PIERRE, S.D. (AP) – There are varying degrees of drought conditions in the Plains region, but a National Weather Service hydrologist says predicted above-normal rain this spring might ease some of the problem. Mike Gillispie in Sioux Falls expects improvement in parts of Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota. Some people in the agriculture industry and with municipal water supplies are still wary.
Nathan Fields with the National Corn Growers Association says that during the 2012 drought, he learned how quickly it can set in and affect crop production. Parts of eastern South Dakota are abnormally dry. The stretch from southern Minnesota and Iowa through Nebraska is facing moderate drought. Conditions worsen toward the south, as parts of Texas and Oklahoma are in the middle of an ongoing drought. There’s no drought in North Dakota.
The Freese-Notis weather forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area, Advisories and Warnings, and weather information for Atlantic.
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**A Wind Advisory and RED FLAG WARNING is in effect from mid-morning until 6-p.m.**
Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 64. Windy, with a south wind 23 to 30 mph, with gusts as high as 41 mph.
Tonight: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30. Windy, with a northwest wind 11 to 21 mph, with gusts as high as 29 mph.
Thursday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 51. North northwest wind 6 to 10 mph.
Thu. Night: A slight chance of rain or freezing rain after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 31. East wind around 6 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Friday: A slight chance of rain or freezing rain before 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 57. East southeast wind 6 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Fri. Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 40.
Saturday: A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 1pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 66. Breezy.
COUNTIES: GUTHRIE-DALLAS-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-ADAMS-UNION-TAYLOR- RINGGOLD….RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 6 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR EXTREME FIRE CONDITIONS.
COUNTIES: HARRISON-SHELBY-POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT-PAGE-…RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CDT
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY.
* WINDS…SOUTHWEST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 45 MPH.
* RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AS LOW AS 20 PERCENT.
* IMPACTS…CONDITIONS WILL BE FAVORABLE FOR FIRES TO START QUICKLY AND SPREAD RAPIDLY. ALL OUTDOOR BURNING SHOULD BE AVOIDED.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW…OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS…LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AND WARM TEMPERATURES CAN CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.
COUNTIES: AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-ADAMS-UNION-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD-HARRISON-SHELBY-POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT AND PAGE…
421 AM CDT WED APR 16 2014
…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CDT
THIS EVENING…
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A WIND
ADVISORY…WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 6 PM CDT
THIS EVENING.
* TIMING…THE WIND WILL INCREASE THROUGH THE MORNING PEAKING
BETWEEN MID MORNING AND MID AFTERNOON.
* WINDS…SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST INCREASING TO 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS
TO 45 MPH.
* IMPACTS…THE STRONG WIND WILL MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT TODAY
ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH PROFILE OR LIGHT WEIGHT VEHICLES.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A WIND ADVISORY MEANS THAT WINDS OF 35 MPH ARE EXPECTED. WINDS
THIS STRONG CAN MAKE DRIVING DIFFICULT…ESPECIALLY FOR HIGH
PROFILE VEHICLES. USE EXTRA CAUTION.
Burn Bans which had been in-place in Fremont and Pottawattamie Counties were lifted Monday, due to the recent wet conditions. The Fremont County ban on open burning had been in effect since March 18th, while the ban in Pottawattamie County was in-place since March 19th.
Burn bans remain in effect for Mills, Montgomery and Page Counties, until further notice.
It was a wild weather weekend for many Iowans, with a little something for everyone, including near-record high temperatures, thunderstorms, flooding, high winds, hail and snow. A tornado touched down around 6 P-M Sunday near Lone Tree in eastern Iowa’s Johnson County, but no damage was reported. Meteorologist Craig Cogil, at the National Weather Service, says it went from balmy to frigid pretty quickly.
“On Saturday, we saw highs in the state well into the 70s and up into the mid 80s,” Cogil says. “Since that time, it’s been downhill to where temperatures in the state this morning are anywhere from the mid 30s in the southeast to mid 20s in the northwest, so a good 50-degree drop in some locations.”
Some Iowans awoke today (Monday) to see their newly-sprouted green grass and tulip leaves covered with a white blanket of snow. “We’ve had some reports of a half-inch to an inch-and-a-half in various locations in central and northern Iowa,” Cogil says. “It is sticking this morning however, I don’t anticipate it’ll last too long.” He expects temperatures to warm up very gradually this week.
“Today is going to be well below normal,” Cogil says. “We’re going to remain relatively cloudy in most locations with highs only rebounding up into the mid to upper-30s across the state. We’re not going to see better moderation until we get into Tuesday and Wednesday.” Highs on Tuesday are mostly expected in the 40s statewide, with 50s likely on Wednesday. There may be another chance for snow on Thursday.
(Radio Iowa)
The (podcast) weather forecast for Atlantic & the KJAN listening area. Sunday’s High in Atlantic was 48. Our low through 5:30-a.m. today was 26. Precipitation amounted to 1.12-inches, including snowfall of 1/2-inch.
Last year on this date, Atlantic reached a High of 69 degrees. The Low was 33. All-time record high for April 14th in Atlantic was 89, in 2003. The record Low was 11 in 1907. Sunrise is at 6:42 and Sunset is at 7:59.
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