Wind advisory issued for southern Clark County

By Dave Toplikar

Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2010 | 5:30 a.m.

Another warm but windy day is ahead for the Las Vegas area.

Temperatures will climb into the upper 60s again, but winds will increase ahead of an approaching Pacific system this afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.

Winds will move in primarily over the higher elevations of the Sierra, across the Mojave Desert and into southern Nevada, the weather service said.

A wind advisory from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. has been issued for southern Clark County and northern San Bernardino County, including the cities of Barstow, Daggett, Fort Irwin, Baker, Mountain Pass, Mitchell Caverns, Primm, Searchlight and Cal-Nev-Ari.

Winds are expected to be 20 to 30 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph developing this afternoon mostly over the higher terrain, forecasters said. Crosswinds and blowing dust could make driving difficult, they said.

The weak storm system will move across the region tonight and Wednesday, forecasters said.

Their forecast includes a 20 percent chance for showers Wednesday night. However, any rain and snow will be light and primarily confined to the higher elevations, they said.

At 4:56 a.m. today, the temperature at McCarran International Airport was 46 degrees. The normal low for today's date is 36 degrees. The record low was 16 degrees, set in 1945.

Around the valley just before 5 a.m., temperatures were 43 degrees at North Las Vegas Airport, 41 degrees at Nellis Air Force Base and 43 degrees at Henderson Executive Airport.

Temperatures in the valley were to rise today to 55 degrees by 9 a.m., to 64 degrees by noon and reach a high of 67 degrees by 2 p.m., forecasters said. The normal high for today's date is 57 degrees and the record high was 72 degrees, set in 1942.

Temperatures are expected to drop to 61 degrees by 6 p.m., to 57 degrees by 9 p.m. and to 55 degrees by midnight, forecasters said.

Wednesday's morning low will be 51 degrees and Wednesday's high will climb to 62 degrees, they said.