We will see one more day of spotty showers across Colorado before dry and gusty conditions sweep in. We will have winds coming out of the west which will give us down sloping winds. This means that air will travel over the mountains and down into the I-25 corridor. When this happens this air will heat up due to the pressure changes. Because of these gusty and dry conditions, the threat for fires increases.
There are two different kinds of watches and warnings that the National Weather Service could issue when fire danger is present. Fire weather watches are usually issued when critical fire conditions are possible within the next 24 to 96 hours. Red flag warnings are usually issued when these conditions are likely within the next 12 to 48 hours. You still want to take similar precautions in both scenarios.
Meteorologists will look for strong winds, low relative humidity values, and dry fuels such as grass or vegetation. In these conditions fires can start easily and spread quickly.
Southern Colorado has not seen a red flag warning since July 14th and this only included Teller County. During the month of July, monsoonal moisture will increase, which will help ease fire conditions. We will see a spike in fire conditions going into the fall season due to decreased monsoonal moisture.
March through June is when we see the biggest spike in red flag warnings being issued. During the fall season we only average 1.8 red flag warnings during the month of September. October averages 5.2 red flag warnings.
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