Tornado-like system causes damage in North Las Vegas
A tornado-like system caused damage to structures destroyed a fireworks stand and uprooted 15 to 20 trees in North Las Vegas on Tuesday.
Firefighters were alerted around 11 p.m., according to Public Information Officer Cedric Williams.
“I talked to the captain on duty last night and he said he thought the fire station’s roof was coming off,” Williams said Wednesday. “He said it sounded like a train landed on top of the station.”
Missing roof tiles, power outages, vehicle damage and flying debris were reported from the blocks surrounding the intersection of Ann Road and Simmons Street, Williams said.
“We see that quite a bit around here when thunderstorms develop and rain evaporates,” National Weather Service Meteorologist Barry Pierce said. “The drier the air is, the quicker (evaporation) rises from the surface. So once it hits the surface, a release of wind can spread from the base of the ground.”
Similar systems, which Pierce called “microbursts,” are responsible for some of the fiercest wind events ever recorded in the Las Vegas Valley.
There were reports of minor injuries but no transports to the hospital.
