Near-Critical Fire Weather Hits Parts of Oklahoma and Texas as Temperatures Reach Record-High Territories

As near-critical fire weather moves through the region, temperatures are reaching record-high levels in Oklahoma and Texas.

Josh Reiter, a First Weather Meteorologist, said that today will further illustrate how it has lately felt as though 2023 began by turning the new calendar open and going straight to April.

Record-High Temperatures

Today will further illustrate how it has lately felt as though 2023 began by turning the new calendar open and going straight to April.

Most of Texas will experience record-high temperatures today. The current record for this day in Lawton was set in 1928, and the previous record in Wichita Falls was set in 1990 at 78°.

Reiter viewed this as making up for the bitterly cold temperatures the region had experienced in the days leading up to Christmas.

The dryline will be pushed east of our viewing area by the southwesterly winds as they funnel in dry surface air to Texoma.

Near Critical Fire Weather

It will be possible for elevated-to-near-critical fire weather conditions to establish this afternoon. This forecast is especially suited for western counties in Southwest Oklahoma and Northwest Texas, due to a combination of unseasonably warm temperatures, dry air, and breezy winds.

Residents are urged to exercise caution whenever they are outside and to take precautions to avoid engaging in any activities that could produce sparks or otherwise contribute to the start and spread of hazardous grass fires. Today will be mostly sunny with sporadic periods of partial cloud cover.

According to First Weather, lows for the early hours of tomorrow morning will be in the 40s, with some southern counties even experiencing low 50s. Tomorrow's southwesterly winds are predicted to be even chillier, with speeds of 15 to 25 mph and strong gusts of 25 to 35 mph. Some areas in the west may experience gusts of over 40 mph.

As a result, an even greater risk of dangerous fire weather can be expected in the afternoon with near-to-critical conditions. Highs will be several degrees cooler, spanning from the low to upper 70s, despite the stronger winds. This is because, while the surface will continue to have dry air, the mid- and upper levels will experience some cloud buildup, occasionally becoming mostly cloudy and preventing excessive surface heating.

Thursday to Sunday

After sunset on Wednesday, a cold front will move through Texoma, but sadly, because of the dry air in the region, precipitation is not a possibility. Following the front, winds on Thursday will be breezy out of the northwest, with some areas experiencing overnight wind gusts of up to 40 mph. For Thursday and Friday, a cool airmass will move in, bringing a significant cooldown to the mid to upper 50s with mostly sunny skies.

Over the weekend, a ridge of high pressure will develop, and the area will continue to warm. Despite gradually increasing cloud cover, highs for both Saturday and Sunday will be toasty, reaching the mid- to upper 60s, ABC7 News reports.

Historical Records

According to the National Weather Service, today in 2009, when the temperature in Oklahoma City reached 75 degrees, a record high was reached. The previous record was 73 degrees, which was set in 2002. Tillman and Comanche Counties experienced high winds on this day as well due to a powerful cold front that passed through the region. Despite wind gusts reaching 59 mph, thankfully, no damage was observed.

The region experienced a cold day on January 9th, 1977, particularly in northern Texas. The high temperature in Wichita Falls was 12 degrees at midnight, which is the third-lowest high temperature recorded there. It got worse as another two inches of snow fell, bringing the two-day storm's total accumulation to five inches.