Red Flag Warning Issued for Portions of Missouri and Kansas Due to Critical Fire Conditions
This alert is no longer in effect.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).
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The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for parts of Missouri and Kansas, effective Thursday afternoon, as high winds and low humidity create extreme fire risks.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Red Flag Warning
- Affected area
- Western, Central, and Northern Missouri and Eastern Kansas
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Kansas City/Pleasant Hill MO
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 Western, Central, and Northern Missouri and Eastern Kansas.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Kansas City/Pleasant Hill has issued a Red Flag Warning for wind and low relative humidity. This alert signifies that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or are imminent, driven by a combination of strong winds, low humidity, and warm temperatures.
Affected Areas
The warning impacts multiple regions across Kansas and Missouri, specifically:
- Kansas: Linn County (Fire Weather Zone 060).
- Missouri: Linn, Macon, Carroll, Chariton, Randolph, Lafayette, Saline, Howard, Cass, Johnson, Pettis, Cooper, Bates, and Henry counties (Fire Weather Zones 024, 025, 031, 032, 033, 038, 039, 040, 043, 044, 045, 046, 053, and 054).
What You Should Do
Residents in the affected areas are strongly advised to avoid outdoor burning. Any fire that develops under these conditions will catch and spread quickly, potentially leading to extreme fire behavior. Preparation is recommended to ensure safety in the event of a fire start.
Expected Conditions
- Wind: Gusty southwesterly winds are expected to reach speeds of up to 30 mph.
- Humidity: Relative humidity values are forecast to fall between 15% and 25% during the afternoon hours.
- Impacts: The combination of dry air and high winds will facilitate the rapid spread of any fires.
Timeline
The Red Flag Warning is in effect from 12:00 PM to 8:00 PM CST on Thursday, February 19, 2026. The alert was originally issued on February 18 at 1:16 PM CST.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
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