Deep low pressure moving through the Pacific Northwest brought multiple rounds of high wind to the southern Great Basin and the Mojave Desert.
Every event with a place to put it; 10 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.
Deep low pressure moving through the Pacific Northwest brought multiple rounds of high wind to the southern Great Basin and 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 Mar 1, 2:59 PM PST, 2 hours 56 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Las Vegas NV 259 PM PST Fri Mar 1 2024 .SYNOPSIS...Widespread gusty winds are expected across the region today, with even stronger winds on tap for Saturday. These winds are a result of a strong low-pressure system that will move through the area over the weekend. This system will also bring snow to the Sierra-Nevada, White Mountains, Spring Mountains, and the mountains of Southern Nevada. As such, there are numerous wind and winter headlines in effect. Things will quiet down early next week, with cooler than normal temperatures returning to the region. && .SHORT TERM...through Sunday. A strong low-pressure system is churning off the coast of the Pacific Northwest. This system is responsible for today's gusty southwesterly winds and will be what drives this weekend's weather. Winds will further increase tomorrow, with Wind Advisories transitioning into High Wind Warnings for much of the area. 55-65 mph westerly/southwesterly wind gusts are expected across the lower elevations of southern Nevada, Inyo County, northern San Bernardino County, and the Arizona Strip in Mohave County tomorrow. Winds in the Colorado River Valley/Lake Mead National Recreation Area and Southern Mohave County will not be as strong, with 40-50 mph southerly wind gusts forecast for tomorrow. These winds will peak during the afternoon before gradually decreasing during the overnight and early morning hours on Sunday. Winds today and tomorrow will have the potential to result in hazardous driving conditions due to blowing dust causing visibility reductions. The Owens Valley may see bursts of westerly downslope winds through Saturday afternoon. These sudden gusty crosswinds will make for hazardous travel conditions in the Owens Valley, especially for high profile vehicles. Speaking of strong crosswinds, crosswinds will also be possible along Highway 95 between Las Vegas and Desert Rock- Mercury on Saturday. Precipitation impacts associated with this system will be spatially limited to the Sierra-Nevada, White Mountains of Inyo County, Spring Mountains, and elevations above 5,000 feet in Lincoln County. 70-80+ mph winds combined with heavy snow in the Sierra will make travel nearly impossible and extremely dangerous with near whiteout conditions expected. Additionally, these winds and heavy snow will cause avalanche danger to increase in the backcountry. Snow totals and wind gust magnitudes will be slightly less robust in the White Mountains of Inyo County. However, difficult to impossible travel conditions are expected through Sunday morning, especially along Highway 168 through Westgard Pass. Blizzard conditions are expected for elevations above 5,000 feet in Lincoln County on Saturday, specifically in along Highway 93 north of Caliente. The lower elevations of Lincoln County will also see strong southerly wind gusts, but will be missing the snow necessary to produce whiteout conditions. The latest addition to our winter weather headlines is a Winter Storm Warning for elevations above 6,000 feet in the Spring Mountains tomorrow. 65-75+ mph wind gusts combined with falling snow may result in whiteout conditions. Measuring new snow accumulation may be difficult given how strong winds will be, never the less we are expecting about 4-8 inches of new snow, with a 20% chance of upwards of 12 inches. Weather will gradually calm down throughout the day on Sunday with cooler than normal temperatures lingering into next week. .LONG TERM...Monday through Thursday. There remains moderate uncertainty in the finer details of the long term period, but the general outlook remains unsettled with cooler than normal conditions and occasional chances for precipitation. Monday and Tuesday are likely to be the driest days as the strong trough responsible for the windy conditions over the weekend lifts eastward and modest height rises follow as the flow aloft turns more zonal. Despite the height rises, temperatures will remain a few degrees shy of normal. Another Pacific trough will begin to take shape by midweek and swing through the Southern Great Basin and Mojave Desert region late Wednesday into Thursday. This system doesn't appear especially strong but will bring renewed chances for light precipitation to the area, and especially the higher terrain, as well as some cooler temperatures and breezy conditions. && .AVIATION...For Harry Reid...Gusty southwest winds continue through the day, with a 50% chance of gusts between 25-35 knots this afternoon, and a 25% chance of gusts between 35-40 knots. Wind magnitude becomes a bit more uncertain tonight. Fluctuations are likely, but in general gusts should stay close to 25 knots, if not stronger. Gusts really start to ramp up Saturday morning, peaking in the afternoon and early evening. Pretty confident in wind gusts over 48 knots from roughly 18z Saturday - 03z Sunday, with even the more conservative guidance giving 70% odds. Because of the confidence, opted issue an Airport Weather Warning from 18z Saturday to 03z Sunday. Rotor development and severe turbulence will be possible, mainly Saturday afternoon and evening. Winds of this magnitude are likely to kick up dust as well, though the extent of visibility restrictions remains uncertain. In terms of clouds, things look relatively non-impactful today with FEW-SCT mid-level and high clouds. Tomorrow morning, a scattered cloud layer (50% chance of CIGs) is forecast to develop around 6kft. For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast California...Gusty south-southwest winds across the area again today. Lightest winds will be in the Colorado River Valley, where gusts of 20-30 knots are expected. Gusts elsewhere are forecast to be more in the 30-40 knot range. Expect moderate to severe mechanical turbulence near and east of mountain crests today and Saturday. Trickiest forecast will be at KBIH, where rotor development may cause winds to be erratic at times and spillover precipitation brings CIGs down tonight. Based on hi-res guidance, the best chance of rotor development and resultant east winds at KBIH is between 02z-07z tonight. After this time, winds should favor a SSE direction as precipitation spills over and CIGs lower to ~6kft (75% chance). MVFR conditions are possible at times (35% chance), particularly if precipitation intensity increases. For the rest of the region, no cloud issues are anticipated with FEW-SCT mid-level and high clouds forecast. && .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating procedures. && SHORT TERM...Stessman LONG TERM...Outler AVIATION...Woods 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.
11 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
These gusts occurred 3 mi NE of Mt. Charleston.
These gusts occurred 1 mi ESE of Red Rock Canyon.
These gusts occurred at the town of Blue Diamond.
This gust occurred 40 mi E of Beatty.
This gust occurred at Rachel.
These gusts occurred 40 mi E of Beatty.
Damage included many trees blown down, street lights blown down, minor damage to buildings, one carport blown over, two billboards blown down, and 29,000 people without power.
These gusts occurred at the Mercury-Desert Rock (KDRA) ASOS.
A light pole was blown over in Boulder City.
These gusts occurred at the town of Blue Diamond. High winds were intermittent during the period.
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, March 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: 1167060, 1167061, 1167062, 1167063, 1167064, 1167065, 1167066, 1167067, 1167068, 1167069, 1167070.