Conditions Ripe For Wildfires

SIOUX FALLS, SD - The weather has provided the perfect conditions for fires but that will change over the next 24 hours.

Another day of red flag warning conditions is keeping the threat of more fires alive. Strong gusty winds of 20-45 miles per hour help fires spread rapidly. The relative humidity during the afternoon has been very low, in the 20 to 30 percent range. That saps the moisture from the grasses and fields, priming those fuels for burning.

Tomorrow's fire weather forecast is better, but the danger will still be high across eastern KELOLAND. Our futurescan winds show more gusts over 40 mph in eastern KELOLAND. It will be windy in the west as well, but the humidity will be much higher in central and western areas. That alone will help reduce the fire danger.

The rain this weekend will be enough to dampen the danger for now. But it's not likely to be enough rain in northern and western KELOLAND to eliminate the possibility of more fires this fall.