This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Hang on to your hats — the National Weather Service is predicting a windy Saturday will kick off the Labor Day weekend in Utah.

In addition, the western third of the state will remain under a "red flag warning" on Saturday as the combination of wind and low humidity creates a higher risk of fire.

A wind advisory is in effect until 10 p.m. Saturday for the Salt Lake and Tooele valleys and west central and southwest Utah, where winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph are predicted.

The southern Wasatch Front also is under the advisory on Saturday and can expect winds of 15 to 25 mph in the morning that increase to 20 to 30 mph early in the afternoon and gust to 50 mph.

Motorists in these areas should be prepared for gusty cross winds that can make driving difficult. The impacted roads include Interstate 80, U.S. 6 and state highways 56 and 21.

The strong winds also will create dangerous boating conditions on area lakes, the weather service says. Operators of small craft are being urged to postpone their outings because very choppy water and large waves could capsize or swamp their boats.

The wind is expected to diminish Saturday evening in all these areas.

Highs ranging from the mid 70s to low 80s along the Wasatch Front are predicted on Saturday, accompanied by a chance of isolated showers and thunderstorms.

Sunday is expected to be slightly cooler, with highs of 70 to 80. Then the thermometer will inch up again on Labor Day in northern Utah to the mid 70s to low 80s, the weather service predicts.

In the St. George and Zion National Park areas, highs around 90 are expected on Saturday and Sunday, while Monday is predicted to have a high in the low 90s.

Visit the Tribune's weather page at http://www.sltrib.com/weather for more weather information.

Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC