Heat and Fire Weather Concerns in the West

Heat will build over the Intermountain West and the Southwest the next couple of days. Lightning from dry thunderstorms can create new fire starts and combined with gusty winds may cause a fire to rapidly grow in Oregon and northern California. Elevated fire weather conditions are also expected in the Great Basin. Flash flooding will be possible in Arizona and west Texas, especially in burn scars. Read More >

December 2021 featured above normal temperatures, precipitation, and snowfall at nearly all climate sites. The only exception was below normal precipitation at Ashland. This comes as no surprise as December was a pretty active month with several storms passing through the region. Perhaps the most notable is the historic December 15/16 storm that brought nearly every type of weather to the region, including high winds, thunderstorms, record highs, and some snowfall. There were some high rainfall amounts from this system and not a lot of snow. Towards the end of the month, however, snowstorms caused monthly snowfall to creep above normal at both Duluth and International Falls. All of this has led to some drought improvements, with Extreme drought removed from the Arrowhead and most areas now experiencing abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions. Pockets of severe drought still persist across Koochiching County, the Arrowhead, and the Bayfield Peninsula.

Looking ahead, the CPC predicted below normal temperatures for January (as we have seen thus far) and equal chances for above or below normal temperatures through March. Generally equal chances or above normal precipitation predicted through March. If we do continue to see an active weather pattern, drought conditions should continue to improve overall.