878
FXUS65 KVEF 251911
AFDVEF

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Las Vegas NV
1210 PM PDT Thu Jun 25 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

* A few lingering showers and isolated thunderstorms are expected
  over portions of Mohave County this afternoon and early evening.

* Strong winds and dry conditions return Friday and continue into
  the weekend, resulting in elevated fire weather concerns and much
  cooler temperatures by Sunday.

* Winds decrease and temperatures gradually warm next week.

&&

.DISCUSSION...Today through Wednesday.

Scattered showers and a few isolated thunderstorms are expected to
develop across northern Mohave County by early afternoon as a
shortwave continues to shift east out of the region. The main
concerns with any storms that develop this afternoon will continue
to be gusty winds and lightning strikes, although brief periods of
rain are possible. However, moisture levels are waning, and storm-
total rainfall amounts are expected to remain low. Elsewhere, dry
conditions are expected, with temperatures rebounding 5 to 7 degrees
above yesterday`s values as mid-level moisture decreases and skies
continue to clear.

Tomorrow into the weekend, an unusually potent trough for this time
of year will move across the Pacific Northwest before deepening over
the Great Basin. This system will bring increasingly gusty southerly
to southwesterly winds to the region. On Friday, the strongest winds
are expected across the western Mojave Desert, portions of Inyo
County, and the higher terrain of southern Nevada and northwest
Arizona. Winds will diminish somewhat Friday night but will return
and become more widespread Saturday morning. Wind gusts of 35 to 45
mph will be common, with localized gusts of 50 to 55 mph expected in
areas favored for terrain-driven downslope winds. Several wind
products have been issued for Friday and Saturday. Impacts across
the region will include hazardous driving conditions due to
crosswinds and localized blowing dust, especially along US 395 in
Inyo County on Friday; dangerous boating conditions on area lakes;
and a return of critical fire weather conditions (see the Fire
Weather discussion below for more details). Breezy to windy
conditions will linger into Sunday, with winds shifting to the north
in the wake of the trough axis. Sunday also looks to be the coolest
day of the forecast period, with highs around 8 to as much as 15
degrees below normal for late June.

From Monday onward, lighter winds and gradually increasing
temperatures are expected as the trough weakens and ridging slowly
builds westward into the region. However, this transition from
troughing to ridging will be slow, allowing temperatures to warm
only a few degrees each day and remain below normal through midweek.
Temperatures are expected to return to near normal by the end of the
week and slightly above normal by the July 4th weekend.  Long-range
guidance also continues to suggest that dry conditions will persist
through the holiday weekend.

&&

.AVIATION...For Harry Reid...For the 18Z Forecast Package...
Light and variable winds of 5-7 knots will persist late this
morning with a period of southeasterlies early afternoon. By
20z-21z, breezy southwest winds will develop sustained at 10-15
knots and gusting to 25 knots. Winds will generally remain
south/southwesterly overnight, decreasing to around 10-15 knots.
Stronger winds are expected on Friday, with gusts 25-35 knots
possible. Temperatures to exceed 100 degrees from 20z-04z today,
topping out around 105. Though slightly cooler tomorrow,
temperatures will still climb to around 100 degrees between 21z
and 02z.

For the rest of southern Nevada, northwest Arizona and southeast
California...For the 18Z Forecast Package...For all terminals
except KBIH, somewhat variable winds of 10-15 knots or less will
become south to southwesterly this afternoon. Most terminals to
see gusts up to 25-30 knots between 20z and 01z. Winds will
decrease overnight, with fewer gusts. A period of stronger winds
will set in by 17z-18z Friday, with widespread gusts over 30
knots. For KBIH, expect south winds to become southwest to west
by 20z, gusting 20-25 knots. North winds look to develop by
03z-04z and remain through the end of the TAF period.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...One more round of isolated afternoon showers and
thunderstorms is expected today.  This activity will be confined to
northern and eastern Mohave County, with erratic, gusty winds and
lightning strikes the main concerns. Widespread wetting rains are
not expected. Elsewhere, a drying trend will continue this afternoon
as minimum RH values drop below 20 percent in most areas, and only
poor to fair overnight recovery is expected. Fairly widespread
critical to extreme fire weather conditions will develop on Friday
and persist through Saturday evening as southerly to southwesterly
winds increase substantially.  20ft winds will gust to 35 to 50 mph
at times, with sustained speeds around 20 to 30 mph. Stronger 20ft
winds and gusts can be expected in typical terrain-favored areas.
These winds, combined with minimum RH values around 5 to 15 percent
and poor nocturnal recovery, will lead to high fire danger, with
concern for the development of new wind-driven wildfires ignited by
thunderstorms that moved through the area over the last couple of
days. A Red Flag Warning remains in effect from Friday morning
through late Saturday evening. Much cooler, below-normal
temperatures are expected Sunday through midweek, along with
decreasing winds, especially from Monday onward.

&&

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...Spotters are encouraged to report
any significant weather or impacts according to standard operating
procedures.

&&

$$

DISCUSSION/FIRE WEATHER...Planz
AVIATION...Austin

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NWS Las Vegas (VEF) Office