Fall finally rears its wet, chilly head in LV

Monday, Oct. 23, 2000 | 11:16 a.m.

Gray skies and cooler temperatures offered Southern Nevadans their first taste of fall weather today with showers around the Las Vegas Valley and more snow expected at Mount Charleston.

For sunshine-loving Las Vegas Valley residents and visitors alike, the change from balmy sunshine on Friday was abrupt.

The National Weather Service said light rain would continue to fall all day, keeping the high temperature about 64 degrees. Lows will range in the low 50s because the clouds will keep the air warmer.

There is a slight chance of rain overnight, National Weather Service meteorologist Naeemah Cushmeer said.

The showers are expected to clear out of Southern Nevada by Tuesday morning.

A low-pressure system sitting over northern Mexico brought the rain clouds into the Las Vegas area from the east.

Above 8,500 feet at Mount Charleston, 1 to 2 inches of snow was expected to fall on the 3 inches already on the ground for the past week, Cushmeer said.

The rest of the week looks normal for weather this time of year.

Highs will range from the low to mid-70s with lows in the 50s.

A record high of 90 degrees was set on Oct. 23, 1942, weather service records show. The record low for the date is 38 degrees set in 1996.

While the showers are adding much-needed rain, Southern Nevada is still more than half an inch below average rainfall for the year. By this morning 0.13 of an inch of rain had been recorded for October, bringing the year's total to 2.64 inches. Normal rainfall is 3.16 inches by this time of year.