The National Weather Service has updated this “red flag warning” for high fire conditions in the Olympic Mountains on the east side of the Olympic Peninsula (RH = relative humidity):
CENTRAL AND SOUTH PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS-
BLACK HILLS AND SOUTHWEST INTERIOR LOWLANDS-
NORTHEAST PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS GENERALLY BELOW 1500 FEET-
SOUTHEAST PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS GENERALLY BELOW 1500 FEET-
EAST PORTION OF THE OLYMPIC MOUNTAINS–
823 AM PDT THU SEP 13 2012
…RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT THIS EVENING
FOR THE EASTERN OLYMPICS…AND MUCH OF THE INTERIOR LOWLANDS
SOUTH OF EVERETT FOR LOW RH…EAST WINDS AND HIGH HAINES
CONDITIONS…
A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT THIS EVENING.
* AFFECTED AREA…THE EASTERN OLYMPICS…AND THE INTERIOR
LOWLANDS SOUTH OF EVERETT.
* WINDS…NORTH TO NORTHEAST 5 TO 10 MPH…EXCEPT LOCALLY EAST 8
TO 14 MPH WITH GUSTS NEAR 20 OVER THE IMMEDIATELY NEXT TO THE
CASCADES AND THE RIDGES AROUND THE EASTERN OLYMPICS THIS
MORNING. WIND EASING THIS AFTERNOON.
* TIMING…THIS MORNING FOR WINDS AND LOW RH AND THROUGH THIS
EVENING FOR LOW RH AND HIGH HAINES.
* RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AS LOW AS 15 TO 25 PERCENT.
* IMPACTS…THE WIND AND LOW RH COMBINATION CAN CAUSE RAPID FIRE
SPREAD…WHILE THE LOW RH AND HIGH HAINES COMBINATION CAN CAUSE
LARGE FIRE GROWTH DUE TO PLUME DOMINATED PROCESSES.
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 WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.
Here’s the blog entry by Scott Sistek, a Port Angeles native who watches weather conditions for the PDN’s news partner, KOMO News, in Seattle: http://bit.ly/SFIPmn
