Blustery conditions to bring a fire weather threat this weekend
MACON, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Strong winds and sunshine are taking over Georgia in the wake of the most recent cold front.
Today
The sunshine is back for everyone in Middle Georgia as the cold front is finally completely gone. A few clouds have filled in this afternoon, but there is no threat of rain from those. Our highs today will be in the upper 60s and lower 70s for the region, but it will never quite feel like it. This is largely due to powerful winds that have moved in behind the cold front. Winds with sustained speeds of 15-20 mph and gusts upwards of 30 mph from the west-northwest have taken over. They will hang around through the rest of the daylight hours, slightly chilling the air and also enhancing a fire weather threat.
A Red Flag (Fire Weather) Watch is in effect until 8:00 PM EDT Saturday night. Another reason for the Red Flag Watch is the dry conditions that have filled in behind the front. Relative humidity will drop below 35% across the board during the afternoon today.
Tonight we will see the winds calm down and shift more towards the northwest. The speeds will still be breezy at times as they sustain at 5-10 mph. Any clouds from the afternoon will clear out shortly after the sunset tonight. Forecast lows for the region are in the mid 40s, however with the northwesterly winds the feels like temperatures by tomorrow morning will be in the upper 30s and lower 40s.
Tomorrow
We will almost be repeating the forecast from today for our Saturday, but there are a couple of small differences. For starters, the humidity in the afternoon will drop below 25% across the region despite the fact that the highs will be about the same as today. This, combined with sustained winds from the west-northwest at 20-25 mph with gusts potentially over 30 mph, is the primary reason for the Red Flag Watch through tomorrow night. There is a small but unlikely chance for the Red Flag Watch to become a Red Flag Warning, but drought conditions only being abnormally dry for the most part should discourage that.
Tomorrow night the winds again will shift back to the northwest, again with sustained speeds of 5-10 mph. Forecast lows for tomorrow night are in the low 40s and upper 30s with wind chills down into the mid to upper 30s.
Sunday and Beyond
The sunshine will continue to stick around on Sunday as highs remain in the upper 60s and lower 70s. The wind will still be breezy as it comes in from the northwest at 10-15 mph. Gusts could reach upwards of 25 mph, so more afternoon wind chills are to be expected. Like Saturday cloud cover should be at a minimum all day long. Overnight lows will drop back into the upper 30s and lower 40s once again.
Return flow is back in the picture come Monday as the winds shift back towards the south. This will raise highs into the mid 70s with more cloud cover likely in the afternoon. Overnight lows will jump back up into the upper 40s and lower 50s.
Tuesday will see highs primarily in the lower 80s with cloud fields filling in during the afternoon hours. Winds will likely pick up in speed a bit out of the southwest. Lows will climb into the mid to upper 50s.
Cloud cover will become abundant come Wednesday afternoon as southerly winds pick up even further. Highs will reach the mid to upper 80s with lows in the low to mid 60s. Rain looks to return early Thursday as the next storm system arrives. At this time it is too early to predict if there will be any severe weather.
Follow Meteorologist Aaron Lowery on Facebook (Aaron Lowery 41NBC) and Twitter (@ALowWX) for weather updates throughout the day. Also, you can watch his forecasts Monday through Friday on 41NBC News at Daybreak (6-7 a.m.) and 41Today (11 a.m).
