGES.TEMPERAURES WILL PLUNGE BEHIND THE COLD FRONT TONIGHT...CAUSING SNOW LEVELS TO LOWER TO 4-5K FEET ACROSS THE NORTHERN ZONES AS PRECIPITATION BECOMES SOMEWHAT MORE SHOWERY. THIS COULD LEAD TO SOME LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS DOWN TO THE VALLEY FLOORS ACROSS ESMERALDA...CENTRAL NYE...AND NORTHERN LINCOLN COUNTIES. HOWEVER...WITH THE WARM SURFACE TEMPERATURES OF LATE AND SHOWERY NATURE I DO NOT EXPECT SIGNIFICANT IMPACTFUL ACCUMULATION...MAINLY A TRACE TO 1-2 INCHES. CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE TO IMPROVE WEDNESDAY WITH TEMPERATURES STARTING A SLOW CLIMB AND WINDS MAINLY LIGHT AND VARIABLE IN NATURE. .LONG TERM...THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THE LONG TERM PERIOD BEGINS IN A SPLIT FLOW REGIME ACROSS THE REGION...AS THE MAIN UPPER LOW RESPONSIBLE FOR THE UNSETTLED EARLY WEEK WEATHER WILL HAVE DEPARTED THE REGION AND A SECONDARY TROUGH WILL BE IN THE PROCESS OF DIGGING SOUTHWARD ACROSS WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE DESERT SOUTHWEST AND NORTHERN MEXICO. OPERATIONAL MODEL GUIDANCE REMAINS CONSISTENT IN INDICATING ONLY MEAGER MOISTURE PROFILES AT BEST WITH THIS SYSTEM...WITH THE BEST AREAS OF MOISTURE GENERALLY SOUTH OF THE CWA BY THURSDAY MORNING. THEREFORE...VARIABLE CLOUD COVER AND BREEZY NORTHERLY WINDS LOOK TO BE THE MOST LIKELY WEATHER CONDITIONS WITH THIS SYSTEM THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. AS THE SECONDARY TROUGH EXITS THE REGION TO THE SOUTHEAST FRIDAY ...SHORTWAVE RIDGING WILL BUILD INTO THE AREA RESULTING IN THE CONTINUED RAPID INCREASE IN TEMPERATURE EACH DAY THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEKEND. TO GIVE SOME PERSPECTIVE ON HOW QUICK WE WILL WARM UP...FORECAST HIGHS BY THE WEEKEND ARE GENERALLY 15-20 DEGREES WARMER ACROSS THE REGION COMPARED TO FORECAST HIGHS FOR WEDNESDAY. OPERATIONAL MODEL SOLUTIONS GENERALLY DIVERGE ON THE EVOLUTION OF OUR OVERALL PATTERN AND RESULTANT WEATHER AT THE END OF THE FORECAST PERIOD. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...STRONG WINDS WILL IMPACT MUCH OF THE REGION TODAY AND SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT ANY SIGNIFICANT WINDS...REDUCTIONS IN VISIBILITY...OR DAMAGE ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. && SHORT TERM...WOLCOTT LONG TERM....PULLIN AVIATION.....ADAIR 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 peak gust was measured at Desert Rock (KDRA).
The peak gust was measured 3 miles NE of Mount Charleston.
The peak gust was measured 4 miles WSW of Spring Valley.
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, March 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: 619544, 619546, 619545.