There’s a lot of uncertainties where the weather is concerned.
“I wish we had more certainty and we could just tell people its more difficult then even a winter storm,” says Meterologist Ryan Sandler of the National Weather Service.
What is certain.
“In the summertime you don’t see strong low pressure systems like this,” Sandler says.
A slow moving low pressure is on it’s way and it’s sticking around for a while.
“We have other ingredients in place that could give us thunderstorms Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, maybe even Saturday,” says Sandler.
The last thunderstorms that came through moved much more quickly but still sparked many fires.
Sandler says “with the fires that started from a night time thunderstorm. That’s very unusual, we could see that again.”
Which is why the National Weather Service Meteorologists are keeping a close eye on where the fires are already burning.
“I am doing the forecast for the firefighters for the fire agencies that are working the fires,” says Senior Meteorologist Tom Wright of the National Weather Service.
“On a fire they don’t want to see any thunderstorms it could start existing fires, it’s just dangerous to be out with thunderstorms,” says Sandler.
But with the thunderstorm system that’s moving in it could bring a no win situation.
“Tthe lightning could start more fires, but we need the thunderstorms that could bring rain to put out the fires,” says Sandler.
But everyone is preparing for whatever the storm may bring.
Wright says “they want to make sure that the firefighters are getting hurt by meteorological things like the wind comes up or thunderstorms that come up. They develop a plan of attack based on a lot of inputs one of which is weather which is what we are out there to do.”
The National Weather Service says the fire that is the most susceptible to more lightning strikes from this storm is the Whiskey Complex Fire because it is the closest to the Cascades.
Again, those thunderstorms are forecasted to start Tuesday night.
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