Red Flag Warning Issued for Portions of Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska Due to Extreme Fire Risk
This alert is no longer in effect.
NOAA issued it on April 6, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
Areazine synthesizes this NWS weather alert directly from NOAA's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for Tuesday across the Tri-State area, citing high winds and low humidity that could lead to rapid fire spread.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Red Flag Warning
- Affected area
- Tri-State Region (Eastern Colorado, Western Kansas, Southwest Nebraska)
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Goodland
Fire-weather notices describe conditions that can support rapid fire spread; they do not report that a fire is present. Check local emergency sources for any active incident.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Tri-State Region (Eastern Colorado, Western Kansas, Southwest Nebraska).
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Goodland, Kansas, has issued a Red Flag Warning due to the combination of strong winds and low relative humidity. This alert indicates that any fires that ignite will lead to extreme fire spread. This warning replaces the previously issued Fire Weather Watch.
Affected Areas
The warning covers multiple counties across three states:
- Colorado: Yuma, Kit Carson, and Cheyenne counties.
- Kansas: Cheyenne, Rawlins, Decatur, Norton, Sherman, Thomas, Sheridan, Graham, Wallace, Logan, Gove, Greeley, and Wichita counties.
- Nebraska: Dundy, Hitchcock, and Red Willow counties.
What You Should Do
Residents in the affected areas are urged to take the following precautions:
- Comply with all local burn bans and regulations.
- Avoid driving vehicles on dry grass or brush.
- Maintain vehicle brakes and tires and ensure tow chains are secured to avoid dragging, which can create sparks.
- Never toss lit cigarettes onto the ground.
- Be prepared to evacuate if fire or smoke is heading your way, or if ordered to do so by local officials.
Expected Conditions
Weather conditions will support extremely dangerous and erratic fire behavior. Any fires that develop will rapidly grow and spread out of control.
- Winds: West-southwest winds of 30 to 40 mph are expected, with gusts reaching up to 65 mph. Winds will shift to the west behind a cold front on Tuesday afternoon.
- Relative Humidity: Humidity levels are expected to drop to around 10 percent.
- Visibility: Blowing dust may occur near open fields or other source regions, causing reductions in visibility and poor air quality.
Timeline
The Red Flag Warning is effective from 10:00 AM MST (11:00 AM CST) to 8:00 PM MST (9:00 PM CST) on Tuesday, February 17.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
Related Weather Alerts
All Weather Alerts →Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this NWS weather alert.