Mostly sunny, mild weekend forecast for Las Vegas

A clear Friday should be the start of a decent weather weekend in the valley, according to the National Weather Service.

Sunny skies with a high near 57, about 4 degrees above normal, are forecast with light winds. Friday night is expected to be clear with a Saturday morning low near 39.

Clouds are expected increase Saturday, but no precipitation is forecast. The high should be near 55 with light winds.

Sunday will be sunny and mild with a high near 58.

Clouds will develop on Monday, say meteorologists, and Monday night will bring a chance of showers.

‘Atmospheric river’ hits California again

Hurricane-force winds, surging surf and heavy rains from a powerful “atmospheric river” pounded California on Thursday, knocking out power to tens of thousands, causing flooding, and contributing to the deaths of at least two people, including a toddler whose home was crushed by a falling tree.

Raging seas damaged two historic piers, rock and mudslides closed down highways, and deep snow piled up at ski resorts in the latest in a series of atmospheric rivers — long plumes of moisture stretching far over the Pacific — to reach the drought-stricken state. The “Pineapple Express” storm originated near Hawaii and was pulled toward the West Coast by a rotating area of rapidly falling air pressure known as a “bomb cyclone.”

Even as rains were expected to let up and some evacuation orders lifted Thursday, crews were assessing damage, trying to restore power and beginning the cleanup while bracing for more wet and wild weather this weekend that could be particularly troublesome for communities along swollen rivers.

Conditions were similar last weekend across much of the state. The storm reached into Northern Nevada, causing heavy snowfall and some 44,000 NV Energy customers to lose power with outages lasting several days.

Contact Marvin Clemons at mclemons@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Marv_in_Vegas on Twitter. The Associated Press contributed to this report.