Nevada, 2024

Heat in Nevada, September 12 to 14, 2024

September 12 to 14, 2024 · NWS VEF · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Three people died in Las Vegas of heat-related causes.

Where it happened

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.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
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The toll

Deaths
3
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS VEF wrote it up.

Three people died in Las Vegas of heat-related causes.

What forecasters said that day

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 Sep 11, 7:09 PM PST, 4 hours 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 11, 7:09 PM PST, 4 hours 51 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Las Vegas NV
809 PM PDT Wed Sep 11 2024

.SYNOPSIS...Dry and windy conditions persist through the night for
much of the area and a Wind Advisory and Red Flag Warning are in
place. Smoke from wildfires in southern California will continue to
flow into the forecast area, bringing periods of reduced visibility
and smoky skies. The next opportunity for thunderstorms may arrive
early next week.
&&

.UPDATE...Gusty winds were reported this afternoon across the
region. Many areas reported gusts of 25 to 35 MPH with higher gusts
to around 40 MPH reported in the western Mojave Preserve and the
Barstow as well as in the Sierra terrain. As the sunsets, winds have
been diminishing outside of the Barstow, CA area where gusts to 40
MPH continued. This trend will continue through the night with winds
dropping off but impactful gusts to around 40 MPH in the western
Mojave Desert. A wind advisory continues through early Thursday
morning for the area where winds will likely stay up through the
night. The Red Flag Warning will expire at 11PM which looks good
based on the current wind trends slowly fall below levels where fire
danger would be a significant concern.

Smoke from wildfires continues to stream into region. Winds aloft
have turn more west to southwest so the plume of smoke stretched
across southern Nevada has shifted slightly east. Haze and
occasional visibility reductions have been reported in the Morongo
Basin and Yucca Valley this evening where satellite showed the most
intense and smoke plume was most robust. The HRRR smoke model shows
this trend of the most dense smoke moving into the southern Colorado
River Valley and Arizona tonight. Smoke will still hang over parts
of southern Nevada though which will result in hazy skies at times
tonight into Thursday morning.

-Nickerson-
&&

.PREVIOUS DISCUSSION...148 PM PDT Wed Sep 11 2024
.SHORT TERM...Tonight through Friday

A low pressure system over the Pacific Northwest will move east into
the Intermountain West tonight and tomorrow. A tight pressure
gradient will result in gusty southerly to southwesterly winds
through tonight, warranting a Red Flag Warning until 11 PM PDT
Wednesday for sections of Nevada and Arizona, and a Wind Advisory
for western San Bernardino County until 4 AM PDT Thursday. Winds
decrease going into tomorrow morning as the trough tracks northeast
and the pressure gradient relaxes. Lighter winds are expected to
last through Friday. However, westerly to southwesterly flow will
continue to funnel smoke from the Line, Airport, and Bridge fires in
Southern California into the forecast area. Near surface smoke
will remain in Clark, Mohave, and San Bernardino Counties through
Thursday night per the 12Z HRRR smoke model, bringing reduced air
quality, lower visibility, and smoky skies. The heaviest smoke
should move into southern San Bernardino and Mohave Counties
starting tonight with a push of westerly winds.

Temperatures decrease on Thursday following the passage of a surface
cold front associated with the trough. Zonal flow on Friday will
help maintain near average temperatures.

.LONG TERM...Saturday through Wednesday

The interesting / least confident part of the forecast comes late-
weekend into the start of next week. There continues to be an
indication among ensemble members that tropical moisture will push
northward up the Gulf of California over the weekend. There are a
lot of variables to consider before deciding if this will have any
direct impact on the forecast area, as models remain uncertain how
organized this moisture will become as it pushes northward as well
as what exact track it will take. That said, the NHC has formally
noted this tropical disturbance off the western coast of Mexico by
Colima with a 40% chance of cyclone formation in the next 48 hours.
Both the ECMWF ensemble and GEFS means show an associated increase
in PWATs up the Colorado River Valley on Sunday and Monday, with the
NBM subsequently increasing PoPs over Mohave County Sunday and the
southern Great Basin and eastern Mojave Desert on Monday. That said,
the ECMWF ensemble mean is not as enthused about bringing moisture
as far north as Las Vegas as it was 24 hours ago. Timing will be key
in this scenario as an additional trough will usher dry air into the
southwestern United States late Monday into early Tuesday.

&&

.AVIATION...For Harry Reid...Southwest winds with occasional gusts
to 30kts  can be expected into this evening.  Winds will decrease
below 15kts overnight before shifting to the northwest Thursday
morning between 14Z and 16Z. Winds may initially gust to 25kts with
the wind shift, but speeds should decrease below 12kts by 20Z
Thursday.  Reduced visibilities to as low as 4SM due to smoke from
the wildfires over Southern California will continue to move over
the valley into tonight. While some occasional improvement to 6SM or
greater is possible this afternoon and evening, the smoke is not
expected to clear the area until after 16Z Thursday when the
northwest winds move into the valley.  Above the smoke layer near
the surface, mainly clear skies with only FEW high clouds are
expected.

For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast
California...Gusty south-to-west winds are expected at most regional
TAF sites into tonight, with the strongest winds anticipated across
the western Mojave Desert, including KDAG, and in the Owens Valley,
including KBIH. Speeds will decrease by Thursday morning with
directions shifting to the northwest across northern areas of the
region by late morning.  Reduced visibilities to as low as 4SM due
to smoke from the wildfires over Southern California will continue
to move over Southern Nevada, Southeast California, and Northwest
Arizona.  While occasional improvement to 6SM or greater is possible
this afternoon and evening, the smoke is not expected to clear
northern areas until after 16Z Thursday. Southern areas, including
KDAG, KEED, and KIFP, will see the smoke persist.  Above the smoke
layer near the surface, mainly clear skies with only FEW high clouds
are expected.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...The Red Flag Warning was extended to 11 PM PST/MST
given a 50 to 80 percent chance of reaching criteria between 8 PM
and 11 PM. Winds should relax later overnight, lessening the threat.
Dry conditions remain with the next opportunity for thunderstorms
arriving early next week.

&&

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report
any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating
procedures.

&&

SHORT TERM...Meltzer
LONG TERM...Soulat
AVIATION...Planz
FIRE WEATHER...Meltzer

For more forecast information...see us on our webpage:
https://weather.gov/lasvegas or follow us on Facebook and Twitter

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 heat. Local standard time, as filed.

Heat, Las Vegas Valley

When
September 12, 12:00 AM PST to September 14, 11:59 PM PST
Where
Las Vegas Valley forecast zone
Deaths
0 direct, 3 indirect
Reported by
County Official
Coordinates
36.215, -115.014 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Three people died in Las Vegas of heat-related causes.

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Heat, Las Vegas Valley2024-09-1368MaleOutside/Open AreasIndirect
Heat, Las Vegas Valley2024-09-1469MaleOutside/Open AreasIndirect
Heat, Las Vegas Valley2024-09-1275MalePermanent HomeIndirect

What these are

Heat
Heat below excessive heat criteria that still caused deaths, injuries or significant impacts.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Nevada in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Nevada, September 2024

Sources

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: 1216214.