Red Flag Warning 7, NWS Missoula, MT

Issued

Aug 6, 2026, 9:41 PM MDT (03:41 UTC)

In effect from

Aug 7, 2026, 12:00 PM MDT

Expired

Aug 8, 2026, 9:00 PM MDT

In force

33 hr

Issued by

NWS Missoula, MT

Counties Clearwater County, ID, Idaho County, ID, Latah County, ID, Lewis County, ID, Nez Perce County, ID, Beaverhead County, MT, Deer Lodge County, MT, Flathead County, MT, Granite County, MT, Jefferson County, MT, Lake County, MT, Lewis and Clark County, MT, Madison County, MT, Mineral County, MT, Missoula County, MT, Powell County, MT, Ravalli County, MT, Sanders County, MT, Silver Bow County, MT

The Missoula radar (KMSX), 54 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 03:44 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.

978 
WWUS85 KMSO 070341
RFWMSO

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Missoula MT
941 PM MDT Thu Aug 6 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM FRIDAY TO 11 PM PDT SATURDAY
DUE TO WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR PALOUSE/HELLS CANYON...

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON FRIDAY TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY
DUE TO WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR EAST LOLO, BITTERROOT,
DEERLODGE/WEST BEAVERHEAD, AND EAST BEAVERHEAD...

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY DUE TO
WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR WEST LOLO AND FLATHEAD
RESERVATION...

...

IDZ102-071145-
/O.UPG.KMSO.FW.A.0005.260807T1800Z-260809T0600Z/
/O.NEW.KMSO.FW.W.0007.260807T1800Z-260809T0600Z/
Palouse/Hells Canyon-
841 PM PDT Thu Aug 6 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 AM FRIDAY TO 11 PM PDT
SATURDAY...

The National Weather Service in Missoula MT has issued a Red Flag
Warning in effect from 11 AM Friday to 11 PM PDT Saturday.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zone 102.

* TIMING...From 11 AM Friday to 11 PM PDT Saturday.

* WINDS...West winds 5 to 10 mph with gusts up to 25 mph.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...Relative Humidity between 8 to 15 percent.

* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will spread rapidly. Outdoor
  burning is not recommended.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Please advise the appropriate officials or fire crews in the field of
this Red Flag Warning.

&&

$$

MTZ108-109-071145-
/O.UPG.KMSO.FW.A.0005.260807T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
/O.NEW.KMSO.FW.W.0007.260807T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
East Lolo-Bitterroot-
941 PM MDT Thu Aug 6 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON FRIDAY TO 9 PM MDT
SATURDAY...

The National Weather Service in Missoula MT has issued a Red Flag
Warning in effect from noon Friday to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 108 and 109.

* TIMING...From noon Friday to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* WINDS...West winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 30 mph.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...Relative Humidity between 8 to 15 percent.

* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will spread rapidly. Outdoor
  burning is not recommended.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Please advise the appropriate officials or fire crews in the field of
this Red Flag Warning.

&&

$$

MTZ110-111-071145-
/O.UPG.KMSO.FW.A.0005.260807T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
/O.NEW.KMSO.FW.W.0007.260807T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
Deerlodge/West Beaverhead-East Beaverhead-
941 PM MDT Thu Aug 6 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON FRIDAY TO 9 PM MDT
SATURDAY...

The National Weather Service in Missoula MT has issued a Red Flag
Warning in effect from noon Friday to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 110 and 111.

* TIMING...From noon Friday to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* WINDS...West winds 5 to 15 mph with gusts up to 30 mph.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...Relative Humidity between 8 to 15 percent.

* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will spread rapidly. Outdoor
  burning is not recommended.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Please advise the appropriate officials or fire crews in the field of
this Red Flag Warning.

&&

$$

MTZ106-107-071145-
/O.UPG.KMSO.FW.A.0005.260808T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
/O.NEW.KMSO.FW.W.0007.260808T1800Z-260809T0300Z/
West Lolo-Flathead Reservation-
941 PM MDT Thu Aug 6 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM NOON TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY...

The National Weather Service in Missoula MT has issued a Red Flag
Warning in effect from noon to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 106 and 107.

* TIMING...From noon to 9 PM MDT Saturday.

* WINDS...West winds 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 25 mph.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...Relative Humidity between 10 to 17 percent.

* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will spread rapidly. Outdoor
  burning is not recommended.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Please advise the appropriate officials or fire crews in the field of
this Red Flag Warning.

