Fires Raging Across Texas
High Wind and Dry Air Driving Wildfires
The ongoing wildfires have been largely driven by high winds and dry air. And high wind warnings and red flag warnings remain in effect in the region until 8 p.m. local time.
Texas Governor’s Statement
“The Texas A&M Forest Service reports that several large wildfires ignited yesterday under warm, dry, and windy conditions across the Texas Panhandle,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in a statement Tuesday afternoon.
Impact of Cold Front on Wildfires
A cold front pushing through the area Tuesday evening will bring cooler air and shift winds. While winds may grow weaker, they may also help spread the flames in a different direction.
“A cold front is rushing down from the north and for firefighters, this is a dangerous game because the wind has been out of the west all day, now the wind is out of the north,” CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers said Tuesday.
Positive and Negative Effects of Cold Air
But the cool air also brings good news: the cold air mass pushing into the region has a much higher relative humidity than the dry air that has been feeding the fires Tuesday, which is going to limit the fire risk as the night into Wednesday gets colder.
Decrease in Fire-Weather Threat
That fire-weather threat will be much lower Wednesday, and though some gusty winds and patches of air could combine to cause concerns in southern Texas as well, the threat is expected to be brief and not widespread.
Read More of this Story at www.cnn.com – 2024-02-28 04:46:00
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