First red flag warning issued for 2-10 p.m. today

A major thunder cell grazed southern Douglas County prompting a flash flood warning on the Tamarack Burn on Thursday.

While the warning expired without reports of any major incident the storm did drop .43 inches of rain in Double Spring Flat and .14 inches above Holbrook Junction.

Standing water could be seen on the Leviathan Mine Road traffic camera.

The cell developed in the Sierra Nevada in western Mono County before heading northeast into Nevada toward Yerington and Hawthorne.

The first red flag warning of 2024 was issued for 2-10 p.m. Friday for gusty winds and low humidity. A lake wind advisory is in effect the same time.

Forecasters are predicting southwest winds 15-25 mph, gusting to 35 mph with humidity dropping to 10-15 percent for 3-6 hours.

Forecasters are advising residents to avoid activities that can cause a spark near dry vegetation, including yard work, target shooting or campfires because gusty winds and low humidity could cause a fire to spread rapidly.

Temperatures are expected to cool significantly this weekend after being stuck in the 90s for the last few days.

“A major pattern shift looks increasingly likely this weekend into

early next week,” said. National Weather Service Meteorologist Brittany Whitlam. “The first in the series drops into the Pacific

Northwest Friday into Saturday, introducing increased west-

southwesterly winds on Friday afternoon and evening. Widespread

gusts 25-35 mph are likely, with localized areas 40-plus mph possible.”

The weekend is forecast to see high temperatures drop 17 degrees in Minden from 89 degrees on Friday to 72 degrees on Monday.

“A secondary shortwave drops farther south into northern California and Nevada on Monday,” Whitlam said on Thursday afternoon. “The trajectory of this system promotes the potential for even stronger winds than those observed on Friday. These strong winds, in conjunction with widespread low daytime relative humidity, will support several hours of critical fire weather conditions where fuels are cured.”