Heating up for the holiday weekend

Bend, Ore (KTVZ) – Plenty of sunshine and a light breeze will define the day and will also define Saturday, the Fourth of July. The region will be seeing a breeze from the west today and tomorrow that will allow the sun to do its job and heat us up under mostly clear conditions. Highs today will be in the middle to upper 80s, and the upper 80s again on Saturday.

There is a concern this weekend about fire danger, and the National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for Wasco County and points north and east. This is for Saturday afternoon and evening, which is when the winds will be more robust. The area will be very warm and the air will be dry, so if anything sparks a fire it has the potential to spread rapidly.

Central Oregon is not included in the warning (except a few acres of Jefferson County) but we are close enough to be concerned as well. The temptation to blast off illegal fireworks is very high and if one does spark a new fire, it will spread rapidly.  Remember, if you can be linked to the fire start, you will be fined and financially responsible for the cost of extinguishing the blaze. 

Sunday, we begin our run of 90-degree heat as the flow shifts from the west to a more southwesterly direction. This will warm us a degree or two, but also may introduce a bit more moisture in the air. There is a very slight chance for an isolated thunderstorm to pop up on Sunday afternoon, mainly in SE Oregon. The storms will be moving from SW to NE if they do develop and the window of development will only be a few hours in the late day time frame. Worth of a mention, but should not impact the Tri-Counties.

Monday a stray shower is possible in the region, but more than likely there will only be an increase in cloud cover and very low chance for some rain.

Tuesday is slated to be the last day of our 90-degree days.  Plenty of sunshine and a bit of a breeze will define Tuesday.

Wednesday through next Friday will be mostly sunny and warm with highs in the middle 80s.

Please, Stay safe.

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