Florida faces elevated risk for wildfires through midweek
By
Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Mar 31, 2020 3:16 PM EDT
A combination of heat, long-term dryness and a gusty breeze will raise the threat for wildfires in Florida through Wednesday evening, especially over the central and southern counties of the peninsula.
The period from late fall to the early spring are typically the driest months of the year. This is due to a lack of tropical activity and few, if any, convective showers and thunderstorms. Rainfall during this time frame must come from cool fronts that drop southward.
March is among the driest months of the year for Florida on average, but this month has been exceptionally dry with virtually no rain.
"Rainfall in many areas of the central and southern counties of the peninsula has been less than 5% of average," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson.
For example, Melbourne, Florida, normally receives 3.28 inches of rain during March. However, during March 2020, only 0.10 of an inch of rain has fallen.
It is a similar story for Orlando, Gainesville, Fort Myers and Key West, Florida.
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Steve Weherley, mitigation specialist for the Florida Forest Service Chipola River District, discussed the wildfire concerns in an interview with AccuWeather reporter Jonathan Petramala.
“We've responded to about 14 wildfires since Friday,” Weherley told Petramala on Wednesday, and damage left in the wake of another disaster, Hurricane Michael, which slammed into the Florida Panhandle a year and a half ago, has made the battle against fires even more difficult.
“That left 72 million tons of broken, uprooted, blown over trees on the ground prime for burning. The exponential increase in fuel loads has created a potential for significant increase in the number, the intensity and danger of wildfires probably over the next three to 10 years,” Weherley said.
Forecasters urge people to be very careful with outdoor flames and power equipment with the conditions expected through Wednesday evening as stiff breezes can fan sparks and flames. Experts stress the importance of avoiding parking vehicles over dry brush since exhaust system are hot enough to ignite brush that touches or is close to the undercarriage.
The gusty winds will make it even more important to immediately report any smoke to local authorities to expedite the fire control operation.
"Although showers and thunderstorms tracked through central and southern Florida Tuesday night, dry conditions and low humidity will dry out vegetation quickly during the day Wednesday," AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said.
A cold front did push its way across the Florida Peninsula Tuesday night into Wednesday, bringing locally drenching showers and thunderstorms. Although beneficial, rainfall totals remained rather light as the front swept southward.
However, the front will help to trim temperatures. Highs in the upper 80s to lower 90s F, which have been challenging and even setting records over the past week, will be slashed by 10-15 degrees Wednesday.
"Jacksonville, Florida, has set a record high every day from March 27 through March 30 with highs in the 90s," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Heather Zehr said.
The record of 88 set in 2016 was eclipsed on Tuesday as well in Jacksonville, as the mercury topped out at 89 degrees, making that four consecutive days of record-breaking temperatures.
But even in the wake of the front, where little or no rain falls during its passage, gusty north to northwest winds will still keep the fire risk elevated on Wednesday. Lower humidity levels on Wednesday may make up for the lower temperature factor and keep the fire risk elevated.
Less wind is forecast on Thursday, so the fire risk should ease, but caution is still advised as the abnormally dry conditions are forecast to persist into at least the first part of the upcoming weekend.
Additional reporting by Jonathan Petramala.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Florida faces elevated risk for wildfires through midweek
By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Mar 31, 2020 3:16 PM EDT
A combination of heat, long-term dryness and a gusty breeze will raise the threat for wildfires in Florida through Wednesday evening, especially over the central and southern counties of the peninsula.
The period from late fall to the early spring are typically the driest months of the year. This is due to a lack of tropical activity and few, if any, convective showers and thunderstorms. Rainfall during this time frame must come from cool fronts that drop southward.
March is among the driest months of the year for Florida on average, but this month has been exceptionally dry with virtually no rain.
"Rainfall in many areas of the central and southern counties of the peninsula has been less than 5% of average," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Brett Anderson.
For example, Melbourne, Florida, normally receives 3.28 inches of rain during March. However, during March 2020, only 0.10 of an inch of rain has fallen.
It is a similar story for Orlando, Gainesville, Fort Myers and Key West, Florida.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Steve Weherley, mitigation specialist for the Florida Forest Service Chipola River District, discussed the wildfire concerns in an interview with AccuWeather reporter Jonathan Petramala.
“We've responded to about 14 wildfires since Friday,” Weherley told Petramala on Wednesday, and damage left in the wake of another disaster, Hurricane Michael, which slammed into the Florida Panhandle a year and a half ago, has made the battle against fires even more difficult.
“That left 72 million tons of broken, uprooted, blown over trees on the ground prime for burning. The exponential increase in fuel loads has created a potential for significant increase in the number, the intensity and danger of wildfires probably over the next three to 10 years,” Weherley said.
Forecasters urge people to be very careful with outdoor flames and power equipment with the conditions expected through Wednesday evening as stiff breezes can fan sparks and flames. Experts stress the importance of avoiding parking vehicles over dry brush since exhaust system are hot enough to ignite brush that touches or is close to the undercarriage.
The gusty winds will make it even more important to immediately report any smoke to local authorities to expedite the fire control operation.
"Although showers and thunderstorms tracked through central and southern Florida Tuesday night, dry conditions and low humidity will dry out vegetation quickly during the day Wednesday," AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham said.
A cold front did push its way across the Florida Peninsula Tuesday night into Wednesday, bringing locally drenching showers and thunderstorms. Although beneficial, rainfall totals remained rather light as the front swept southward.
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However, the front will help to trim temperatures. Highs in the upper 80s to lower 90s F, which have been challenging and even setting records over the past week, will be slashed by 10-15 degrees Wednesday.
"Jacksonville, Florida, has set a record high every day from March 27 through March 30 with highs in the 90s," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Heather Zehr said.
The record of 88 set in 2016 was eclipsed on Tuesday as well in Jacksonville, as the mercury topped out at 89 degrees, making that four consecutive days of record-breaking temperatures.
But even in the wake of the front, where little or no rain falls during its passage, gusty north to northwest winds will still keep the fire risk elevated on Wednesday. Lower humidity levels on Wednesday may make up for the lower temperature factor and keep the fire risk elevated.
Less wind is forecast on Thursday, so the fire risk should ease, but caution is still advised as the abnormally dry conditions are forecast to persist into at least the first part of the upcoming weekend.
Additional reporting by Jonathan Petramala.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo