The National Weather Service has cut its Red Flag Warning count to 19 active alerts across six states Wednesday — down sharply from 32 warnings spanning 11 states Tuesday — as a fire-weather outbreak that briefly stretched from Arizona to Minnesota begins to contract. Dangerous conditions persist across California, Colorado, Kansas, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.
The sharpest concentration of warnings covers the Colorado Front Range and adjacent high plains, where the National Weather Service is flagging west winds of 15 to 25 mph with gusts to 40 mph and relative humidity as low as 11 percent. The warned zone runs through the Denver metro area and a broad set of surrounding counties — Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Douglas, Elbert, Morgan, Weld, Logan, Sedgwick, and Phillips — with conditions expected through 8 p.m. MDT today. Kit Carson County in southeastern Colorado and Cheyenne, Wyoming are also included.
In Lake County, California, north-to-northeast winds are forecast to increase Wednesday night to 15 to 30 mph, with gusts reaching 40 mph on the ridges through Thursday morning. Overnight humidity recoveries are expected at only 20 to 40 percent — well short of the threshold needed to moderate fire risk. Communities including Clearlake, Middletown, Cobb, and Konocti fall within the warned area.
Across northeastern Wyoming and the adjacent South Dakota border counties, warnings cover Fall River County, the Pine Ridge area, southern Campbell County, and Weston County plains. Forecasters note temperatures will run slightly cooler than Tuesday, but dry air and gusty winds are expected to return, keeping fire danger elevated. The Laramie foothills and the Casper area of Natrona County remain under warning as well. Colorado River Headwaters zones in Utah are also included in the 19-alert total.
The retreat from Tuesday’s 11-state footprint reflects the removal of Arizona, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, and New Mexico from the warning zone — a significant withdrawal from the pattern’s eastern and southern edges, and a reversal from Monday into Tuesday’s geographic expansion.
The National Weather Service defines Red Flag conditions as a combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures that can contribute to extreme fire behavior. Any ignitions that do occur under active warning conditions are expected to spread rapidly.