Dust from Arizona storms blankets Las Vegas Valley, rain threatens to move in

The Clark County Department of Air Quality issued an alert Saturday due to a large outflow boundary from a thunderstorm complex in Phoenix, sending a large amount of dust into the valley.

Ashley Whiteside, a hostess at the Stratosphere’s Top of the World restaurant, said the haze partially distorted the normally expansive views from the eatery, but other than a few cancellations, business is steady on the Strip’s highest restaurant.

The National Weather Service on Saturday afternoon also issued a flash flood watch, which was to remain in effect until 5 a.m. Sunday, meteorologist Andy Gorelow said.

Thunderstorms are forecast at a chance of 30 percent in the Las Vegas Valley from Saturday to Monday, meteorologist Chris Outler said. Saturday saw a high temperature of 109 degrees, he said.

Meteorologist Stan Czyzyk said that continued storms could help clear away the dust hanging around the valley. Some areas of the valley saw 1-2 hundredths of an inch of rain, and there was potential for more ran Saturday night, Czyzyk said.

Sunday will reach a high of 104 with mostly sunny skies, Outler said. Monday is likely to have a high of 104 degrees and Tuesday will have a high near 102 with a 20 percent chance of rain.

The forecast high is 103 for Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, he said. All three days have a 20 percent chance of rain.

Low temperatures for the week will be in the mid-to-low 80s, according to the weather service.

Review-Journal reporter Christian Bertolaccini contributed to this story. Contact Raven Jackson at rjackson@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Follow @ravenmjackson on Twitter.