Potential risks and what you need to know about today’s red flag warning

At almost 6 a.m. Monday, National Weather Service Eureka issued a red flag warning for critical fire weather conditions, in effect from 11 a.m. to nine p.m.. Ryan Aylward, Warning Coordination Meteorologist for National Weather Service Eureka, spoke to Redwood News about what this means.

“We have a red flag warning that’s currently up in Trinity County, in northern Humboldt County, [and Del Norte] basically because we have a chance of thunderstorms today,” Aylward said.

With an active and early start to the fire season in California, potential weather events like this can pose a serious threat.

“The atmosphere is really dry in the lower levels. And so in that situation, what can happen is you get thunderstorms that are elevated but aren’t producing much rain at the surface, Aylward said. “And when you have that thunderstorms with no rain, you can have a fire, a fire potential. So today we would expect some isolated thunderstorms be forming over the mountainous terrain out there. And if we do get thunderstorms in the area, we could have fires that develop.”

These conditions are to be expected, and in the case of a fire, the weather might help it spread.

“I would expect a similar situation today where a fire could develop in this environment when you have very dry, low levels, you can get rapidly mixing winds down to the surface, too, which can cause a fire to grow very quickly,” Aylward said.

It’s important to be prepared for anything when a warning like this is in effect.

“Having a go bag near your door if you live out anywhere where there might be thunderstorms that day so you can immediately evacuate if you need to,” Aylward said. “It’s really suggested if you’re out there and you do see lightning and you see a strike and you see smoke, specifically, make sure to call that into the fire services so that they can get out there. There’s probably people out there watching for it, but the more eyes on it, the better.”

Certain times of the day can pose more of a risk.

“Thunderstorms are more common in the afternoon hours when the heating of the day is has reached its peak, it’s when the atmosphere becomes most what we call unstable and there’s a lot of upward motion,” Aylward said.

It’s also important to be aware of general lightning safety.

“Our suggestion with lightning is that when you hear thunder, it’s time to go inside. When thunder roars, go indoors. If you see a flash, dash inside” Aylward said. “If you can hear thunder, you’re at risk for being struck by lightning. Worst possible place to be is underneath a tree.”

Knowing about red flag warnings beforehand can help you be prepared for an emergency. For the most up-to-date information on weather alerts, click here to visit the National Weather Service website.

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