Red Flag Warning Issued for South Dakota and Wyoming: Critical Fire Weather and 75 MPH Gusts Expected
This alert is no longer in effect.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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NWS Rapid City has issued a Red Flag Warning for Thursday, March 12, citing extreme wind gusts up to 75 mph and low humidity levels that could lead to dangerous fire behavior.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- Red Flag Warning
- Affected area
- South Dakota and Wyoming
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Rapid City
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 South Dakota and Wyoming.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Rapid City has issued a Red Flag Warning due to expected critical fire weather conditions. The alert was issued by the NWS Rapid City SD office and is effective for Thursday, March 12.
Affected Areas
The warning covers a broad region across South Dakota and Wyoming, including:
- Southern Black Hills
- Fall River County Area
- Eastern Foot Hills
- Custer County Plains
- Pine Ridge Area
- West Central Plains
- Haakon County Area
- Badlands Area
- Bennett County Area
- Mellette and Todd Counties
- Tripp County
- Southern Campbell
- Weston County Plains
What You Should Do
Residents in the affected zones should prepare for imminent critical fire weather. A Red Flag Warning indicates that a combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior. Residents are advised to exercise extreme caution as any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly.
Expected Conditions
Strong west-southwest winds are expected to develop Thursday morning ahead of a cold front. Sustained winds will range from 35 to 50 mph, with gusts potentially reaching up to 75 mph. Daytime minimum relative humidity is forecast to drop as low as 18 percent. In the afternoon, a cold front will shift winds to the northwest, with gusts continuing to exceed 60 to 70 mph even as humidity levels begin to rise.
Timeline
The Red Flag Warning is in effect from 11:00 AM MDT (noon CDT) on Thursday, March 12, until 7:00 PM MDT (8:00 PM CDT) that evening.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
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