An avalanche in the Sierra Nevada killed one hiker and injured two.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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.
An avalanche in the Sierra Nevada killed one hiker and injured two.
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 Jul 2, 7:47 AM PST, 2 hours 13 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 847 AM PDT Sun Jul 2 2023 .SYNOPSIS...Dangerous heat continues through Monday, producing widespread High HeatRisk across most of the area. Southwest breezes pick up on Monday and Tuesday as a system sags into the region, with cooler temperatures arriving for the remainder of the week. && .UPDATE...No changes in forecast thinking. Temperatures rise even further today, topping out around 110 here in Vegas. Dangerous heat continues through tomorrow, with Excessive Heat Warnings remaining in place for most of the area. Temperatures drop around 5 degrees on Tuesday as a trough sags into the region. This system also brings breezy winds Monday and Tuesday. Dry conditions prevail through the week. && .SHORT TERM...through Tuesday night. Hot temperatures will remain the primary focus through the holiday weekend as a broad ridge of high pressure remains parked overhead through Monday. Temperatures this afternoon will climb several more degrees with similar temperatures returning again Monday. The ongoing Excessive Heat Warning remains in good shape for our lower desert and valley elevations. During the hottest parts of the day, much of the lower desert valleys including Las Vegas will approach of eclipse 110 degrees, with the lower reaches of the Colorado River Valley near Lake Havasu approaching 120. Needless to say, this is dangerous heat to be taken seriously - stay hydrated as much as possible and limit outdoor exposure during the hottest parts of the afternoon. By Tuesday, a shortwave dropping into the northern Great Basin will begin to nudge our high pressure ridge further south resulting in a modest reduction in heights and a slow cooling trend back to more typical early July temperatures. Additionally, surface winds will be on the increase as early as Monday but especially Tuesday across much of the Mojave Desert, which could lead to pockets of enhanced fire danger where fuels are cured, mainly below 6000 feet in southern Nevada and northwest Arizona. .LONG TERM...Wednesday through Saturday. Northern stream troughing will be moving away to the east Wednesday, allowing winds to weaken, although breezy afternoons will continue through the rest of the week. Nearly stationary high pressure centered between El Paso and Tucson becomes the main feature, keeping temperatures seasonably hot. Weak low pressure is forecast to sag south into the Pacific Northwest Friday and Saturday, turning our mid level flow southwesterly, which will allow dry conditions to persist. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...Light and variable winds early this morning will become east-northeast to east by mid-day before turning southeast by late afternoon. Overall, speeds should remain less than 10kts, although an occasional gust to 15kts is possible during the afternoon and early evening. Winds turn back to the southwest after sunset and continue from that direction into Monday morning. Northeast winds are expected for a period late Monday morning before increasing south to southwest winds overspread the area Monday afternoon. High temperatures are forecast to top out at 111 degrees this afternoon, with readings exceeding 110 between 1500-1800 local time. No significant cloud cover is expected through the TAF period. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...Winds favoring typical diurnal variations are expected at most TAF sites today. Most sites should see speeds less than 10kts through the forecast period, except for KDAG, where southwest winds gusting to 25kts are expected after sunset into Monday morning. Temperatures will be hot today with many locations seeing readings that exceed 110 degrees during the late afternoon and early evening. Besides a few high clouds across western areas this afternoon and evening, mainly clear skies are expected. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && UPDATE...Woods SHORT TERM...Outler LONG TERM...Morgan AVIATION...Planz For more forecast information...see us on our webpage: https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 avalanche. Local standard time, as filed.
Per the Eastern Sierra Avalanche Center, an avalanche above Red Lake on the northeast side of Split Mountain killed one hiker and injured two others.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avalanche, Eastern Sierra Slopes of Inyo County | 2023-07-02 | Outside/Open Areas | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in California in 2023Every state in 2023This day in weather historyWarnings in California, July 2023
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: 1099787.