Cold low pressure digging down from the north brought high winds to portions of the Mojave Desert.
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The episode as NWS VEF wrote it up.
Cold low pressure digging down from the north brought high winds to portions 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 Apr 26, 7:13 AM PST, 2 hours 17 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 813 AM PDT Fri Apr 26 2024 .SYNOPSIS...An incoming weather system will bring widespread showers and thunderstorms to much of Southern Nevada and Northwest Arizona today, along with expanded gusty winds across the San Bernardino County deserts. Drier conditions will return by Saturday with a slow warming trend heading into next week. Another system may approach the region by the end of next week with cooler temperatures and a return of gusty winds possible. && .UPDATE...Latest radar and satellite imagery show a band of precipitation stretching from east-central Lincoln County down through Indian Springs and towards Death Valley Junction. This is associated with the cold front. The activity across Lincoln County appears more stratiform in nature, while the returns in NW Clark and S Nye Counties is more convective, with the latest prob-lightning guidance giving 25-50% chance of lightning within the next 60 minutes. Anticipate this band of precipitation to grow, particularly on the SW edge as it moves over the Spring Mountains and eventually moves into the Las Vegas Valley by 9-10 AM. Behind the front, more scattered convective activity is possible, with some cells and lightning already noted across N Inyo and S Esmeralda Counties. This post-frontal regime will likely pose at least a low-end lightning threat throughout the day across all but our far SW areas. Most of the activity should diminish by sunset, but lingering wrap-around showers will likely linger across parts of Lincoln, Clark, and Mohave Counties into the overnight hours. Biggest potential impacts from today's convection will be gusty outflow winds (possibly 40-50 mph with the strongest cells), but minor flooding in some of our more sensitive areas (like Death Valley) cannot be ruled out. && .SHORT TERM...Today through Saturday. An active day of numerous showers and scattered thunderstorms is shaping up across southern Nevada and northwest Arizona on the leading edge of a vigorous trough and associated cold front diving from central California into southern Nevada. Probabilities of measurable precipitation have increased to 70-80 percent across much of southern Nye and Clark counties from late this morning through early this afternoon as vorticity advection, colder air aloft and substantial moisture (precipitable water values 0.50-0.75") quickly slide across southern Nevada into northwest Arizona. This will provide a 3-4 hour period of fairly continuous showers with embedded thunderstorms over any given site in southern Nye and Clark counties. The Las Vegas Valley will likely see the most favorable window for showers and thunderstorms between 11 am and 3 pm PDT. Lincoln and northern Mohave County will likely see multiple rounds of showers and thunderstorms as the trough undergoes cyclogenesis and becomes centered near southwest Utah and generates additional showers moving from north to south through this evening followed by diminishing activity late tonight into early Saturday morning as drier northwest flow spreads in on the back side of the low as it pulls away over the Four Corners. Storm total estimates remain fairly close to 24 hours ago and are noteworthy, but will mainly produce minor impacts such as slick roads with 0.10-0.25" generally over the southern Nevada Deserts, 0.25-0.50" in the higher terrain of Clark and Mohave counties and 0.30-0.75" in Lincoln County. Snow levels around 7500 feet will favor a dusting of snow in the upper portions of Kyle and Lee Canyons and a few inches on the higher peaks of the Spring Mountains. West-northwest winds gusting over 40 mph will expand across San Bernardino County this afternoon into this evening as the base of the trough becomes draped across southeast California. The Wind Advisory already in effect for the Western Mojave Desert has been expanded to include all of our San Bernardino County zones from noon today until 11 pm PDT this evening. Gusty north winds will spread across Esmeralda, central Nye and Inyo counties behind the cold front with speeds between 30 and 40 mph...windy conditions, but high res models indicate gusts over 40 mph will be confined to the mountains and minimal impacts for roads and populated areas do not appear to warrant a Wind Advisory. North breezes will spread across most of the region Saturday with speeds generally 15-25 mph. As far as temperatures go, this is going to be one of those unusual days where afternoon readings for some sites may struggle to exceed those observed at midnight. The forecast high for Las Vegas has been reduced to 66 degrees this afternoon due to the influence of showers, which is close to the reading that occured at midnight. Highs will climb 5-10 degrees Saturday leading to mild afternoon in the mid 70s to lower 80s across the Mojave Desert zones. .LONG TERM...Sunday through Friday Upper level ridging builds over the area as the trough exits to the east. Temperatures increase as heights upper level rise, with near normal temperatures returning by Sunday. Heat gradually builds through the middle of the week. HeatRisk indicates Minor risk for heat related impacts for most of the area on Wednesday along with a Moderate risk for heat related impacts in Death Valley and the Colorado River Valley including Lake Havasu City. This level of heat particularly affects those without access to effective cooling or adequate hydration. Plan ahead for heat if considering outdoor activities next week. Although there is some disagreement between models in the timing and intensity, another trough should approach the forecast area towards the end of next week, bringing another cooldown in temperatures. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...Breezy southerly winds will continue through mid-to-late morning before picking up and swinging around to the northwest as a cold front pushes into the valley. Showers and thunderstorms will accompany this front bringing variable gusty outflow winds, rain, lightning, and lower CIGS to the terminal area beginning later this morning and continuing into the afternoon hours. When looking at CIGS, there is a 60% to 70% chance for CIGS below 7 kft and a 30% to 40% chance for CIGS below 5 kft as the aforementioned convection rolls through the Las Vegas Valley. These showers and thunderstorms will also have the potential to impact visibility with a 30% to 40% chance of visibility dropping below 5 miles. Once the initial push of convection moves through, winds will lighten up and fall to a more westerly direction. Vicinity showers will still be possible in he higher terrain surrounding the valley into the evening hours, allowing for the persistence of 5 to 7 kft CIGS. Vicinity showers and lower CIGS will dissipate during the overnight hours with winds shifting back to the northwest, a direction which they will favor through Saturday morning. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...Winds at KDAG will favor a westerly direction with 30 to 40 knot wind gusts persisting through the evening hours. Winds at KBIH will favor a northwesterly direction with 20 to 30 knot wind gusts picking up shortly after sunrise. Convection will develop in the higher terrain surrounding KBIH this afternoon, but it is not expected to make it to the terminal area. A front will swing through southern Nevada, driving a band of showers and thunderstorms through the Las Vegas Valley and Colorado River Valley. 5 to 7 kft CIGS, variable gusty outflow winds, rain, and lightning will be the primary impacts associated with these storms. The Las Vegas Valley TAF sites will be impacted by these showers and thunderstorms beginning later this morning and continuing into the afternoon, whereas the Colorado River Valley sites won't see convection until later this afternoon. Prior to the front and it's associated convection, winds at KHND, KEED, and KIFP will favor southerly to southwesterly direction with 20 to 25 knot wind gusts. These winds will flip to the north/northwest as this front moves through. Unlike it's Las Vegas Valley counterparts, KVGT will swing around to the northwest prior to the arrival of the front during the early morning hours. These northwesterly winds will then ramp up as the front and associated convection moves through. Once the main band moves through, vicinity showers will continue to linger around the Las Vegas Valley and Colorado River Valley TAF sites. Winds at these sites will decrease, with KIFP and KHND falling back to a more southwesterly direction while KEED and KVGT favor a more west- northwesterly direction. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && UPDATE...Woods SHORT TERM...Adair LONG TERM...Meltzer AVIATION...Stessman 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 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A gust of 64 mph was recorded at the Nevada National Security Site.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nevada in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, April 2024
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: 1177808.