OH NOW WHAT THE HELL

[solarbird]

RED FLAG WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
352 PM PDT MON JUL 9 2007

...CRITICALLY HOT...DRY AND WINDY CONDITIONS EXPECTED TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING..

.A VERY STRONG UPPER LEVEL HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE AND A HEAT-DRIVEN SURFACE TROUGH HAVE DEVELOPED ALONG THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST. THIS WILL LEAD TO MODERATE NORTHEAST WINDS ON TUESDAY...AND NEAR-RECORD HEAT WILL LEAD TO CRITICALLY LOW HUMIDITY.

WAZ651-654-655-657-101545-
/O.UPG.KSEW.FW.A.0001.070710T1900Z-070711T0400Z/
/O.NEW.KSEW.FW.W.0001.070710T1800Z-070711T0400Z/
CENTRAL COASTAL LOWLANDS-CENTRAL AND SOUTH PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS-BLACK HILLS AND SOUTHWEST INTERIOR LOWLANDS-WEST SLOPES OF THE CENTRAL CASCADES-352 PM PDT MON JUL 9 2007

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM TO 9 PM PDT TUESDAY..

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SEATTLE HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM TO 9 PM PDT TUESDAY. THE FIRE WEATHER WATCH IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.

A CRITICAL COMBINATION OF NORTHEAST WIND AND LOW HUMIDITY WILL DEVELOP ON TUESDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING OVER THE LOWLANDS OF WESTERN WASHINGTON FROM THE SEATTLE AND BREMERTON AREAS SOUTH TOWARD OLYMPIA AND SHELTON AND THEN WEST THROUGH THE CHEHALIS GAP TO GRAYS HARBOR.

THE FORECAST ON TUESDAY CALLS FOR NORTHEAST WINDS OF 10 TO 15 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 20 TO 30 MPH AT THE SAME TIME THAT RELATIVE HUMIDITY LEVELS FALL TO BETWEEN 20 AND 30 PERCENT. THIS WILL CAUSE FUELS TO DRY QUICKLY AND COULD CREATE CONTROL PROBLEMS FOR ANY FIRES THAT GET STARTED. NEAR-RECORD HEAT WILL ONLY CAUSE FURTHER PROBLEMS BY PRE-HEATING FUELS AND CAUSING HEAT FATIGUE FOR FIREFIGHTERS.

A RED FLAG WARNING IS ISSUED WHEN DRY LIGHTNING IS OR THE COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITIES ARE IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.

DRY LIGHTNING?! WHAT THE HELL? I mean seriously, just call it SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION and be done with it.

Comments

[chirik.livejournal.com]

I don't think spontaneous combustion involves lightning, with or without clouds or clear skies or whatever.

I think it's BEING SMOTE BY ZEUS.

[lisa-marli.livejournal.com]

Nope - Dry Lightning is precisely that. A thunderstorm with No Rain that hits the ground, but there is Lighting. It hits the trees that are too dry from drought and they go up like tinder. Add wind and Instant Fire Storm.
It happens more often in SoCal, but the whole West Coast has been too dry this year. I think yours is more because of the High Heat, low humidity and wind.
That's ok, There will be rain in the North East Corner of California. Flash Flood Warnings for that area.
And we won't go into what is happening in Texas where they seriously need that ark built in Noah Allmighty.

[lisa-marli.livejournal.com]

Just saw a fire map of the USofA. Fires in all states west of the Rockies and South Dakota and Nebraska. This Country is Burning. And all the National Guard and their equipment that would fight it are in Iraq. :(
Very Nervous.

[firni.livejournal.com]

All I'm seeing is the "excessive heat warning".

I can deal with the heat, but wind? I had enough of THAT shit last fall.

[darthhellokitty.livejournal.com]

It sounds like we should all stay home and build forts out of sofa cushions.

[torquemada.livejournal.com]

Sofa cushions soaked in water and left in the freezer overnight.

[westrider.livejournal.com]

Dammit, I knew we never should have agreed to that weather swap with Texas.

[epawtows.livejournal.com]

Spontaneous combustion? Where is that guy with the gizmo that sets salty water on fire?

[blargh.livejournal.com]

Heh, you should see what the NWS says when it's 116 degrees and 3% humidity. They have weathergasms into their "extreme temperature warnings".

[mojave-wolf.livejournal.com]

116? You guys got as hot and dry as us . . . that *is* wacked.

(tho we had clouds all day yesterday, brief rain, and it only got to the 95-100 range around here, wheee! And the humidity was good for the plants, uncomfortable as it is for us)