Priscilla storms break rain record, cause chaos in Las Vegas Valley — PHOTOS
October has a reputation for being a very dry month in Las Vegas.
That certainly wasn’t the case Friday.
Heavy rains from the remnants of Tropical Storm Priscilla pelted the valley, causing trouble for festivals and high school football games.
Harry Reid International Airport registered 0.92 inches of rain, setting a record for the date, according to the National Weather Service. The previous record was 0.16, set in 2012.
So far this month, Reid has registered 0.94 inches of rain, including the 0.02 inches it received Thursday. The airport gets 0.32 inches during an average October.
October stats
— Before Thursday, the last time the NWS recorded rain in October was 2023, at 0.13 inches on Oct. 1.
— The one-day rainfall record is 1.08 inches, which happened on Oct. 12, 1947.
— The monthly record is 1.45 inches, set in 2005.
So far in 2025, the airport has recorded 3.27 inches of rain, less than an inch below normal. An average calendar year is 4.19 inches.
Friday developments
— The Age of Chivalry: Renaissance Festival closed early on its first day due to lightning. Attendees at the popular festival, which takes place annually at Sunset Park, were told the festival closed early Friday due to the storms.
— The storms also delayed the Best Friends Forever music festival in downtown for about an hour and a half.
— At Reid, thunderstorms caused delays, according to the FAA. On average, flights departing Las Vegas faced delays of about an hour. Flights departing other airports for Las Vegas were seeing delays averaging over 80 minutes.
Weekend forecast
Saturday: High near 86, 20 percent chance of thunderstorms
Sunday: Sunny, high near 77
2025 rain events
Sept. 18: The valley’s long dry streak ends, thanks to remnants from Tropical Storm Mario.
July 18: A few monsoon storms soaked parts of the valley.
July 3: Some showers fell across the area but a strong dust storm caused widespread power outages in the east valley.
June 5: In a rare event for June, showers caused a few disruptions across the valley.
May 6: An “exceptionally rare” May storm shattered rain records.
March 17: Strong winds and a few showers swept through the valley on St. Patrick’s Day.
March 5: A Pacific storm brought light rain to parts of the valley. The nearby mountains saw snow.
Contact Kevin J. Barr at kbarr@reviewjournal.com.
