Critical Fire Weather Danger For Today

From Meteorologist Brandon Rector...

A cold front will move through the area this morning bringing cooler temperatures for today. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like precipitation is in the cards for us as it will be too dry at the surface to support it. Strong winds are expected today from the northwest at 20 to 30 mph and gusts of 40 to 45 mph. A Red Flag Warning is in effect for most of the area through 6 pm this evening. A Wind Advisory is in effect for the entire viewing area through the afternoon. We will likely see some blowing dust and dirt by this afternoon and that could limit visibilities in areas, so be careful out there. There should be no burning today due to the Burn Bans that are in effect across the region.

Friday will start off cold with temperatures in the mid to upper 20s, but by the afternoon we should warm up into the low to mid 60s. Strong winds are expected once again, but they will be from the south instead of the northwest.

Groundhog Day looks pleasant with mostly sunny skies and highs in the upper 60s to low 70s. We'll wait and see what the groundhog has to say about the rest of winter, but for now it is going to feel like spring for the end of the week and early next week here in the Big Country.

For Sunday and Monday, highs will be in the low to mid 70s under mostly sunny to partly cloudy skies.

A cold front should move through the area late Monday. This will bring cooler temperatures back to the area for Tuesday with highs in the mid to upper 50s. Unfortunately, it looks like this will be yet another dry frontal passage for us. We could really use the rain right now. At Abilene Regional Airport, we have seen 0.08" of precipitation so far this year. January is our driest month of the year on average, but we will finish about 0.9" behind what we typically see in the first month of the year.

Have a terrific Thursday!