Red flag warning western Minn. Saturday; rain at times Sunday
Strongest winds in western Minnesota
We’ll have plenty of Saturday sunshine in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, but winds will ramp up as a low pressure system moves into Nebraska.
A wind advisory runs from Saturday afternoon into Saturday evening in west-central and southwestern Minnesota.
Most of western Minnesota is in a red flag warning from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday due to strong winds and low relative humidity, which will create critical fire weather conditions:
Here are details of the red flag warning:
Create a More Connected Minnesota
MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.
URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 240 AM CDT Sat Apr 6 2024 ...CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS WESTERN MINNESOTA SATURDAY AFTERNOON... .Southeasterly winds will steadily increase through this afternoon, becoming sustained at 25-30 mph with gusts up to 40-45 mph. Relative humidity will also drop to around 20-30 percent during this time frame, with a lack of precipitation over the past week also allowing for fuels to be dry. MNZ041-047-048-054>057-064-065-073-074-082-091-061545- /O.UPG.KMPX.FW.A.0003.240406T1800Z-240407T0000Z/ /O.NEW.KMPX.FW.W.0004.240406T1800Z-240407T0000Z/ Douglas-Stevens-Pope-Lac Qui Parle-Swift-Chippewa-Kandiyohi- Yellow Medicine-Renville-Redwood-Brown-Watonwan-Martin- 240 AM CDT Sat Apr 6 2024 ...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR WESTERN MINNESOTA... The National Weather Service in Twin Cities/Chanhassen has issued a Red Flag Warning, which is in effect from 1 PM this afternoon to 7 PM CDT this evening. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect. * AFFECTED AREA...West central, southwest, and portions of south central Minnesota. * WIND...Southeast from 25 to 30 mph, gusting 40 to 45 mph. * HUMIDITY...20 to 30 percent. * IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is not recommended. 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.
Winds could gust as high as 50 mph in parts of southwestern Minnesota Saturday afternoon.
Saturday afternoon wind gusts will be high enough from central Minnesota through the Twin Cities metro area and southeastern Minnesota to create an elevated fire weather risk:
Special Weather Statement National Weather Service Twin Cities/Chanhassen MN 241 AM CDT Sat Apr 6 2024 MNZ042-043-049>051-058>062-066>070-075>077-083>085-092-093-070000- Todd-Morrison-Stearns-Benton-Sherburne-Meeker-Wright-Hennepin- Anoka-Ramsey-McLeod-Sibley-Carver-Scott-Dakota-Nicollet-Le Sueur- Rice-Blue Earth-Waseca-Steele-Faribault-Freeborn- Including the cities of Long Prairie, Little Falls, St Cloud, Sauk Rapids, Elk River, Litchfield, Monticello, Minneapolis, Blaine, St Paul, Hutchinson, Gaylord, Chanhassen, Chaska, Victoria, Shakopee, Hastings, St Peter, Le Sueur, Faribault, Mankato, Waseca, Owatonna, Blue Earth, and Albert Lea 241 AM CDT Sat Apr 6 2024 ...ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER RISK THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING ACROSS PARTS OF CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN MINNESOTA... Southeasterly winds will steadily increase through this afternoon, becoming sustained at 20-25 mph with gusts up to 30-40 mph. Relative humidity will also drop to around 25-35 percent during this time frame, with a lack of precipitation over the past week also allowing for fuels to be dry. Any fires that develop could spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is not recommended.
Red flag warnings also cover parts of northwestern Minnesota and eastern North Dakota from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday:
You can hear updated weather information for Minnesota and western Wisconsin on the MPR News network.
Weekend temps
Saturday highs will be mainly in the 50s, with lower 60s in southwestern Minnesota and some 40s near Lake Superior:
Parts of the Twin Cities metro area will touch 60 degrees. The average Twin Cities high temperature is 52 degrees on April 6.
Sunday highs will be mainly in the 40s:
Portions of northwestern and north-central Minnesota will reach the 50s Sunday afternoon.
Sunday rain
The approaching low-pressure system will bring some periods of rain to southern and central Minnesota plus portions of Wisconsin late Saturday night into Sunday.
Parts of northern Minnesota could see scattered precipitation on Sunday. There might be a rain/snow mix in portions of central Minnesota and up toward Brainerd and Hinckley on Sunday, before it changes to all rain in those areas.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s North American Mesoscale Forecast System model shows the potential precipitation pattern from 1 p.m. Saturday to 11 p.m. Sunday:
An isolated thunderstorm is also possible Sunday afternoon and evening in southern Minnesota.
Programming note
You can hear my live weather updates on MPR News at 7:35 a.m., 9:35 a.m. and 4:39 p.m. each Saturday and Sunday.