textproduct: Hastings

KEY MESSAGES

- Breezy and warm today. Near-critical fire weather conditions are expected near and west of Highway 283 (Dawson, Gosper, Furnas Counties).

- Rain showers arrive from the north late this afternoon into this evening. A few snow showers are possible Wednesday morning, but no accumulation is expected.

- Very windy Friday. Widespread gusts of at least 40 to 50 MPH are expected, and gusts over 60 MPH are possible in some areas (30-60% chance).

UPDATE

Issued at 312 AM CST Tue Jan 13 2026

Today remains warm, but will be noticably breezier than yesterday. As such, western portions of the area may see near critical fire weather conditions (RH 20-25% and northwest winds gusting over 30 MPH at times.

The potential for measurable rain has increased with the system arriving from the north today. Areas near and north of I-80 have the best chance (20-40%) to see 0.10" or more, but the entire area has a chance to see at least some rain. A few sprinkles are possible as early as 2-3pm, with more widespread rain arriving from the north in the 5-6pm timeframe.

The trend has also been for precipitation to linger longer into Wednesday morning. With temperatures falling, a few snow showers could mix in, but little to no accumulation is expected.

Winds gradually decrease through the day on Wednesday, but a front pushes through on Thursday, leading to another uptick in winds (gusts 25 to 35 MPH).

On Friday a shortwave trough dips southward across the central U.S. A few snow showers are possible with this system, but the winds will likely be the more notable hazard. Global ensembles continue to trend upward with the wind potential, and the EPS mean wind gust is now near 60 MPH in northwestern portions of the forecast area. As mentioned above, the NBM now shows a 30-60% chance for wind gusts to exceed 60 MPH for at least parts of the area. If this trend continues, a High Wind Watch may become appropriate.

Friday and Saturday still look to be the coldest days, but Sunday and Monday have also trended a bit cooler as well. Regardless, global ensembles still favor at least a brief warmup before another push of cold (and maybe some precipitation) late next week.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 255 PM CST Mon Jan 12 2026

North to northwestelry flow aloft is anticipated through the period with multiple (mostly dry) disturbances passing by the region. The most impactful weather of the week will likely be the very strong winds anticipated later this week, with gusts to 55 MPH possible on Friday.

Looking at satellite imagery this afternoon, plenty of cirrus can be streaming across the local area in northwest flow. Expect this cloud cover to continue through the overnight hours, which combined with steady westerly winds, will help keep up low temperatures mostly in the mid-30s to start the day on Tuesday. These temperatures will be very close to what are normal highs for mid-January.

For tomorrow afternoon, expect a cold front to rapidly push south across the area during the afternoon hours with a weak disturbance aloft helping aid in the development of a few light showers/sprinkles. Overall, QPF amounts look very minimal (T-a few hundredths of an inch of precip), but most models have some light QPF being generated across the local area, and increased pops just a bit as fully expect some showers and sprinkles around much of the local area mainly during the afternoon/early evening hours...although some light showers/sprinkles/flurries could extend across the northern parts of our forecast area to start the day Wednesday as indicated in the global models.

Beyond Wednesday, the upper level flow becomes even more amplified as high pressure expanding north across the west coast results in a more northerly flow pattern across the plains. As a result, after a brief uptick in temps Thursday, a more prolonged stretch of cooler weather returns Friday through Monday before the longwave trough attempts to shift further east towards the middle of next week, when a more northwesterly/mild flow returns. In the meantime, as this push of colder air makes its way across the area on Friday, expect a very windy afternoon across the region and will need to continue to monitor as wind gusts to 55 MPH currently look like the most impactful weather of the period.

AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 1132 AM CST Tue Jan 13 2026

For KGRI/KEAR Airports:

CIGS will continue to lower across the area this afternoon and eventually become MVFR overnight as a cold front makes its way across the region. Expect steady northwesterly winds to gust to around 20 KTS through the overnight hours, eventually increasing a bit after daybreak Wednesday. Shower potential will increase this afternoon as CIGS lower, but think the better chance for precip (30-40%) will come during the late evening and overnight hours as CIGS eventually reach MVFR levels.

GID WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

NE...None. KS...None.