Extreme fire danger today – 04/12/18

Today: Buckle up for EXTREME fire danger across all of southern Colorado today! It’s a serious situation; Red Flag Warnings run from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. We’ll have very low relative humidity levels and dry fuels, of course. This coupled with gusts between 50-60 mph will create hazardous fire behavior should any sparks start flying. We also have High Wind Warnings in effect for some. Cross winds will be difficult along north-south roads. Avoid outdoor burning and don’t throw cigarette butts! On top of that, it’s possible that today’s temperatures could match or exceed records set for today. Highs will range in the 70s and 80s. Mountain snow will start later today.

Tonight: Mountain snow will continue overnight. In fact, there could be some isolated showers spilling over into the lower elevations. Strong winds could last overnight as well, but gusts shouldn’t be as powerful as what we’re seeing this afternoon. Lows drop to the 20s and 30s.

Extended: As an area of low pressure swings overhead tomorrow, temperatures drop drastically; highs Friday will only reach the 30s and 40s. We’ll be dealing with brute force winds once again. Gusts could be reaching the 50s and 60s. We have High Wind Warnings running from 9 a.m. Friday to 6 p.m. Saturday. The strongest gusts will be between Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. Relative humidity levels will increase Friday, so we won’t have extreme fire danger, but it could still be high where we don’t see showers! Speaking of which, we could be dealing with some isolated rain and snow showers on-and-off tomorrow in the lower elevations. Little to no accumulations are expected. We’ll still be windy Saturday, but winds subside somewhat Sunday before kicking up again next week.