textproduct: Hastings

KEY MESSAGES

- Dangerous fire weather conditions return to western parts of the local area Saturday as temperatures rebound into the 70s and winds increase out of the south. A Red Flag Warning is in effect for areas generally along and west of Highway 281 from 11 AM to 9 PM Saturday.

- An approaching cold front will bring very strong winds, a mix of rain and snow, and a a significant cooldown late Saturday night through Sunday. Winds look to be the most widespread concern at the moment (although we could see some blowing snow and blowing dust/ash in spots), and a High Wind Watch is in effect for the entire forecast area from 6 AM to 8 PM Sunday. - This cold air blast will not last long. Near record temperatures are expected to return by the middle to end of next week.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 250 PM CDT Fri Mar 13 2026

Cooler temperatures and lighter winds prevailed across the region today as surface high pressure filled in from the north behind yesterdays cold front. Southerly return flow on the backside of this high has resulted in winds picking up a bit across western areas, with southerly wind gusts of 20 to 25 mph being observed in a few spots mainly west of highway 183. These modestly gusty winds combined with minimum relative humidity values below 30 percent are resulting in elevated to near critical fire weather conditions to our west, and can see an uptick in fire activity on the Cottonwood fire on satellite the the past few hours as a result.

As the sun goes down tonight, expect southerly winds to increase to near 10 MPH across the entire area overnight, with less gustiness...as the pressure gradient increases across the center of the local area. This tightening of the gradient should result in a more breezy day across the area on Saturday once we begin to mix the atmosphere by late morning, and a Red Flag Warning was issued from roughly 281 westward this morning to account for the combination of breezy south winds and low relative humidity values from the late morning through early evening hours. Was a bit generous with the eastward extent of the warning, but if we mix just a bit deeper (temperatures have been trending upward) the more critical conditions will have the potential to spread further east. Outside fire weather concerns, Saturday will be a fairly pleasant/breezy day across the local area - with high temperatures returning to the 70s for most.

Saturday evening the focus will begin to shift to a strong cold front approaching from the north. One small concern not covered in the current headlines is the potential for a surge of southerly winds late Saturday evening as indicated in a few models, with the potential for southerly winds to reach 60 mph across mainly southeastern portions of the area overnight. While it will be windy across the area Saturday night in this surge, did not include this period in the high wind watch as the main show is still expected to be during the daytime hours Sunday with/behind the cold front. Multiple EC/GFS ensemble members are strongly signaling severe gusts with this front, and issued a high wind watch to cover this (albeit, it may be need to eventually begin earlier if southerly surge ahead of the front continues to trend stronger).

While winds on Sunday continue to indicate a very windy day across the region, precipitation has trended downward, and snowfall totals with the latest model runs have roughly been cut in half from just 12 hours ago. Evenso, any snow that falls with 60+ MPH winds could cause significant impacts, so will need to continue to monitor. In addition, the dry weather and recent fires could also contribute to some blowing dust/ash across the area, and added areas of blowing dust to the forecast for Sunday primarily for areas southwest of the Nebraska Tri- Cities during the daytime hours.

As winds start to diminish Sunday evening, temperatures will plummet, and expect a very cold start to the work week, with low temperatures Monday morning falling into the single digits in spots, with wind chills as cold as -10 degrees anticipated. This cold start to the week will be brief, however, and a return to high temperatures in the 70s and 80s is anticipated for the middle and latter portion of the week. Thankfully, as temperatures soar thanks to a strong area of high pressure building aloft, winds will be on the lighter side, and while there will still likely be some fire weather concerns, it could be much worse.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SUNDAY/

Issued at 1208 AM CDT Sat Mar 14 2026

For KGRI/KEAR Airports:

High confidence (95%) in VFR conditions through the period. SCT high clouds move through the region tonight into Saturday.

Marginal LLWS is expected through sunrise, with potentially stronger LLWS expected on Saturday night.

Southeast winds turn to the south/southwest on Saturday with gusts near 25kts.

GID WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

NE...Red Flag Warning from 11 AM this morning to 9 PM CDT this evening for NEZ039-040-046-047-060>062-072>075-082>085. High Wind Watch from Sunday morning through Sunday evening for NEZ039>041-046>049-060>064-072>077-082>087. KS...Red Flag Warning from 11 AM this morning to 9 PM CDT this evening for KSZ005-006-017-018. High Wind Watch from Sunday morning through Sunday evening for KSZ005>007-017>019.