The combination of hot, dry and breezy conditions created favorable conditions for fire starts and spread.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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.
The combination of hot, dry and breezy conditions created favorable conditions for fire starts and spread.
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 Aug 18, 11:28 AM CST, 1 hour 46 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Norman OK
1228 PM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024
...New AVIATION...
.KEY MESSAGES...
Updated at 1224 PM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024
-Dangerous heat continues today with relief arriving across
north central Oklahoma on Monday.
-Elevated fire weather conditions are expected across southwest
Oklahoma and north Texas this afternoon.
&&
.SHORT TERM...
(Today and tonight)
Issued at 312 AM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024
Dangerous, near-record heat is expected this afternoon as the 597
dam mid-level ridge will be centered over Oklahoma and Texas.
Veered 925 to 850 mb flow will increase the magnitude of the low-
level thermal ridge ahead of a cold front advancing to the
southwest across Missouri and Kansas. As a result, temperatures
are forecast to range from ~100 to 110 deg F this afternoon.
Oklahoma City and Lawton have a chance to get close to or reach
their record highs at 104 and 109 deg F, respectively. The highest
dew points will be near and east of I-35, where an Excessive Heat
Warning is in effect. Elsewhere, a Heat Advisory is in effect.
Given that winds will be relatively light and cloud cover will be
limited, the wet bulb globe temperature risk will be in the high
to extreme risk category.
In addition to the heat, the other concern is fire weather. The
veered, low-level flow will advect drier air into western Oklahoma
and north Texas. The drier air, combined with the very hot
temperatures, will result in relative humidity values below 20% by
afternoon. Elevated fire weather conditions are expected in this
environment across the west. The Elevated Fire Weather conditions,
combined with increasing volatile fuels across southwest Oklahoma
and north Texas, will result in an environment favorable for the
spread of grass fires. A Fire Danger Statement (RFD) was issued
to account for this.
Mahale
&&
.LONG TERM...
(Monday through Saturday)
Issued at 312 AM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024
On Monday, the mid-level ridge is forecast to retrograde to the
west as a trough amplifies across the eastern U.S. In response, a
backdoor cold front will advance to the southwest with
(relatively) cooler, easterly flow across the northeast parts of
the area. Across the southwest, dangerous heat will continue--so
there will be a northeast to southwest temperature gradient across
the area. There is a low chance of showers/storms across north
central Oklahoma on Monday morning--but the most likely scenario
is any rain remaining to the north and east.
The cooler airmass will continue to advect to the southwest on
Tuesday with relief for locations along and north of I-40 and
along and east of I-35. The hot temperatures will be further
confined to the southwest across southwest Oklahoma and north
Texas.
The less hot pattern is forecast to persist across the eastern
half of the area through much of next week with the gradient of
the low-level thermal ridge centered across the Southern Plains.
In other words--there will likely be a noticeable east to west
temperature gradient throughout the week with the hottest
temperatures near the 100th meridian and the coolest temperatures
east of I-35. Rain chances appear limited.
Mahale
&&
.AVIATION...
(18Z TAFS)
Issued at 1224 PM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024
VFR conditions are expected. A front will move slowly into the
northeastern half of Oklahoma from the north and turn winds to
northeast at KPNC and KSWO tonight, reaching central Oklahoma
around sunrise Monday. Moderately gusty southwest wind will
prevail over the western half of Oklahoma this afternoon.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
Oklahoma City OK 103 75 97 72 / 0 0 0 0
Hobart OK 107 76 103 72 / 0 0 0 0
Wichita Falls TX 107 80 108 77 / 0 0 0 0
Gage OK 107 72 100 68 / 0 0 0 10
Ponca City OK 100 72 91 68 / 10 20 0 20
Durant OK 105 78 104 75 / 0 10 0 0
&&
.OUN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OK...Heat Advisory until 9 PM CDT this evening for OKZ004>011-014>017-
021>024-027-033>039-044-045.
Excessive Heat Warning until 9 PM CDT this evening for OKZ012-
013-018>020-025-026-028>032-040>043-046>048-050>052.
TX...Heat Advisory until 9 PM CDT this evening for TXZ083>090.
&&
SHORT TERM...10
LONG TERM....10
AVIATION...09Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Norman OK 348 AM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024 OKZ004>048-050>052-TXZ083>090-190900- 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- 348 AM CDT Sun Aug 18 2024 This hazardous weather outlook is for portions of northern... western...central...and southern Oklahoma...and western north Texas. .DAY ONE...Today and Tonight... .Heat... Widespread 105 to 115 degree heat indices are expected across Oklahoma and western north Texas this afternoon and early evening. .Fire Weather... Elevated fire weather conditions are expected this afternoon across southwestern Oklahoma and adjacent parts of north Texas. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Monday through Saturday... .Heat... Dangerous heat will continue across southwest Oklahoma and adjacent parts of north Texas throughout much of the week. Elsewhere, some relief from the heat is expected beginning on Monday across north central Oklahoma. This relief will spread farther to the southwest into central Oklahoma on Tuesday. .Fire Weather... Elevated fire weather conditions are possible Monday afternoon across southwestern Oklahoma and adjacent parts of north Texas. .Thunderstorms... There are low chances of thunderstorms across north central Oklahoma Sunday night into Monday morning and Monday night into Tuesday morning. Get graphics and more details at weather.gov/norman...and follow our weather forecast office on Twitter and Facebook. Mahale
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
The 'Peter Switch Fire' spread over 1,657 acres across central Wichita County.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, August 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: 1210538.