Expected

A period of strong west-southwest winds gusting up to 55 mph will continue in parts of northwest North Dakota late this evening. These strong winds are associated with showers and thunderstorms moving northward through northeast Montana. Areas of blowing dust have also been reported from Watford City to Williston, reducing visibility as low as one mile. The strong winds may cause difficult driving conditions, especially for high profile vehicles. The winds may also result in

At 933 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking strong thunderstorms along a line extending from Forest River Colony to Spirit Lake Nation. Movement was northeast at 40 mph. HAZARD...Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Locations impacted include... Devils Lake, Grafton, Park River, New Rockford, Larimore, Camp Grafton, and Lakota. If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zone 061 Hamilton, Fire Weather Zone 074 Stanton, Fire Weather Zone 075 Grant, Fire Weather Zone 076 Haskell, Fire Weather Zone 084 Morton, Fire Weather Zone 085 Stevens, Fire Weather Zone 086 Seward, Fire Weather Zone 087 Meade, Fire Weather Zone 088 Clark and Fire Weather Zone 089 Comanche. * TIMING...From noon CDT /11 AM MDT/ to 9 PM CDT /8 PM MDT/ Thursday. * WINDS...North 10 to 15 mph with gusts up to 30 mph. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 11 percent.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zone 215. * TIMING...Until midnight MDT tonight. * WINDS...West 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 35 mph. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 11 percent. * IMPACTS...Conditions will be favorable for rapid fire spread. Avoid outdoor burning and any activity that may produce a spark and start a wildfire. A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now....or will shortly. A combination of strong winds...low relative humidity...and warm temperatures can

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 214, 216, 238, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250 and 251. * TIMING...For the first Red Flag Warning, until midnight MDT tonight. For the second Red Flag Warning, from 11 AM to 7 PM MDT Thursday. * WINDS...Northwest 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 40 mph, with gusts up to 50 mph across the Southern Front Range Foothills and South Park through early Thursday afternoon. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 10 percent Thursday.

* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 214, 216, 238, 239, 240, 241, 242, 243, 244, 245, 246, 247, 248, 249, 250 and 251. * TIMING...For the first Red Flag Warning, until midnight MDT tonight. For the second Red Flag Warning, from 11 AM to 7 PM MDT Thursday. * WINDS...Northwest 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 40 mph, with gusts up to 50 mph across the Southern Front Range Foothills and South Park through early Thursday afternoon. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 10 percent Thursday.

* WHAT...West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. * WHERE...Mojave Desert Slopes. * WHEN...Until 11 PM PDT this evening. * IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result. Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high profile vehicles. Use extra caution.

...RED FLAG WARNING EXTENDED FOR SOUTHWEST AND WEST CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA UNTIL MIDNIGHT CDT... .Critical fire weather conditions continue late this evening across southwest and west central North Dakota, where relative humidity remains in the 10 to 20 percent range with gusty southwest winds. Any fires that ignite could spread rapidly and become difficult to control. * WINDS...Southwest around 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. * RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 10 percent. * AFFECTED AREA...South west and west central North Dakota.

...RED FLAG WARNING THURSDAY FROM 9 AM TO 8 PM MDT FOR THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY, WEST CENTRAL BASIN AND RANGE, AND ALONG AND EAST OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAIN CHAIN DUE TO STRONG WIND AND LOW HUMIDITY... .Westerly winds in the upper levels will increase over New Mexico through Thursday, while a surface trough redevelops in the lee of the southern Rockies. This will result in widespread west and northwest wind gusts of 35 to 45 mph with higher gusts up to 55

...RED FLAG WARNING THURSDAY FROM 9 AM TO 8 PM MDT FOR THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY, WEST CENTRAL BASIN AND RANGE, AND ALONG AND EAST OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAIN CHAIN DUE TO STRONG WIND AND LOW HUMIDITY... .Westerly winds in the upper levels will increase over New Mexico through Thursday, while a surface trough redevelops in the lee of the southern Rockies. This will result in widespread west and northwest wind gusts of 35 to 45 mph with higher gusts up to 55