A quick moving strong low pressure system passed through Nevada, bringing a brief period of high downslope winds to the east side of the Spring Mountains and the northwest fringes of the Las Vegas Valley.
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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 quick moving strong low pressure system passed through Nevada, bringing a brief period of high downslope winds to the east side of the Spring Mountains and the northwest fringes of the Las Vegas Valley.
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 Oct 2, 8:40 PM PST, 54 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 940 PM PDT SUN OCT 2 2016 .SYNOPSIS...Gusty winds will persist through this evening before subsiding after midnight as a strong storm system quickly moves through the region. Temperatures will cool sharply Monday as the system departs, with higher valley locations in the southern Great Basin dipping into the thirties Tuesday morning. Temperatures will remain below normal through Thursday before gradually warming next weekend. && .UPDATE...The core of the low pressure system was pushing over northwest Nevada this evening and the positively tilted axis and base of the low was just traversing southern Nevada. The latest HRRR model indicates the strongest winds will be focused over the Spring Mountains and higher terrain of Clark County through midnight then speeds will gradually drop off and turn west to northwest during the early morning hours. Across the rest of the region most wind sensors have dropped below 40 mph and the Wind Advisory has been cancelled for all but southern Nye, western and central Clark counties. -Adair && .PREV DISCUSSION... 232 PM PDT SUN OCT 2 2016 Widespread wind advisory thresholds being met across Nye County and parts of Lincoln County so far. As for Clark County, hI-res models suggest downslope winds along the northeast slopes of the Spring Mountains this afternoon will eventually spread southward into Red Rock Canyon and the far western subdivisions of Las Vegas from Providence to Mountains Edge this evening. Much of the rest of the valley will likely have difficulty reaching that 40 mph gust threshold. Cross section through the southern Sierra Nevada still indicates that the strongest winds will stay at the ridgetops and upper slopes with winds having a difficult time penetrating through the Owens Valley. Worst of the winds will continue to impact the region from now through 10 pm to midnight this evening before they start diminishing. Making no change to current wind advisory. Quick hitting upper trough will be moisture starved will little if any precipitation spilling over the southern Sierra crest this evening. Once crossing the Great Basin any moisture/dynamics looks to stay along and north of Highway 50 through central Nevada. Much cooler Monday following the passage of a cold front. For Las Vegas, fropa looks to occur between 4 and 7 am Monday. A few days ago there was concern for the first freeze in some of the more populated communities of northern Inyo, Esmeralda, Lincoln and Mohave Counties above 4000 feet. It does not look widespread enough to warrant a freeze watch. For Tuesday - Sunday. An upper trough will persist across the western states leading to below normal temperatures. Flow goes more zonal Friday-Sunday with temperatures warming back to normal. && .AVIATION...For McCarran...Gusty winds are likely to persist through midnight. Areas of mechanical turbulence are expected near the Spring Mountains. Winds are expected to decrease during the early morning hours, becoming more west-southwest as a cold front begins to slide across the valley. Winds will shift to a northwesterly direction between 11-16z Monday (likely toward the end of that period) with speeds of 8-12kts and gusts to near 20kts during the morning, then decreasing in the afternoon. VFR conditions through the period. For the rest of southern Nevada...northwest Arizona...and southeast California...Gusty southwest winds will continue into this evening with widespread gusts 30-40kts and even higher speeds and areas of mechanical turbulence near the mountains. Winds will decrease after 03z. A cold front will sweep across the region tonight into Monday morning, shifting winds to the northwest at 10-18kts and gusts 15- 25kts during the morning hours. Winds will decrease in most areas during the afternoon. && .FIRE WEATHER...Widespread Red Flag thresholds will continue into this evening before winds start subsiding and relative humidity values increase by late this evening. Region will lie under a dry northwest flow Monday through Thursday which will keep temperatures below normal for early October. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotter activation will not be needed. Strong winds are expected today and tonight. Spotters are encouraged to report according to standard operating procedures. && Discussion/Fire Weather...Pierce Aviation...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.
2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
This gust was measured 1 mi ESE of Red Rock Canyon.
This gust was measured 2 mi NW of Centennial Hills.
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, October 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: 655171, 655172.