Large wildfires, igniting during the 26-27 February 2024 Southern Plains Wildfire Outbreak, continued to burn into the first days of the month. See entries in February 2024 Storm Data for additional details on these fires.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS OUN wrote it up.
Large wildfires, igniting during the 26-27 February 2024 Southern Plains Wildfire Outbreak, continued to burn into the first days of the month. See entries in February 2024 Storm Data for additional details on these fires.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Norman, OK wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 29, 10:48 PM CST, 1 hour 12 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Norman OK 1048 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 ...New AVIATION... .SHORT TERM... (This evening through Friday) Issued at 325 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 Precipitation continues to move eastward this afternoon with the back edge now into western Oklahoma. We continue to see occasional reports of sleet/graupel and/or snow mixing in with the rain at times even into central Oklahoma and some of our Texas counties. However, with temperatures at the surface above freezing, no impacts to roadways are anticipated. Precipitation will exit the area completely by early to mid evening. Skies will clear at least partially tonight and with surface moisture remaining in place, will have to watch for fog potential. However, with southerly winds staying elevated and at least scattered clouds lingering do not expect much more than patchy fog development to occur. The greatest chance for this is across southern/southwestern Oklahoma where winds will be a bit lighter, but even here chances are relatively low (20-40%). Ware && .LONG TERM... (Friday night through next Wednesday) Issued at 325 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 Attention will turn to fire weather this weekend as southwesterly flow increases in response to an approaching trough over the western US. A dry and warm airmass will be in place to the west of a developing dryline Saturday and Sunday, placing portions of western Oklahoma and western north Texas under risk for increased fire weather concerns. Saturday we expect near-critical to critical fire weather in these areas. Sunday still appears to be the day with the greatest magnitude of risk given higher winds speeds, with critical to potentially extreme fire weather expected. Uncertainty increases as we head into early next week as models have some timing and positional differences regarding the relevant synoptic features. The trend has been towards a higher latitude trough ejection on Sunday, which in effect hangs the cold front back in Kansas longer and leads to a slower frontal timing into our area on Monday. This leads to a greater likelihood of dry conditions for the area on Sunday and could allow for greater moisture return into our area on Monday and increase the potential for thunderstorms ahead of the cold front and/or dryline across central and southeastern Oklahoma. Given the uncertainty at this range did not make too many changes to the NBM, but did pull slight chance PoPs a bit further northwest to account for latest trends in model solutions. Sufficient shear and instability would be in place for strong to severe storms if they did occur, but again many of the details have yet to be worked out. Models agree on cooler and dry conditions on Tuesday and Wednesday, with our next potential system arriving next Thursday/Friday. Ware && .AVIATION... (06Z TAFS) Issued at 1045 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 The lingering light rain near KPNC will be out before 06Z. There is a small band of IFR ceilings that just went through KEND/KWDG that may affect KPNC, but otherwise ceilings will be mainly VFR with some local MVFR possible. Clouds will be clearing out in general tomorrow morning. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Oklahoma City OK 33 64 46 77 / 10 0 0 0 Hobart OK 31 66 41 78 / 0 0 0 0 Wichita Falls TX 32 72 46 82 / 0 0 0 0 Gage OK 28 71 40 81 / 0 0 0 0 Ponca City OK 32 61 43 78 / 30 0 0 0 Durant OK 35 66 48 79 / 40 0 0 0 && .OUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... OK...None. TX...None. && SHORT TERM...08 LONG TERM....08 AVIATION...26
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Norman OK 342 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 OKZ004>048-050>052-TXZ083>090-012145- Harper-Woods-Alfalfa-Grant-Kay-Ellis-Woodward-Major-Garfield- Noble-Roger Mills-Dewey-Custer-Blaine-Kingfisher-Logan-Payne- Beckham-Washita-Caddo-Canadian-Oklahoma-Lincoln-Grady-McClain- Cleveland-Pottawatomie-Seminole-Hughes-Harmon-Greer-Kiowa-Jackson- Tillman-Comanche-Stephens-Garvin-Murray-Pontotoc-Coal-Cotton- Jefferson-Carter-Johnston-Atoka-Love-Marshall-Bryan-Hardeman- Foard-Wilbarger-Wichita-Knox-Baylor-Archer-Clay- 342 PM CST Thu Feb 29 2024 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of northern... western...central...and southern Oklahoma...and western north Texas. .DAY ONE...Through Tonight... .Winter Weather... A wintry mix of snow, sleet, or rain are possible through the afternoon across western, central, southern Oklahoma. Little to no snow accumulation is expected with no impacts to travel. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Friday through Wednesday... .Fire Weather... Near critical to critical fire weather conditions will be possible Saturday afternoon across parts of western Oklahoma and western north Texas due to breezy winds, warm temperatures, and dry conditions. On Sunday, critical to locally extreme fire weather conditions will be possible due to continued warm and dry conditions with stronger winds. .Thunderstorms... There is a low chance for thunderstorms across portions of central, southern, and eastern Oklahoma on Monday. Get graphics and more details at weather.gov/norman...and follow our weather forecast office on Twitter and Facebook.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
The 'Catesby Fire', which began on 27 February 2024, continued to burn into the first days of March 2024. See the February 2024 storm data entry for additional details on this fire.
The 'Smokehouse Creek Fire', which spread into Oklahoma on 27 February 2024, continued to burn into the first days of March 2024. See the February 2024 storm data entry for additional details on this fire.
The 'Smokehouse Creek Fire', which spread into Oklahoma on 27 February 2024, continued to burn into the first days of March 2024. See the February 2024 storm data entry for additional details on this fire.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oklahoma in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Oklahoma, March 2024
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1166130, 1166131, 1166132.