A wet microburst caused damaging winds at the Elko Airport.
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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 LKN wrote it up.
A wet microburst caused damaging winds at the Elko Airport.
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 May 17, 1:49 PM PST, 6 hours 1 minute earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Elko NV 249 PM PDT Mon May 17 2021 .SYNOPSIS...Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms over portions of central and eastern NV this afternoon will taper off this evening. Dry conditions across the region on Tuesday with above normal temperatures. Gusty winds on Wednesday, along with increasing clouds, however most locations will remain dry. Much cooler on Thursday with valley rain and mountain snow. && .SHORT TERM...This evening through Wednesday evening. The upper level low that was centered over NV Sunday is weakening as it exits SE into the four corners region today. Scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms are expected across portions of central and eastern NV the rest of this afternoon and into the early to mid-evening hours. Best chances for any storms will be over White Pine and NE Nye Counties. Any thunderstorms that do develop today are expected to be relatively weak. On Tuesday a positively tilted ridge briefly builds in over NV which will keep the CWA dry with above normal temperatures. Winds will pick up on Wednesday across most of northern and central NV as southwesterly flow aloft increases ahead of the next upper level low that will approach NV from the NW. Winds Wednesday afternoon will likely be in the 10-20 mph range with gusts of 25 to 35 mph in most locations. There is also a little instability setting up over the eastern half of White Pine County Wednesday afternoon, which may produce a few lightning strikes. Otherwise, most of northern and central NV is expected to remain dry through Wednesday afternoon. Wednesday evening clouds will be increasing, with light valley rain and mountain snow possible over portions of northern Humboldt County, northern and eastern Elko County, and eastern White Pine County. Any precipitation Wednesday evening would be very light, possibly only virga. .LONG TERM...Wednesday night through next Sunday. The long term starts Wednesday night where model simulations are continuing to show the cold upper low over the Pacific northwest. For Thursday, winds will be breezy to windy with some of the stronger winds seen across central Nevada. Speeds will be sustained 20 to 30 mph with some gusts of 40 to 45 mph and will continue to watch for possible wind headline products. Isolated to scattered showers is forecast to develop across the region as well during the overnight hours through the day on Thursday. Snow levels Thursday morning will be around 4500 to 5500 feet, with levels of 6000 feet or higher east of Humboldt county. Road surface temperatures look to be warm during this period, so not looking at any accumulations on roads. Highs on Thursday will be in the 50s and 60s, but could see some 70 degree readings in central Nevada. By Thursday night and Friday, the upper low will close off and basically spin over the state. Conditions will be much cooler temperature-wise, with overnight lows in the 20s and 30s. Snow levels will drop to around 4500 to 5500 feet across the area, though road surfaces may be too warm for snow accumulations. Overall, some locations like northern Elko county and possibly the US Highway 50 corridor. For the day, off and on showers, with isolated embedded thunderstorms, will be the rule. Due to the convective nature, hard to really determine how much precipitation is expected, but most areas should see about 0.10 inches or less, though higher amounts in central Nevada are possible. Winds will continue to be breezy with perhaps locally windy conditions in central Nevada. Highs will be in the 50s, though some locales could see highs only in the 40s. The upper trough will continue to spin and remain overhead based on latest guidance as a strong upper ridge sits over the southern Gulf Coast States for Friday night and Saturday. This will mean a continuation of showery weather. Overnight temperatures Friday will be in the 20s and 30s while highs on Saturday will be cool with readings in the 50s to maybe lows 60s. By Saturday night and Sunday, cool conditions remain as the low may slowly exit the region. This will still keep showers in the forecast but only for northeastern Nevada. && .AVIATION...A few showers will continue during the overnight hours across central Nevada, especially the KELY and KTPH sites. However, all TAF locations will be VFR for the next 24 hours. Breezy winds will develop tomorrow W-SW10-15G25kt at all sites. && .FIRE WEATHER...Thunderstorm activity across portions of central and eastern NV will end this evening, as the low pressure system that produced the instability exits to the SE. Dry and stable conditions across all fire weather zones on Tuesday. On Wednesday there will be a little weak instability setting up over White Pine County which may produce a few lightning strikes, mainly across the eastern portion of zone county. An upper level low dropping in from the Pacific NW will bring gusty winds to most of the region Wednesday afternoon, with valley rains and mountain snowfall late Wednesday night into Thursday. With the upper level low centered over NV Thursday night through Saturday night, expect cooler and wetter conditions. Any thunderstorm activity for the remainder of the week will likely be limited to isolated areal coverage. && .LKN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...None. && 96/86/86/96
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ELKO NV
821 PM PDT MON MAY 17 2021
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0758 PM TSTM WND GST 2 WSW ELKO 40.83N 115.79W
05/17/2021 M68 MPH ELKO NV ASOS
ELKO AIRPORT RECEIVED A DIRECT HIT FROM A
WET MICROBURST. UNKNOWN IF ANY DAMAGE
OCCURRED.
&&
SHThe Elko radar (KLRX), 86 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 03:51 UTC.
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Elko Airport received a direct hit from a wet microburst. Unknown if any damage occurred.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2021Every state in 2021This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, May 2021
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: 950371.