A shortwave trough zipping through the Great Basin brought high downslope winds to the Owens Valley.
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 shortwave trough zipping through the Great Basin brought high downslope winds to the Owens 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 Apr 16, 8:30 AM PST, 3 hours 40 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 930 AM PDT Sat Apr 16 2022 .SYNOPSIS...Strong winds are expected across much of the region today with widespread blowing dust. Calmer conditions will return Sunday with a warming trend commencing through midweek as temperatures climb above normal. Another spring weather system arrives by late in the week with increasing winds and light shower chances returning Thursday and Friday. && .UPDATE...Quick update this morning to increase PoPs/extend further south across Lincoln County in collaboration with Salt Lake City. Shortwave trough moving through central California this morning. Radar showing much of the precipitation falling on the western slopes with only light spillover so far on the eastern Sierra Slopes and Owens Valley. Shortwave will quickly moves east over southern Nevada this afternoon. Airmass will destabilize this afternoon primarily across Lincoln County scattered showers and isolated thunderstorms are possible. Elsewhere, gusty south to southwest winds will impact the region. So far, spillover precipitation has limited the downslope potential in Inyo County. Cross-sections continue to indicate best window of opportunity exists between Noon and 6 pm. Also, need to monitor downslope winds along the NE-E slopes of the Spring Mountains as Red Rock Canyon has seen a gust up to 51 mph so far. && .SHORT TERM...through Monday night. Overall the forecast remains on track with widespread strong winds expected today as a quick moving shortwave zips through the Great Basin and towards the central Rockies tonight. Strongest winds will be focused in two areas, the first is in the Sierra/Owens Valley where another round of strong downslope winds are expected. Strong winds are expected to impact the US-395 corridor which observed numerous overturned semis and wind damage with Mondays wind event, as well as a closure of US-395. The expectation is similar with the winds today in the Owens Valley, though overall peak wind speeds and coverage are expected to be not quite as prolific as Mondays downslope event. The second area of focus stretches from the Western Mojave Desert near Barstow, northeast across southern Nevada and northwest Arizona. Strong wind gusts to 55 mph will be common across this wind belt, along with areas of blowing dust. Some dust prone travel corridors which may again be problematic today include: - US-95 south of Boulder City - I-15 near Primm - I-15 between Barstow and Baker - I-40 between Barstow and Ludlow - Pierce Ferry Road east of Dolan Springs - Diamond Bar Road to Grand Canyon West I did give some consideration to an upgrade to high wind warning across the Spring Mountains and Western Vegas Valley, but overall indications point to this wind event being a few notches weaker than Mondays across the Mojave Desert, and the 700-850mb flow is ~10 knots lighter than Mondays as well. Despite this, there could still be a handful of wind gusts exceeding 65 mph immediately downstream of Mt Charleston and near Red Rock Canyon. Aside from the winds, some light snow accumulations above 8000 feet are expected in the Sierra with some light showers spilling into the Owens Valley as well. Otherwise, dry, gusty and dusty conditions are expected elsewhere. Improving conditions are expected this evening with warming conditions returning Sunday and Monday with calmer conditions. .LONG TERM...Tuesday through Friday. Zonal flow early in the week will gradually turn more southwesterly by mid-week as an upper-level trough moves into the Pacific Northwest. A fast-moving short wave will move around the base of the trough Tuesday, resulting in increased winds across the region. Given that the feature will pass further north than this past weekend’s shortwave, winds are expected to be lighter and should remain below criteria levels. Moisture will continue to be very limited with this feature and other than a few showers over the northern Sierra, most areas will remain dry. General troughiness over the Pacific Northwest will persist through the end of the week continuing breezy afternoons through Thursday. Temperatures Tuesday will remain several degrees above normal, but readings should return closer to seasonal norms by the second half of the week. Both the GFS and ECMWF are indicating that a more significant low pressure trough could affect the west coast next Friday and Saturday, which could result in another round of gusty winds and potentially some precipitation in our area. However, there is still a large amount of uncertainty in the timing and placement of this system so stay tuned to future updates. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...South-southwest breezes continue through the night, with speeds gradually increasing to around 20 knots by sunrise. Southwest winds are expected to ramp up in the late morning and afternoon, with gusts of 40-45 knots. Scattered clouds with bases aoa 20 kft. Areas of blowing dust may reduce visibility. Southwest winds should begin to decrease in the evening, with speeds falling below 10 knots overnight. Lighter south- southwest winds on Sunday, with speeds of 10-15 knots. Mostly clear skies tonight and tomorrow. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...At KBIH, light north winds will flip to a southerly direction this morning. In the late morning and afternoon, downsloping off the Sierra will cause gusty west-southwest winds. Gusts around 30 knots expected. Showers along the crest of the Sierra may lightly spill over into the valley, with CIGs around 6-8 kft. Winds turn more northerly and weaken in the evening and overnight under mostly clear skies. For KDAG, gusty west-southwest winds prevail through the TAF period. Gusts should peak this afternoon around 40-45 knots, with blowing dust and reduced visibility possible. Winds begin to taper off in the evening and overnight. A few mid-level clouds today, with skies clearing tonight. For sites in the Colorado River Valley, expect south- southwest winds through most of the TAF period. Gusts this afternoon are forecast to be around 25 knots. KEED should lean more westerly in the late afternoon and evening. Winds are expected to weaken in the evening and overnight. South-southwest breezes resume tomorrow afternoon, but will be lighter. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Strong winds are expected today. Reports of high wind gusts, wind damage, and reductions in visibility due to dust are appreciated. && UPDATE...Pierce SHORT TERM...Outler LONG TERM...Planz AVIATION...Woods For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter
1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Two big rigs were blown over on Highway 395, with one driver suffering an arm injury.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in California, April 2022
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: 1025192.