textproduct: Pueblo

KEY MESSAGES

- High fire danger continues for portions of the Plains into the weekend.

- Temperatures look to remain above normal through Saturday.

- Wind driven snow will fall over the Central Mountains, mainly north of Cottonwood Pass tonight through Thursday morning.

SHORT TERM /THROUGH WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 1159 AM MST Tue Feb 24 2026

Currently...temperatures have warmed nicely early this afternoon, with widespread 70s across the Plains, with a few low 80s across Baca County. Winds are gusty, with 30 to 40 mph gusts, especially in wind prone areas. Humidity values are also very low, and when combined with the gusty winds, are producing high fire danger, and extreme caution is advised with any outdoor burning activities.

Rest of today and tonight...the upper pattern looks to remain unchanged, with strong northwesterly flow aloft across Colorado. Expect the high fire danger to continue into this evening with low humidity values and gusty winds. Humidity values look to rise after sunset as temperatures fall through the late evening hours. Continue breezy conditions are expected across the higher terrain, which will help keep overnight lows elevated. The San Luis Valley will be coldest with teens and 20s, with the Plains remain in the 40s and 30s. A few areas along the lee slopes of the Eastern Mountains that remain gusty may not fall out of the 50s overnight. Light snow will develop by early evening and continue overnight across the Central Mountains. Accumulations look minor at this time, but strong winds in excess of 50 mph will cause poor visibilities and drifting of snow.

Wednesday...an embedded vort max is forecast to track southeast across Colorado on Wednesday. Continued light snow will fall along the Continental Divide, and strong winds will continue to produce poor visibilities and drifting of snow. Snow accumulations of around 4 to 9 inches may be possible through theafternoon, mainly north of Cottonwood Pass.

Across the Plains, winds will increase across the region out of the northwest, with gusts along the I-25 corridor, east into the Plains in excess of 40 mph likely. While humidity values look slightly more elevated, right near 15 percent, upgraded the Fire Weather Watch to a Red Flag Warning for the afternoon hours. Temperatures look to remain warm, with highs across the Plains once again warming through the 70s for highs.

LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY/

Issued at 1159 AM MST Tue Feb 24 2026

Not much change to the extended forecast, with continued northwest flow through the weekend, and possible storm system early the mid next week.

Wednesday night through Sunday...northwesterly flow will give way to more zonal westerly flow by the weekend. Light snow will taper off Wednesday night into Thursday morning, with little additional accumulations expected over the Central Mountains. Once snow dissipates, dry conditions look to prevail through the weekend.

Across the Plains, a cold front will arrive Wednesday night, bringing slightly cooler temperatures to the Plains. Highs on Thursday will reach into the 60s for most of the Plains. This brief cool down will be short lived, with temperatures rebounding back into the 70s for the Plains Friday and through the weekend. Fire weather concerns look to remain elevated from Thursday into the weekend. Issued a Fire Weather Watch for portions of the I-25 corridor for Thursday due to continued gusty winds and low humidity. These conditions look to continue Friday and into Saturday across parts of the Plains.

Monday into Tuesday...models suggesting an upper storm system moving into southern California with flow turning more southwesterly aloft, while an upper trough moves into the Central Plains. A cold front, along with cooler air looks to arrive Monday, along with potentially increased chances for precipitation across the region.

AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z WEDNESDAY/

Issued at 1012 AM MST Tue Feb 24 2026

VFR conditions at all three (KALS, KCOS, KPUB) terminals through the next 24 hours. High level cirrus will continue to impact the area through tomorrow morning. Gusty winds will impact all sites this afternoon, with KALS and KCOS seeing gusts near 25 kts, and KPUB near 30 kts.

PUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES

Winter Weather Advisory from midnight tonight to midnight MST Wednesday night for COZ058-060. Red Flag Warning until 6 PM MST this evening for COZ221-222- 226>233-237. Fire Weather Watch from Thursday morning through Thursday afternoon for COZ222-228>230. Red Flag Warning from 11 AM to 5 PM MST Wednesday for COZ226>230-232-233.