The National Weather Service office in Johnston has issued a Red Flag Warning from 1-7 p.m. Saturday for the Perry area due to “extreme fire danger” conditions.
Strong southwest winds, very warm temperatures and low relative humidity are combined with mostly dry fuels to produce extreme fire conditions Saturday afternoon in the northwest half of Iowa, the NWS said. Elevated fire conditions are expected elsewhere across southern and eastern Iowa.
Sustained southwest winds of 20 to 30 mph, with gusts to 40 mph, and relative humidity dropping to near 20% Saturday afternoon means that any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly, the NWS said. Outdoor burning is not recommended.
Along with Dallas County, the Red Flag Warning applies in Butler, Bremer, Grundy, Black Hawk, Story, Audubon, Guthrie, Cass and Adair counties.
ThePerryNews.com will update this fire story as forecasts evolve.