Weather Blog: More Summer Weather Before Our Next Fall Front
An upper-level low moved through the Central Plains this morning, bringing spotty showers and storms to southern Kansas and far northern Oklahoma.
What's today's forecast?
Behind the departing system, southwest winds of around 10 to 20 mph will prevail throughout the middle of the day, gradually decreasing later this afternoon. Morning lows near 60 will rise to nearly 90 this afternoon, potentially setting a new daily record high for the Tulsa metro area.
Burn Bans:
The combination of southwest winds, dry vegetation, and ongoing drought conditions will lead to a slight increase in fire danger by mid-morning. However, the anticipated reduction in wind speed later in the day should help mitigate the fire spread this afternoon.
What's the forecast for the rest of the week?
Another weak front is expected to approach the area Wednesday afternoon or early Wednesday night, bringing a slight chance of showers or storms near or east of the Tulsa metro.
This boundary will likely stall and either become diffuse or lift northward as a weak front late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning. Locations north of the front will see highs in the lower to mid-80s Wednesday, with some upper 80s to lower 90s south of the boundary across southern OK Wednesday afternoon.
A very slight chance for an isolated shower or storm will remain near the boundary late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning, but most locations will remain dry. Gusty southwest winds quickly return Thursday with highs in the upper 80s to lower 90s by afternoon.
A more significant mid-level trough will move across the Central Plains Thursday night into Friday, introducing a strong front across our area from Friday morning through midday. There is a slight chance for showers or storms late Friday night into early Saturday as the front moves southward, although the probability remains low.
This will lead to a reduction in daytime highs on Friday, dropping into the upper 70s and lower 80s, with even cooler weather expected over the weekend. Morning lows will fall into the lower 50s, and daytime highs will reach the mid to upper 70s for the weekend.
A stronger upper-level system is projected to move across the Western half of the nation early next week, potentially reaching the central and southern Plains by Wednesday. This will bring strong southerly winds, warmer temperatures, and increased low-level moisture ahead of the system.
Based on this pattern, we should see a return of shower and storm chances across parts of Oklahoma by the middle of next week, followed by a shift to more autumn-like weather behind the boundary.
What are the major traffic projects around Tulsa this week?
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) and Oklahoma Turnpike Authority (OTA) provide daily details on several traffic advisories for the Tulsa area and surrounding regions.
To start October, here are some of the significant traffic advisories. For more information, see our detailed list.
I-244 Pavement Rehabilitation
- Ongoing pavement work between I-44 and the Arkansas River bridge, with lane and ramp closures lasting through spring 2025.
US-75 Bridge Rehabilitation
- Lane closures at 7th St. and off-ramp closures to 7th St. through fall 2024 for bridge rehabilitation.
US-412 Bridge Rehabilitation
- US-412 narrowed to two lanes at 81st W. Ave. in Sand Springs through February 2025.
Emergency Info: Outages Across Oklahoma:
Northeast Oklahoma has various power companies and electric cooperatives, many of which have overlapping areas of coverage. Below is a link to various outage maps.
Indian Electric Cooperative (IEC) Outage Map
Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives Outage Map — (Note Several Smaller Co-ops Included)
The Alan Crone morning weather podcast link from Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/0dCHRWMFjs4fEPKLqTLjvy
The Alan Crone morning weather podcast link from Apple:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/weather-out-the-door/id1499556141?i=1000672483482
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