Utah’s weekend weather forecast calls for just too much rain in southern Utah, and not near enough for the state’s northern and central forests, rangelands and deserts.
On Friday, the National Weather Service issued a “Red Flag” wildfire warning for the Wasatch Front from Logan south through Salt Lake City, Provo and Nephi. That advisory, kicking in at noon and running through midnight, also included the Great Salt Lake and western deserts.
While the potential for dry lightning in the region’s tinder-dry forests and grasslands combined with winds of 35 to 45 mph made fire danger high, it was a different story in the state’s southern redrocks and high deserts.
Southwest and southcentral Utah, from Milford south to the St. George area and Zion National Park through Bryce Canyon and Escalante to the east, was under a “Flash Flood Watch.” That advisory, too, ran from noon through Friday evening.
Scattered but occasionally heavy rain showers from a cycle of thunderstorms elevated flooding risks high for slot canyons, dry washes, creeks and rivers in the affected areas. Recently burned slopes of forest lands also were at risk.
The Salt Lake and Tooele valleys faced a warm weekend, with thunder claps and some sparse rain expected Saturday morning and again in the evening. Saturday’s high temperatures along the Wasatch Front will be in the mid-80s, down about 5 degrees from Friday’s forecast; Sunday, under partly cloudy skies, will climb back into the upper-80s.
Utah’s Dixie, usually broiling in early September, was forecast for mid-80s on Saturday — a few degrees cooler than Friday — as storm clouds rolled over the region. Sunday’s temperatures, as storm clouds gradually dissipate, will be in the low-90s.
The Utah Division of Air Quality put the entire state — with the sole exception of “green,” or healthy Washington County — on “yellow” status. That grade indicates moderate levels of ozone and particulate pollution.
Alas, the weekend will not be kind to allergy sufferers. The Intermountain Allergy & Asthma website reported “high” levels of grass, chenopods, sagebrush, ragwee and mold on its pollen index as of Friday.