A few showers dampen Las Vegas as Moapa Valley sees heavy rain
A thunderstorm in the Moapa Valley area northeast of Las Vegas brought strong winds and heavy rainfall, forcing authorities to briefly shut down a section of state Route 169 near Overton because of flooding.
A severe thunderstorm and flash flooding warning was issued for the area through Tuesday evening.
“Get indoors immediately and use extreme caution if traveling on (Interstate 15) near Moapa,” the National Weather Service advised in a Twitter post Tuesday evening. The agency also shared video of a flooded roadway in the area.
The Las Vegas Valley saw scattered showers and cooler temperatures Tuesday. Monsoonal rains are expected over the next two days, according to the weather service.
McCarran International Airport, where the weather service takes its official readings, had not received any measurable rain as of 10 p.m. Showers were reported in some parts of the valley, but nothing more than a tenth of an inch.
“Tuesday is the initial transition into monsoon conditions,” National Weather Service meteorologist Chris Outler said. “We will see a lot more clouds around and there will be daily chances for isolated and scattered storms all week.”
Tuesday’s overnight low was forecast at 82. A 30 to 40 percent chance of rain was expected Wednesday.
Monsoonal rains occur as the result of a seasonal wind shift over the Southwest U.S. and northwestern Mexico and typically occur in the form of thunderstorms in the late afternoon or early evening. They are normally not widespread.
McCarran International Airport has received .86 of an inch of rain so far this year — a time period that typically sees well over 2 inches. Las Vegas normally receives about 4.12 inches throughout the year.
Last year, the monsoon season came and went without any measurable rain in the Las Vegas Valley, tying a record set more than 75 years ago.
With only a trace amount of rain between June and September, 2020 tied with the 1944 record for the driest monsoon season since the weather service began recording in 1937.
The driest year recorded in Las Vegas was 1953, when only 0.56 inches of precipitation fell at McCarran.
Contact Jonah Dylan at jdylan@reviewjournal.com. Follow @TheJonahDylan on Twitter.