&&

$$

888 
WWUS85 KMSO 090258
RFWMSO

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Missoula MT
858 PM MDT Sat Aug 8 2026

IDZ102-090400-
/O.CAN.KMSO.FW.W.0007.000000T0000Z-260809T0600Z/
Palouse/Hells Canyon-
758 PM PDT Sat Aug 8 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING IS CANCELLED...

The winds have decreased. Hence, the Red Flag Warning has been
cancelled.

$$

MTZ106>111-090400-
/O.EXP.KMSO.FW.W.0007.000000T0000Z-260809T0300Z/
West Lolo-Flathead Reservation-East Lolo-Bitterroot-
Deerlodge/West Beaverhead-East Beaverhead-
858 PM MDT Sat Aug 8 2026

...RED FLAG WARNING WILL EXPIRE AT 9 PM MDT THIS EVENING...

The winds have decreased. Hence, the Red Flag Warning will be allowed
to expire.

$$

NWS Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this red flag warning went out at Aug 6, 2:44 PM MDT, 6 hours 57 minutes earlier.

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Missoula MT
244 PM MDT Thu Aug 6 2026

.DISCUSSION...

KEY MESSAGES:

-  Warming trend through the rest of the week.

-  Wildfire smoke will continue to impact the region until
   further notice.

-  Ridge of high pressure flattens heading into the weekend. Near-
   critical to critical fire weather expected due to hot, dry and
   breezy conditions.

A building upper-level ridge will maintain hot, dry, and stable
conditions across western Montana and north-central Idaho.
Temperatures will warm significantly Friday and Saturday, with
lower elevations reaching the 90s and localized spots exceeding
100 degrees. As the ridge flattens into zonal flow this weekend,
afternoon surface winds will increase. Hot temperatures, low
relative humidity, gusty winds, and critically dry fuels will
maintain near-critical to critical fire weather conditions,
peaking Friday into Saturday. The main focus for the most critical
conditions is expected across southwest and west-central Montana
along with the Palouse and Hells Canyon region of north- central
Idaho with Fire Weather Watches issued.

Wildfire smoke remains a key forecast challenge for air quality
and visibility. Strong radiational cooling under smoky skies will
yield sharp nocturnal valley inversions each morning, trapping
surface particulates. While daytime boundary layer mixing will
temporarily disperse valley smoke each afternoon, increased
ventilation will also invigorate fire activity and generate
thicker plumes aloft. High-resolution smoke models project surface
smoke peaking early this afternoon before modestly improving by
early evening.

Monsoonal moisture tracking along the ridge periphery introduces
a slight chance for isolated high-based convection Friday
afternoon through the weekend, primarily across southwest Montana.
An anomalously dry sub-cloud layer will pose a risk for dry
lightning ignitions and erratic microburst gusts of 40 to 55 mph.

Forecast confidence is low to moderate but trending upward
regarding moisture returning mid/late next week. At this point,
the moisture doesn't appear deep or organized enough for
widespread rainfall. A substantial synoptic shift such as a deep
Pacific Northwest trough will be required to suppress fire
activity and clear smoke. Ensemble guidance shows a 20 to 30%
chance of this trough arriving by mid to late next week.

&&

.AVIATION...Widespread wildfire smoke remains the primary aviation hazard
over the next 24 hours. Sharp nocturnal inversions and strong radiational
cooling will trap surface smoke in valley basins overnight through
mid-morning, maintaining periods of MVFR to localized IFR
visibilities (along with locally reduced ceilings). Daytime
heating will promote boundary layer mixing and yield modest
surface visibility improvements by afternoon; however, enhanced
ventilation will also invigorate regional fire activity,
generating thicker smoke plumes aloft and impacting slant-range
visibility. High density altitude will be a prominent operational
concern as afternoon temperatures reach the 90s and low 100s.
Surface winds will remain light and terrain- driven with a
westerly gradient by Friday afternoon.

&&

.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT...Fire Weather Watch from Friday afternoon through Saturday
     evening for Bitterroot...Deerlodge/West Beaverhead...East
     Beaverhead...East Lolo.

     Fire Weather Watch from Saturday afternoon through Saturday
     evening for Flathead Reservation...West Lolo.

     Red Flag Warning until 9 PM MDT this evening for Deerlodge/West
     Beaverhead...East Beaverhead.

ID...Fire Weather Watch from Friday morning through Saturday evening
     for Palouse/Hells Canyon.

&&

Red Flag Warnings in Montana, 2026Red Flag Warnings in Idaho, 2026Every red flag warning in 2026

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.