Eastern Nebraska has traded hot and dry conditions for cold and dry conditions.
Lincoln saw its first below-freezing temperatures of the season Monday morning with a low of 30 and is likely to have its first hard freeze of the season Wednesday morning.
In fact, much of the state is in a freeze warning Wednesday from 1-9 a.m., with temperatures forecast to drop to 28 degrees in Lincoln and as low as 26 degrees elsewhere.
The National Weather Service said the cold will be enough to damage crops and sensitive vegetation and also cause damage to unprotected pipes.
A warm front will move into the area on Wednesday, which will send temperatures into the mid- to upper 70s starting Thursday. But the front will also produce higher wind speeds, which will greatly increase the fire danger.
Lincoln and other parts of the state are in a red flag warning from 1-7 p.m. Wednesday, which means fire danger is high. The fire danger lessens but continues on Thursday, with a fire weather watch in effect from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Listen now and subscribe: | | | |
"A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior," the weather service said in a bulletin.
Winds of 20-25 miles per hour are forecast for Wednesday, with humidity as low as 13%. Winds will be even stronger Thursday, but higher humidity levels will reduce the fire risk slightly.
Most burning has been banned, but fires can still start from other sources. For example, an overheated combine started a blaze northeast of Lincoln on Sunday that burned more than 250 acres and took a dozen area fire departments more than three hours to get under control.
Several fires started by agricultural equipment burned more than 1,000 acres in Gage County on Oct. 4-5.
Most of the state has seen well-below-average precipitation since the start of September, which has caused a rapid increase in drought conditions.
According to the latest Drought Monitor released Thursday by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, more than 73% of the state is now in at least a moderate drought, up from less than 50% the previous week. The amount of area in severe drought more than doubled, from 14% to nearly 33%.
All of Lancaster County is now in a severe drought, and Lincoln has gone three weeks without any measurable precipitation, although there are slight chances for showers in the Lincoln area Saturday-Monday.