Alert archive / Colorado / Red Flag Warnings in 2008

Red Flag Warning 2, NWS Pueblo, CO

March 20, 200810 counties in Colorado

NWS Pueblo, CO issued this red flag warning at Mar 20, 2008, 10:19 AM MDT for 10 counties in Colorado. It took effect at Mar 20, 2008, 11:00 AM MDT. It was in force for 9 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Mar 20, 2008, 10:19 AM MDT (16:19 UTC)
In effect from
Mar 20, 2008, 11:00 AM MDT
Expired
Mar 20, 2008, 8:00 PM MDT
In force
9 hr
Issued by
NWS Pueblo, CO

Counties Baca County, CO, Bent County, CO, Crowley County, CO, El Paso County, CO, Huerfano County, CO, Kiowa County, CO, Las Animas County, CO, Otero County, CO, Prowers County, CO, Pueblo County, CO

The radar

The Pueblo radar (KPUX), 71 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:23 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Denver, CO (KDNR), launched 12:00Z, 4.3 hours before the alert went out and 212 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Denver, CO at 12:00Z on 2008-03-20Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Denver, CO at 12:00Z on 2008-03-20The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 41 square meters per square second.1939587897117Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
2942 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
45 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
41 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
127 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
WWUS85 KPUB 201619
RFWPUB

RED FLAG WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
1019 AM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 227 THROUGH
237...WHICH INCLUDES SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY...EASTERN HUERFANO
COUNTY...CENTRAL AND WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTIES...AND PUEBLO...CROWLEY...
OTERO...KIOWA...BENT...PROWERS...AND BACA COUNTIES...FROM 1100 AM
TO 800 PM MDT THIS EVENING FOR LOW HUMIDITY LEVELS...GUSTY
WINDS...AND DRY FUELS...

.THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO...IN COORDINATION WITH THE
AREA LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCIES...HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG WARNING.
GUSTY WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITIES ARE EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON AND
EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST PLAINS. THE WARM AND BREEZY
CONDITIONS FROM YESTERDAY HAS CAUSED THE GRASSES AND OTHER FINE
FUELS TO DRY OUT FROM THE RECENT RAIN AND SNOWFALL...MAKING THEM
SUSCEPTIBLE TO RAPID RATES OF FIRE SPREAD.

COZ227>237-210200-
/O.NEW.KPUB.FW.W.0002.080320T1700Z-080321T0200Z/
SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-PUEBLO COUNTY-HUERFANO COUNTY-
WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-CROWLEY COUNTY-OTERO COUNTY-
EASTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-BENT COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
BACA COUNTY-
1019 AM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING. 

THIS RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHERN EL PASO 
COUNTY...EASTERN HUERFANO COUNTY...CENTRAL AND WESTERN LAS ANIMAS
COUNTIES...AND PUEBLO...CROWLEY...OTERO...KIOWA...BENT...
PROWERS...AND BACA COUNTIES.

GUSTY WEST WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WILL SPREAD ACROSS SOUTHEAST
COLORADO DURING THE LATE MORNING AND AFTERNOON. COMBINED WITH
RELATIVE HUMIDITY LEVELS BELOW 15 PERCENT...AND DRY FUELS...WILL
LEAD TO CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE AREA THIS
AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY THIS EVENING. ERRATIC FIRE BEHAVIOR AND
FAST RATES OF SPREAD WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH ANY FIRE STARTS THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING. 

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

$$
2 follow-up statements
000 
WWUS85 KPUB 202101
RFWPUB

RED FLAG WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
301 PM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 227
THROUGH 237...WHICH INCLUDES SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY...EASTERN
HUERFANO COUNTY...CENTRAL AND WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTIES...AND
PUEBLO...CROWLEY...OTERO...KIOWA...BENT...PROWERS...AND BACA
COUNTIES... FROM 1100 AM TO 800 PM MDT THIS EVENING FOR LOW
HUMIDITY LEVELS...GUSTY WINDS...AND DRY FUELS...

.THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN PUEBLO...IN COORDINATION WITH
THE AREA LAND MANAGEMENT AGENCIES...HAS CONTINUED THE RED FLAG
WARNING. GUSTY WINDS AND LOW HUMIDITIES ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THIS
AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE SOUTHEAST PLAINS. THE WARM
AND BREEZY CONDITIONS FROM YESTERDAY HAS CAUSED THE GRASSES AND
OTHER FINE FUELS TO DRY OUT FROM THE RECENT RAIN AND SNOWFALL...
MAKING THEM SUSCEPTIBLE TO RAPID RATES OF FIRE SPREAD.

COZ227>237-210200-
/O.CON.KPUB.FW.W.0002.000000T0000Z-080321T0200Z/
SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-PUEBLO COUNTY-HUERFANO COUNTY-
WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-CROWLEY COUNTY-OTERO COUNTY-
EASTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-BENT COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
BACA COUNTY-
301 PM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM MDT THIS
EVENING...

A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING.

THIS RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY...
EASTERN HUERFANO COUNTY...CENTRAL AND WESTERN LAS ANIMAS
COUNTIES...AND PUEBLO...CROWLEY...OTERO...KIOWA...BENT...
PROWERS...AND BACA COUNTIES.

GUSTY WEST WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WILL CONTINUE ACROSS SOUTHEAST COLORADO
THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. COMBINED WITH RELATIVE HUMIDITY
LEVELS BELOW 15 PERCENT...AND DRY FUELS...WILL LEAD TO CRITICAL
FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH
EARLY THIS EVENING. ERRATIC FIRE BEHAVIOR AND FAST RATES OF SPREAD
WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH ANY FIRE STARTS THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL
CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

$$
000 
WWUS85 KPUB 210147
RFWPUB

RED FLAG WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PUEBLO CO
747 PM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING...

.WINDS ARE DECREASING ACROSS SOUTHEAST COLORADO...AND WITH
TEMPERATURES DROPPING...THE RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE.

COZ227>237-210300-
/O.EXP.KPUB.FW.W.0002.000000T0000Z-080321T0200Z/
SOUTHERN EL PASO COUNTY-PUEBLO COUNTY-HUERFANO COUNTY-
WESTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-CROWLEY COUNTY-OTERO COUNTY-
EASTERN LAS ANIMAS COUNTY-KIOWA COUNTY-BENT COUNTY-PROWERS COUNTY-
BACA COUNTY-
747 PM MDT THU MAR 20 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING...

THE RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 8 PM MDT THIS EVENING.

AS TEMPERATURES CONTINUE COOLING...THE HUMIDITY LEVELS WILL
INCREASE. ALSO THE WINDS HAVE DECREASED ACROSS MOST OF SOUTHEAST
COLORADO. THUS THE RED FLAG WARNING IS NO LONGER NEEDED AND IT
WILL EXPIRE AT 8 PM.

$$

Nearby

Red Flag Warnings in Colorado, 2008Every red flag warning in 2008

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.