High fire risk in Yakima and Kittitas Counties due to hot weather conditions

Today : Tuesday is a First Alert High Impact Fire Day for Yakima and Kittitas counties. Fire fuel energy will be pushing the 75th percentile for all fire season values. Please exercise fire safety! These dangerous conditions will primarily be fueled by warmer temperatures. High will soar back to values about 10-degrees above average. It’ll be in the mid to upper-70s for the Cascades and Blues, with low-90s for the Kittitas and Yakima counties. It’ll be even hotter in the Lower Columbia Basin, and foothills, with mid-90s. It’ll feel even hotter in the sunshine, and we’ll have plenty of that! Winds will be light for most spots, although northerly gusts could reach 20 MPH in the foothills.

Tonight : Our quiet weather continues this evening as skies should stay clear. Gusts in the foothills should calm down, and overnight lows will turn milder compared to Monday night. Expect mid-30s in the Cascades, with low to mid-60s for the rest of the viewing area.

Extended : We’re tracking the potential of thunderstorms quickly moving through the region tomorrow morning. The best coverage is likely in the Cascades, Blues, and the Kittitas Valley. Lightning is possible, so we’ll watch the potential for fire starts. However, fire fuels won’t be as energized as Tuesday. Otherwise, expect another hot albeit cloudier day for Wednesday.

We’ll find ourselves much cooler on Thursday–down to values about 5-degrees below average (low-80s in the Lower Columbia Basin). Thunderstorms will be possible again, although this time mainly just concentrated in the Cascades. Temperatures go back up to seasonal values by Friday, and then we’ll turn hotter again into Saturday and Sunday. Thunderstorm chances look to go back up for these days–especially for Sunday. Thunderstorm chances could last into Monday as well.

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