Fire weather conditions will become critical Friday afternoon as temperatures soar into the upper 70s and low 80s, while dewpoints are expected in the upper 20s and mid 30s. This will bring minimum relative humidities down to around 15 percent in the afternoon across much of western Nebraska. Higher moisture is expected going into eastern Nebraska, with dewpoints near 40 degrees roughly east of a Curtis to Broken Bow to O’Neill line, so these areas may see relative humidities drop to 25 percent. Still looking at the winds, but the current forecast would put sustained speeds of 15 to 20 mph mainly west of highway 83 with lesser winds expected going east. Look for gusts about 5 mph higher, so winds should top out around 20 to 25 mph area-wide. At this point decided to issue a fire weather watch for zones 204 and 210 (the panhandle and western Nebraska) where the most favorable conditions are expected.
Conditions look near critical for Saturday through Tuesday as well. Saturday and Sunday will be very warm with highs in the 80s in most locations. Winds could be fairly light both days so will be closely watching the forecast as higher winds would bring most of Nebraska into the critical fire weather category. A system will move through Sunday and Sunday night to bring cooler temperatures in for Monday and Tuesday. Highs will still be above normal however. But very dry air will be brought into the area behind the system as dewpoints are expected to drop into the teens. So again, relative humidities should fall to around 15 percent in the afternoons. Also, winds on Monday will be quite strong behind the front. The current forecast would put sustained northwest winds of 20 to 25 mph across much of western and north central Nebraska. Then on Tuesday, winds should subside, leading to not as extreme conditions expected.
Please call the National Weather Service office with any questions on fire weather conditions through the weekend and into next week.
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