A Nevada tornado warning was in effect Thursday afternoon for parts of Storey County, Southern Washoe County and North-central Lyon County as severe storms moved across western Nevada. The warning, issued at 1:37 p.m., was set to expire at 2:15 p.m.
The National Weather Service in Reno said the storm near Derby Dam could produce a tornado, quarter-size hail and damaging wind as it moved east at 15 mph. Derby Dam sits about 16 miles northeast of Virginia City, and the warning said the storm could reach Fernley around 1:55 p.m. after remaining near Derby Dam around 1:40 p.m.
That same system was already forcing people to watch two different hazards at once. A severe thunderstorm warning was also in effect until 2 p.m. for Storey County, South central Washoe County and Northern Lyon County, with the storm near Derby Dam at 1:32 p.m. moving northeast at 5 mph and capable of golf ball-size hail and wind gusts up to 60 mph. The tornado warning added the risk of dangerous flying debris, damage to mobile homes, roofs, windows and vehicles, and tree damage.
At the same time, the National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for Storey County and South-central Washoe County until 4:15 p.m. Radar showed thunderstorms producing heavy rain, with 0.8 to 1.5 inches already recorded in the warned area, and the weather service said flash flooding was ongoing or expected to begin shortly. Reno, Sparks, Lockwood, Hidden Valley, Reno-Tahoe International Airport, Mustang and Patrick were among the places named in that warning.
A separate flood advisory for Storey and southern Washoe counties, including the greater Reno area, was also set to remain in effect until 3:45 p.m. It was issued because of excessive rainfall and included Reno, Sparks, Reno-Tahoe International Airport, Hidden Valley, Damonte Ranch, Caughlin Ranch, northwest Reno, the National Weather Service office and Sun Valley. The overlap of tornado risk and flooding risk made the afternoon especially unstable for anyone in the path of the storms.
The warnings were part of a broader severe weather outbreak across western Nevada, with hail, strong winds and flooding all in play on the same afternoon. What remained unclear by the time the warnings were set to expire was whether the storm ever touched down or left damage before it moved out of the area.
