Tonight's Forecast:
Even without any Red Flag Warnings in Teller County today, dry grasses and moderate wind gusts were enough to help spread a wildfire that broke out this afternoon around Crystola and Woodland Park. The 10 acre blaze known as the Rampart Fire has not been contained as of 5:30 pm, Tuesday.
For the rest of tonight, light downslope breezes will keep our overnight temperatures on the mild side, only cooling down to the 40s and 50s in the Plains.
Colorado Springs forecast: Low: 47; High: 83; Record breaking heat and high fire danger will be the big weather stories on Wednesday. Dry southwesterly wind gusts to 35 mph should help to drive our high temperature into the lower to middle 80s, hot enough to beat our existing record of 77° (2010).
Pueblo forecast: Low: 44; High: 89; Dry air, dry grasses and 35 mph wind gusts will bring Red Flag Warning conditions to our forecast from noon to 8 pm. The other big story will be the heat, with the current record on Wednesday sitting at just 83°, we're likely to crush it!
Canon City forecast: Low: 49; High: 86; Tight southwest flow will bring super dry air and high fire danger to our forecast on Wednesday. On top of the heat, Red Flag Warnings will go from noon until 8 pm.
Woodland Park forecast: Low: 41; High: 74; Dry and warm today, but even drier and warmer tomorrow, with an increased threat for fast-moving grass fires. Red Flag Warnings will return to Teller County on Wednesday, in effect from noon until 8 pm.
Tri-Lakes forecast: Low: 40s; High: 70s/80s; A mild Tuesday night will give way to a windy and warmer Wednesday, with Red Flag Warnings set to go in effect starting at noon.
Plains forecast: Low: 40s/50s; High: 80s/90s; Wednesday's forecast will feel a lot more like early June that mid April. On top of 80s and 90s for daytime highs, we're also expecting another day with high fire danger due to 30-40 mph wind gusts and single digit relative humidity.
Walsenburg and Trinidad forecast: Low: 40s; High: 80s; Much like the rest of Southern Colorado, Wednesday will be a warm, dry and windy day. Red Flag Warnings will be in effect from noon until 8 pm. Avoid outdoor burning and report smoke or fire to 911.
Mountains forecast: Low: 30s/40s; High: 50s/60s; A warm and windy day for the mountains on Wednesday, with Red Flag Warnings in effect for the San Luis Valley, but not for the surrounding mountain ranges.
Extended outlook forecast:
Even with a good 5-10 degrees of cooling on Thursday, our forecast will remain very warm and very dry. An approaching low pressure system will cause winds to strengthen further, with critical to extreme fire behavior possible, along with areas of blowing dust.
Storm that kicks up the wind on Thursday will bring rain, snow and possible thunder to southeastern Colorado by Friday afternoon. Snow levels at first will be quite high, but could lower to between 6,000 to 6,500 feet by late Friday night. Moisture should clear out by the weekend, leaving us with bright and mild conditions.
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Curious about the First Alert 5 Weather Storm Impact Scale? Check out our cheatsheet explainer.
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