This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Bruce Springsteen's take on Utah's late-week forecast might note the "low thunder rolling 'cross the mesquite plain, but there's just dry lightning on the horizon line."
And the gravel-throated singer would have it right; he is The Boss, after all.
Wind, storm clouds, lightning, and — with rare exceptions — little or no rain combined with extremely dry conditions to elevate wildfire danger. The National Weather Service placed a large section of the state, including the Wasatch and the Uinta mountains and western Uinta Basin, under a Red Flag Warning from noon Wednesday through midnight.
From Logan stretching south through Ogden, Salt Lake City and Provo, and branching out southwest and southeast to Nephi, Duchesne, Manti and Price, widely scattered thunderstorms and outflowing winds topping 40 mph were expected to lash tinder-dry high desert, rangelands and forests alike.
Storm clouds overhead will bring slightly cooler temperatures to the Salt Lake and Tooele valleys, where highs on Thursday will retreat a few degrees into the mid-90s from Tuesday's upper-90s. Friday's forecast calls for daytime temperatures in the upper-80s as the cycle of water-stingy thunderstorms continued.
Southern Utahns might wring some rain from their week-ending thunderstorms. Still, any hopes for dramatic relief from the typical summer heat of Utah's Dixie are forlorn.
Highs Wednesday of around 103 retreat just a few degrees on Thursday, but climb back to 101 on a sunny and clear Friday. However, evening breezes will help cool overnight temperatures into the upper-60s.
The Utah Division of Air Quality put most of the state under its "yellow" category, declaring compromised levels of particulate pollution existing into the weekend. Only Box Elder, Cache, Tooele and Washington counties earned "green," or healthy air quality grades.
The Intermountain Allergy & Asthma website reported that chenopods and mold were at "high" levels as of Wednesday, with ragweed and grass "moderate."
For more extensive forecast information, visit The Salt Lake Tribune's weather page at: http//www.sltrib.com/weather/.
Twitter: @remims