textproduct: Lubbock

KEY MESSAGES

Issued at 1046 PM CDT Thu Apr 23 2026

- An elevated risk of fire weather exists Friday afternoon in the western half of the forecast area near the New Mexico border.

- Hot, dry and windy conditions will bring elevated to critical fire danger to the region Saturday through Tuesday, with conditions being most favorable on Sunday.

SHORT TERM

(Tonight through Saturday) Issued at 1046 PM CDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Winds are expected to decrease as an upper level trough moves out of the region and will remain light overnight. Lows will range from the mid-40s in the Texas Panhandle to up to the upper-50s and low-60s in the Rolling Plains. A weak front will cool temperatures slightly, but Friday will still feature highs in the upper-80s to low-90s with mostly sunny skies. Single digit RH values, as low as 7 percent, will allow for periods of elevated fire conditions west of I-27 in the afternoon.

Wind speeds will once again decrease overnight into Saturday with similar low temperatures as the night before. Wind speeds will increase throughout Saturday, reaching close to 30 mph in some spots due to a series of shortwave troughs that will begin to enter the region. This will further elevate the risk of fire weather as relative humidities will still be in the low teens to single digits throughout the afternoon. A Fire Weather Watch remains in effect.

LONG TERM

(Saturday night through next Thursday) Issued at 1046 PM CDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Fire danger will continue through the weekend and possibly into early next week with windy and dry conditions persisting throughout the early part of the week. A surface low with a central pressure of ~990 mb will move from the Rockies to the northern Texas Panhandle, ushering westerly surface winds up to 30 mph and gusts up to 50 mph on Sunday. Each afternoon during the week will see windy and dry conditions with high temperatures from the upper 80s to low 90s. Wednesday and Thursday will feature a slight decrease in temperatures likely due to a weak cold front, with highs in the low to mid-80s possible.

AVIATION

(00Z TAFS) Issued at 600 PM CDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Thick cirrus overcast will continue into tonight, with VFR prevailing at KCDS, KLBB, and KPVW. West-southwesterly winds will also diminish after sunset and veer northwestward tonight.

FIRE WEATHER

Issued at 1046 PM CDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Elevated to critical fire weather conditions are expected between Saturday and Monday on the Caprock, with the conditions being most favorable on Sunday with single digit relative humidity values and wind speeds as high as 30 mph and gusts potentially reaching 50 mph. Following this, fire weather conditions will slowly peter out starting Tuesday.

LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

Fire Weather Watch from Saturday afternoon through Saturday evening for TXZ021>024-027>030-033>036-039>042.