Las Vegas to sizzle for the Fourth

Temperature to hit 107 today, thunderstorms expected tonight to south and east

Saturday, July 4, 2009 | 7:54 a.m.

Sun weather

Current conditions, today's forecast, neighborhood weather conditions, historical climatological information

Las Vegas guide to July 4

Grab the sun screen and fill up the ice chest today if you're heading out for a Fourth of July barbecue.

Temperatures should skyrocket up to 107 degrees by the afternoon in the Las Vegas Valley, according to the National Weather Service.

And if you're out for a local parade, heading to a lake or planning to watch a fireworks display, the weather should cooperate.

Skies in the valley will be mostly clear, with winds from the south later today under 10 mph.

Today's hot temperatures will be slightly above normal for July 4. Weather service records show the normal high for today is 103 degrees and the record for this date is 115 degrees, set in 1985.

Sunrise today was at 5:29 a.m. and sunset will be at 8:01 p.m.

Skies will also be mostly clear tonight, as temperatures fall off overnight to 84 degrees, the weather service said. The normal low for this date is 77 degrees and the record low was 60 degrees, set in 1941.

While Las Vegas skies will be clear tonight for fireworks, there could be some natural flashes and booms in the skies to the south and east of the valley.

Isolated thunderstorms are expected to develop this afternoon mainly across Lincoln County to the north and to the southeast in Mohave County in Arizona.

Those thunderstorms have the potential of producing some heavy local downpours, gusty winds and hail, the weather service said.

No more rain is in the forecast from Sunday through Friday, the weather service said. A dry southwest flow will persist over the region, with some breezy to windy conditions.

Live chat: Tuesday, noon PST; Chat with Krista Creelman; Problem Gambling Center executive director Krista Creelman will answer questions about gambling addiction from Las Vegas Sun readers from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, Nov. ... Submit question