Red Flag Warning Issued for Western and North Central Nebraska Through Thursday Night

Alert Details

The National Weather Service in North Platte has issued a Red Flag Warning for Western and North Central Nebraska. This alert replaces the previous Fire Weather Watch and indicates that critical fire weather conditions are imminent or occurring.

Affected Areas

The warning covers several regions across Nebraska, including:

• Eastern Panhandle/Crescent Lake NWR (Fire Weather Zone 204)
• Sandhills/Valentine NWR/Nebraska National Forest (Fire Weather Zone 206)
• Niobrara Valley/Fort Niobrara NWR/Samuel R McKelvie National Forest (Fire Weather Zone 208)
• Loup Rivers Basin (Fire Weather Zone 209)
• Frenchman Basin (Fire Weather Zone 210)
• Loess Plains (Fire Weather Zone 219)

What You Should Do

Residents in the affected areas are urged to prepare for extreme fire behavior. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures means that any fire starts will have a high potential to spread rapidly and will be difficult to control. Avoid activities that could cause sparks or open flames.

Expected Conditions

• Winds: West winds between 30 to 40 mph, with gusts reaching up to 65 mph.
• Humidity: Relative humidity levels as low as 17 percent.
• Temperature: Highs reaching up to 74 degrees.
• Lightning: No lightning is expected during this event.

Timeline

The Red Flag Warning is effective on Thursday, March 12, from 12:00 PM CDT (11:00 AM MDT) until 10:00 PM CDT (9:00 PM MDT).