Remembering The Great 2008 Snowstorm In Vegas, Other Whacky Weather Events

The year was 2008 when Las Vegas residents woke up to snow blanketing the palm trees, covering desert shrubs and cloaking casinos. It was quite a shocking spectacle for many. It was precisely 16 years ago when some areas of Clark County received 8-to-10 inches of snow. According to a report by Channel 8 (KLAS), the National Weather Service's official measurement was 3.6 inches of snow on Dec. 17, 2008. The Las Vegas Review-Journal even reported that the weather service dubbed this 2008 snowstorm as the "eighth greatest snowstorm ever," in Las Vegas. For many Las Vegans, it was their first time ever having a "snow day." This was because Clark County School District closed all schools. People also built snowmen, had snowball fights, and were able to momentarily do activities that were hard to do in the desert. Further, the Review-Journal states that Interstate 15 was closed at Primm, and Highway 95 was closed from Railroad Pass to the California border. Along with that, Route 160 was closed between Las Vegas and Pahrump. So, it was definitely chaos when snowfall came. Other Weird Weather Moments In Las Vegas History Aside from the winter storm in 2008, there have been other moments that made meteorologists ponder. In fact, we're currently upgraded to "extreme" drought conditions in Las Vegas as I type this out. We've had 151 consecutive days with no rainfall above one-tenth of an inch, according to the Review-Journal. Another weird weather or "climate" related phenomenon was the invasion of grasshoppers that happened five years ago. According to Today, a wet winter and a mild spring created the perfect conditions for the particular species of grasshopper to make a stop in Vegas. The massive swarm of pallid-winged grasshoppers were attracted to ultraviolet light, which is plentiful in Las Vegas. This caused a massive takeover of grasshoppers in the Las Vegas streets. It was nearly apocalyptic. There has also been a sprinkle of tornados that happened throughout Nevada's history. In Las Vegas, the Reno-Gazette reports that one tornado happened on Mar. 30, 1992, and another happened on Mar. 30, 1992. The "most severe" damage came from an E0 tornado that took place on Sep. 11, 1998, in Henderson. "A small tornado tore the roof off a Henderson warehouse and destroyed a large block wall at a service station a short distance away. Heavy rain fell mainly on the east side of the metro area with amounts up to 1.85 inches in a two hour period. As a result flash flooding filled streets and washes and trapped several motorists although no serious injuries occurred," the Reno-Gazette reports about the 1998 tornado. What's the beautiful thing about living in the desert? The weather is usually hot, but it's still unpredictable.