Rain skirts valley; flood advisory runs through Friday
No major rain was falling on the Las Vegas Valley on Thursday evening.
A flood watch was issued through Friday night as monsoon rain and storm chances return to the valley for an extended period of time, according to the National Weather Service.
The watch was issued Thursday afternoon and includes portions of northwest Arizona, southeast California and Nevada, including Lake Mead National Recreation Area, the Las Vegas Valley, Clark County, Lincoln County, Spring Mountains-Red Rock Canyon and and Southern Nye County.
As of 7:30 p.m., there was light rain over the west valley and some moderate showers approaching Lake Mead and along the Interstate 15 corridor to Mesquite.
Regional Flood Control District gauges showed .16 of an. inch fell near Mount Charleston while the Sheep Range was covered by light showers shortly before 9 p.m. They were moving northwest and the sky was clear in all other directions.
“An upper-level disturbance arriving from the south Thursday into Friday is adding an additional dynamic to the atmosphere,” said meteorologist Barry Pierce.
The chance of rain or storms rises to 50 percent on Friday. A high of 95 is forecast with south-southwest winds of 5-10 mph.
Monsoon season in the desert southwest runs from June 15 to September 30, & we are currently 49 days into the 2022 monsoon season.
So how much precip have we seen around the forecast area so far this monsoon season? Check out the graphic below! ⛈️☔#Monsoon2k22 #NVwx #CAwx #AZwx pic.twitter.com/jesXEtiG4g— NWS Las Vegas (@NWSVegas) August 3, 2022
Chances of moisture are lower on the weekend.
“The higher terrain might see more activity on the weekend, but the chance remains in the valley,” Pierce said.
The monsoon risk continues for the coming week.
High temperatures of 95 to 100 are expected, a bit below the norm this time of year that is 104.
Relative humidity levels, however, have been in the 20 percent range, above the traditional range around 10-12 percent.
Harry Reid International Airport, the official measuring station for the valley, has received .84 of an inch of rain this year, with .68 falling during monsoon activity in the past two weeks. The normal rainfall at the airport on Aug. 3 is 2.50 inches.
Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Marv_in_Vegas on Twitter.