LAS VEGAS >> Authorities say powerful gusts are expected to whip up dust in southern Nevada.

Officials with the Clark County Department of Air Quality issued a dust advisory for Thursday, saying the air could be harmful for children, the elderly or people with respiratory conditions.

The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory and predicts gusts of up to 55 mph on the western side of the Las Vegas valley. Other areas of the valley could feel gusts of up to 40 mph.

Meteorologists say a storm system is likely to bring severe downslope winds to the Sierra Nevada and Spring Mountains on Thursday, along with gusts across much of the Mojave Desert.