Community · Valley-wide
More showers and thunderstorms are forecast for the Las Vegas Valley Wednesday and Thursday, weeks after Rachel's record rain
A Pacific storm is expected to bring showers and thunderstorms to Southern Nevada Wednesday night and Thursday, though forecasters say totals should stay well below the Oct. 11 storm from Tropical Storm Rachel's remnants.
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What happened
Southern Nevada is in line for another round of showers and thunderstorms on Wednesday and Thursday, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported, citing the National Weather Service. The storm arrives less than two weeks after the remnants of Tropical Storm Rachel brought record-setting rainfall to the valley.
October is normally one of the driest months of the year in Las Vegas, according to the Review-Journal. This month has been an exception, with the new system following closely behind Rachel's storms.
A smaller storm than Rachel
Forecasters do not expect a repeat of the Oct. 11 storm, which left more than an inch of rain at Harry Reid International Airport. Sam Meltzer, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Las Vegas, told the Review-Journal the valley is forecast to get less than 0.25 inches of rain.
This system is coming from the Pacific Ocean. The weather service said in a post on X that it is bringing a "surge of moisture" into the Southwest on Wednesday and Thursday.
The forecast, day by day
Wednesday night
Meltzer said Southern Nevada should begin to feel the storm Wednesday night, when the chance of rain is 30 percent. Wednesday's daytime high is forecast at 81.
Thursday
Rain chances climb to 60 percent by Thursday morning and to 80 percent by Thursday afternoon, according to Meltzer. That makes Thursday the most likely day for wet weather in the valley.
Friday and cooler temperatures
Friday is expected to be dry for most of the Las Vegas area, the Review-Journal reported. Highs are forecast to fall into the low 70s by the end of the week, below the average late-October high, which is in the upper 70s.
How this October compares
Rain so far this month
Harry Reid International Airport has recorded 1.19 inches of rain so far this month, the Review-Journal reported. The October average is 0.32 inches. The wettest October on record came in 2005, with 1.45 inches.
Rain so far this year
Even with this month's storms, the year remains behind normal. The airport has logged 2.18 inches of rain so far this year, compared with a normal of 3.31 inches through mid-October, according to the Review-Journal.
Before October, Las Vegas had received just over one inch of rain this year, based on weather service data. The city gets about four inches in an average calendar year, and official record-keeping began in 1937.
Beyond Southern Nevada
The storm is reaching across the region. A flood watch is in effect for most of Arizona on Wednesday and Thursday, the Review-Journal reported, and southern Utah is also in the storm's path.
What to watch next
- Rain chances in the valley rise from 30 percent Wednesday night to 80 percent by Thursday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
- Forecasters expect less than 0.25 inches of rain in the valley from this storm.
- Friday is expected to be dry for most of the Las Vegas area, with highs dropping to the low 70s by the end of the week.
- A flood watch covers most of Arizona on Wednesday and Thursday.
