Ten fire weather zones across Washington State and Oregon are under Red Flag Warnings on Tuesday, as a cold front sweeping through the Pacific Northwest generates a dangerous window of strong, dry winds that fire officials warn could turn any spark into a rapidly spreading wildfire.
Warnings Span Eastern Washington and the Columbia Basin
The National Weather Service in Spokane issued a Red Flag Warning in effect from 10 AM to 11 PM PDT Tuesday for eight fire weather zones covering a broad swath of eastern Washington: the Colville Reservation, Okanogan Valley, Methow Valley, Foothills of Central Washington Cascades, Waterville Plateau, Western Columbia Basin, Eastern Columbia Basin/Palouse/Spokane area, and the Lower Palouse-Snake River.
The agency noted the setup bluntly: “Rapid fire spread is likely with any new or ongoing fires.”
West to northwest winds of 15 to 30 mph with gusts reaching 40 to 50 mph are forecast across the warned zones, paired with relative humidity values dropping to between 12 and 23 percent — the lower end of the critical fire weather range. At 12 percent humidity, fine fuels like cured grasses become almost as flammable as paper.
The Kittitas Valley and Lower Columbia Basin Also Warned
The NWS Pendleton office extended the warning to cover the Kittitas Valley in Washington — the agricultural corridor around Ellensburg — with northwest winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts to 45 mph and humidity dropping as low as 18 percent. The Lower Columbia Basin on both sides of the Oregon-Washington border is under the same warning, with west winds of 20 to 30 mph and gusts to 45 mph and humidity falling to 19 percent.
The Pendleton office characterized the threat directly: “Any fire that develops will catch and spread quickly.” Outdoor burning is not recommended anywhere in the warned zones for the duration of the warning.
What Is Driving the Conditions
The Red Flag setup is a classic late-spring/early-summer pattern for the inland Pacific Northwest. A cold front approaching from the west is generating a pressure gradient that funnels dry, gusty winds down the lee slopes of the Cascades and across the Columbia Basin and Palouse.
These downslope winds are warm and dry relative to the air they originated from, dropping humidity rapidly as they descend. The fuels across eastern Washington and Oregon are drying out after a below-normal snowpack year, making this year’s early fire season significantly more dangerous than average.
The warning window is relatively narrow — expiring at 11 PM PDT — but the most dangerous hours will be Tuesday afternoon when winds peak and humidity bottoms out. The front’s passage Wednesday is expected to bring slightly higher humidity and lower winds, but the fuel moisture deficit will persist.
What Residents Should Do
Avoid all outdoor burning, including campfires, yard debris burns and any equipment that throws sparks. Secure tow chains on trailers to prevent dragging and sparking. Never toss cigarette butts from vehicles. Any smoke sighting should be reported immediately by calling 911 — do not wait to confirm the source. For the latest updates, monitor weather.gov/otx and weather.gov/pdt.
