Texas Among Several States Facing New Fire Risks: Weather Watch

More than 2.5 million people in the US face critical fire weather conditions on Monday as dry winds sweep parts of New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas, which had the largest fire in the state’s history earlier this year.

Strong downslope winds spurred on by a deepening low pressure system and the subtropical jet stream will bring dry winds gusting throughout the region, Andrew Lyons, a fire weather forecaster at the US Storm Prediction Center, wrote in an outlook.

Red flag fire warnings are posted in the area as well, stretching farther north into Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa and Minnesota, the National Weather Service said. In addition to the fire risks, there is an enhanced chance of severe thunderstorms across Kansas and Nebraska on Monday and a slight risk in eastern Virginia.

Top photo: A destroyed ranch home following the Smokehouse Creek Fire in Miami, Texas, US, on Sunday, March 3, 2024. The Smokehouse Creek fire in Texas is the largest in the state’s history and has consumed more than 1 million acres (405,000 hectares), according to Texas A&M Forest Service with dry gusts up to 50 miles per hour sweeping across Texas and the Plains through Sunday.