Triple-digit heat returns to Las Vegas

By Dave Toplikar (contact)

Published Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010 | 5:29 a.m.

Updated Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010 | 9:32 a.m.

Triple-digit temperatures are making a return engagement to Las Vegas for the next few days.

High pressure will continue to intensify over the area through Saturday, leading to light winds, dry conditions and temperature a notch above normal, according to the National Weather Service.

Saturday will be the hottest day in a while. Forecasters said this morning that they think afternoon temperatures might hit 107 degrees on Saturday, which could trigger an excessive heat warning.

A low pressure system will move into the Pacific Northwest on Sunday and into the northern Rockies on Labor Day. That system will bring Las Vegas locally breezy conditions and high temperatures dropping into the mid-90s on Labor Day, the weather service said.

Around the valley just before 9 a.m., temperatures were 85 degrees at McCarran International Airport, 84 degrees at North Las Vegas Airport, 83 degrees at Nellis Air Force Base and 85 degrees at Henderson Executive Airport.

Temperatures at McCarran were to rise today to 97 degrees by noon and reach a high of 103 degrees by 2 p.m., forecasters said. The normal high for today's date is 98 degrees and the record high was 110 degrees, set in 1950, 1948 and 1947.

Temperatures are expected to drop to 100 degrees by 6 p.m., to 91 degrees by 9 p.m. and to 84 degrees by midnight, forecasters said.

Friday's morning low will be 76 degrees and Friday's high will climb to 105 degrees, they said.

At 4:56 a.m. today, the temperature at McCarran was 76 degrees. The normal low for today's date is 73 degrees. The record low was 56 degrees, set in 1964.