textproduct: Grand Junction

KEY MESSAGES

- Warm and dry conditions are here to stay. Temperatures will begin to surge well above normal into next week, approaching record values by Tuesday.

- Gusty winds, low relative humidities, and critical fuels have prompted the issuance of a Red Flag Warning for far northwest Colorado Saturday afternoon.

DISCUSSION

Issued at 944 PM MDT Fri May 8 2026

HOT, BREEZY, AND MOSTLY DRY INTO NEXT WEEK:

This weekend, dry, northwesterly flow will begin to dominate, keeping conditions quiet across the vast majority of the region. Saturday will be a rinse and repeat of Friday with highs 10-15 degrees above normal, and gusty winds into the afternoon hours. Some fire weather concerns do exist Saturday, refer to the fire weather section for more information on that. Isolated showers/storms cannot be ruled out over the southern mountains on Saturday afternoon (10-20% chance), but measurable precipitation looks hard to come by.

As we move away from Saturday, an amplified upper-level ridge begins to dominate the western CONUS, which will persist most, if not all of next week. The most notable part of this pattern will be hot and dry conditions. Throughout the week, highs will be 10+ degrees above normal region wide, with Monday through Wednesday potentially exceeding 20 degrees above normal in some places. We could see a new daily record highs set during this stretch.

AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SUNDAY/

Issued at 1132 PM MDT Fri May 8 2026

Passing mid and high level clouds will continue through the next 24 hours, but will remain well above breakpoints. Winds will gradually weaken and become terrain driven over the next 3-6 hours. Winds will turn northwesterly after 18z tomorrow, with gusts of 15-20 knots for most locations, 25-30 knots for locations north of I-70. VFR conditions will prevail for the next 24 hours.

FIRE WEATHER

Issued at 944 PM MDT Fri May 8 2026

Tomorrow afternoon, wind gusts up to 35 mph and relative humidity values as low as 11-16% will combine to create critical fire weather conditions in far northwest Colorado, where fuels are also deemed critical. As a result, a Red Flag Warning from 2-8 PM.

Hot, dry, and windy conditions will prevail into next week, with temperatures surging well above average.

GJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

CO...Red Flag Warning from 2 PM to 8 PM MDT Saturday for COZ200. UT...None.