Strong Winds Increasing Fire Danger Across Eastern Oklahoma

The big system that brought severe storms to far eastern Oklahoma and blizzard warnings to the Rockies and central plains is exiting our main region today.  Before it totally loses influence, we’ll be on the back side of this powerful storm for most of the day.  You’ll feel the influence with strong northwest winds from 20 to near 40 mph for most of the region along with some wrap-around clouds for northeastern Oklahoma and southeastern Kansas. 

WARN Interactive Radar

Any precip today should remain to our north but some of the fancy hi-res models bring a few small showers or sprinkles into far northeast Oklahoma by afternoon. The odds will be around 10% or less.  Highs will stay in the upper 40s and lower 50s.   The rest of the week will be relatively uneventful before our next system arrives Friday night into Saturday with a few storms across eastern Oklahoma or western Arkansas.

NewsOn6.com Weather Apps

The main weather impacts today will be the blustery conditions and the possible impact on fire weather conditions today into the afternoon.  The strong northwest winds combined with drying air and dormant vegetation will result in rapid fire spread conditions.   Basically, if a fire starts today, the environmental weather conditions will cause it to spread at a very fast rate.   Do all you can to avoid sparks or fires today. 

Our pressure gradient will relax greatly Tuesday and Wednesday before strong south winds will return Thursday before our next system arrives by the end of the week.   The early indications suggest the low-level moisture will be “thin” by the time of the system reaches us Friday night.  This means the higher chance for showers and storms will once again be to the east of the metro but we’ll keep a slight chance in the forecast.   

Weather Alerts

Temps for the first part of this week will be cold for the mornings and mild for the afternoons.  Of course, today will be quite blustery and will be the coldest day of the work week with highs in the upper 40s and lower 50s. The fire danger will be increasing today due to the strong winds, dry air and dry vegetation. Tuesday morning lows wills start in the mid to upper 20s with highs in the lower 50s.  Wednesday morning also starts in the upper 20s but finishes with highs in the mid-50s.   Another warming trend will commence Thursday with lows in the mid to upper 30s and highs in the lower 60s with sunshine and strong south winds.  Friday will feature some clouds with lows in the mid-40s and highs in the upper 50s and lower 60s.   A few showers or storms are possible Friday night into pre-dawn Saturday.   Saturday morning lows will be in the upper 30s to lower 40s with highs near the lower 50s.  Sunday will be cooler.

Thanks for reading the Monday morning weather discussion and blog.