textproduct: Pocatello

KEY MESSAGES

- Dry conditions and lighter winds today and Friday

- A mix of wet and dry thunderstorms expected Saturday

- ABOVE AVERAGE temperatures expected well into next week

DISCUSSION

Issued at 344 AM MDT Thu Jun 18 2026

Dry conditions will persist through Friday and winds will be much lighter, with gusts generally under 20 mph across much of Southeast Idaho. A shortwave trough will swing through on Saturday, bringing isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms along with increased wind. Probability of thunderstorms is greatest in the Island Park region and along our borders with MT and WY. QPF for Saturday ranges 0.15" to 0.25" from the central mountains, eastward along the MT Divide and across our eastern mountains. Precipitation amounts decrease further southeast along the ID-WY border to 0.15" or less. While the Upper Snake River Plain and Arco Desert region may see an isolated shower or storm, very little liquid accumulation is expected and areas further west are expected to remain dry. Aside from a few showers lingering into Sunday in the Island Park region, conditions will turn dry again heading into next week.

Temperatures will remain in above-normal territory for the foreseeable future with daytime highs running 5 to 10 degrees above normal for much of the period. Low elevation areas will warm into the 80s most days, although Friday and again early to middle of next week will be the warmest periods with temperatures up to 15 degrees above normal in the low 90s for many low elevation areas!

AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z FRIDAY/

Issued at 1116 AM MDT Thu Jun 18 2026

Finally a break from the gusty winds today! This afternoon, gusts will be back to our "regular" 15 to 20 kts at BYI, PIH, and IDA. Upper level cloud cover will gradually increase starting this afternoon ahead of an approaching trough for the weekend. These clouds will not bring any impacts to CIGs or VIS, so VFR conditions are forecast to persist.

FIRE WEATHER

Issued at 1203 PM MDT Wed Jun 17 2026

Dry conditions will persist through Friday with min RH values remaining around 10 to 15 percent for most of Southeast Idaho. Winds will be much lighter today and Friday, with gusts maxing out at around 20 mph most everywhere. A shortwave will swing through on Saturday, bringing increased wind and isolated to scattered showers and thunderstorms. Wind gusts will reach 25 to 35 mph across much of Southeast Idaho, with the exception of our northernmost areas including Fire Weather Zones 422, 475, 476, and 411. Min RH on Saturday will range 20 to 30 percent across FWZs 425 and 427, with generally 30 to 40 percent elsewhere. Probability of thunder Saturday afternoon is highest in FWZ 411, where chance of thunder is 40 to 50 percent, and to a lesser degree the eastern extents of 410 and 413, as well as 475 and 476, where probability of thunder is around 30 to 35 percent.

Conditions will quickly turn dry again on Sunday, with Min RH back in the 15 to 20 percent range with pockets of 10 to 15 percent. Wind gusts on Sunday should largely return to below 20 mph, although some areas could still see gusts in the 20 to 30 mph range.

PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

None.