US: Heavy rain triggers flash floods in Las Vegas; casinos, airport submerged in water

A severe rainstorm struck the United States' Las Vegas city on July 28 night, leading to flash floods in the region which also boasts of several renowned casinos. It was the second consecutive night of torrential rain in the city, which is currently experiencing monsoonal weather. The incessant rain also flooded airports, buildings, as well as a number of parking lots in the city. Twitter users posted videos of the streets of Sin City being inundated by floodwater. Other videos showed water gushing into casinos and downtown streets turning into mini rivers.

Meanwhile, flash floods and severe thunderstorm warnings have been issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) for the Las Vegas valley. On Thursday, around 10 pm (local time), a wind gust of 59 mph was recorded at Harry Reid International Airport, however, the Las Vegas Strip recorded a gust of 71 mph across the city, according to the Fox Weather report. It further stated that around 0.32 inches of rain were officially recorded at the city airport. Meanwhile, responding to various storm-related calls, Las Vegas Fire and Rescue team issued an advisory asking people to refrain from driving through flooded roadways. 

As the rain pounded the city, many people took to Twitter and different social media platforms to post photos and videos of the flooded region. "When it rains in #LasVegas! I'm sure glad I got off the highway just before this! It was scary when driving home from dinner, though!! [sic]," wrote one of the users. "Video I received from an employee working near the sports book at Circa. Clean up after flooding that just occurred. You definitely don’t see this every day [sic]," wrote another user. Meanwhile, a user posted a video showing a flooded Linq parking garage on the strip.

Have a look at some of the videos here: 

Meanwhile, parts of central Appalachia in the United States were also flooded due to heavy rains on Thursday morning. Jerry Stacy, the emergency management director in Perry County, termed the situation as "catastrophic." Notably, Perry County was hit hardest by the severe rainstorm. In eastern Kentucky, more than 20,000 customers were left without electricity, whereas, in West Virginia, around 10,000 customers did not get access to electricity due to the torrential rain, the Associated Press (AP) reported.

Image: Twitter/@ThePerezHilton/@CoachKenCamp