901
FXUS65 KPIH 140617
AFDPIH
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE POCATELLO ID
1217 AM MDT SAT MAR 14 2026
KEY MESSAGES
- STRONG TO DAMAGING WIND GUSTS AND BLOWING DUST ARE EXPECTED
FOR EAST IDAHO SATURDAY.
- A COMBINATION OF WIND ADVISORY, HIGH WIND WARNING, AND BLOWING
DUST WARNING HEADLINES ARE IN PLACE FOR SATURDAY.
- A MAJOR WARMING TREND FOLLOWS THIS SYSTEM, WITH POTENTIAL
RECORD-BREAKING TEMPERATURES IN THE 70S AND LOWER 80S EXPECTED
NEXT WEEK.
DISCUSSION
ISSUED AT 1145 PM MDT FRI MAR 13 2026
THE FORECAST FOR THE NEXT 24 HOURS HASN'T REALLY CHANGED. THE
STORY WILL BE THE WIDESPREAD HIGH WIND EVENT ACROSS CENTRAL AND
EASTERN IDAHO STARTING LATER THIS MORNING AND LASTING THROUGH
THIS EVENING. WIDESPREAD GUSTS OF 40-55 MPH ARE EXPECTED, WITH
GUSTS OF 65 MPH OR HIGHER ACROSS THE SNAKE PLAIN/MAGIC VALLEY
AND ADJACENT BENCH AREAS, HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF THE CENTRAL
MOUNTAINS, THE SOUTH HILLS/ALBION MOUNTAINS, AND THE BEAR RIVER
RANGE. THERE IS A 20-60% CHANCE OF EXCEEDING 75 MPH ACROSS
HIGHER RIDGELINES IN THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS, THE SOUTH
HILLS/ALBION MOUNTAINS, AND BEAR RIVER RANGE ESPECIALLY ALONG
AND SOUTH OF THE UTAH BORDER. BLOWING DUST WILL BE A HUGE ISSUE
JUST AS WE SAW ON THURSDAY. STATING THE OBVIOUS, WE WILL KEEP
THE HIGH WIND WARNING, WIND ADVISORY, AND BLOWING DUST WARNING
IN PLACE. THE OTHER CONCERN STILL THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME RAIN
AND SNOW ACROSS THE AREA TODAY. AS THE PAST SEVERAL DAYS, THE
FOCUS FOR EMBEDDED HIGHER AMOUNTS WILL ACROSS THE SAWTOOTHS AND
SURROUNDING RANGES, AND THE EASTERN HIGHLANDS. THERE IS STILL
THE POTENTIAL FOR SHOWERS AT SOME POINT ACROSS ALL OF CENTRAL
AND EASTERN IDAHO WITH THE FRONT. TOTALS IN MOST AREAS MAY
AMOUNT TO NOTHING MORE THAN A TRACE OR FLURRIES/SPRINKLES. MOST
HIGHER ELEVATIONS WILL SEE LESS THAN 0.20" FOR ADDITIONAL
NUMBERS. FOR THE BIG HOLES AND ALONG THE BORDER WITH YELLOWSTONE
AND TETONS, LOOK FOR 0.20-0.50". LOOK FOR SIMILAR AMOUNTS ALONG
THE SMOKYS, SAWTOOTHS, AND THE SALMON RIVER MOUNTAINS. LOCALLY
HIGHER AMOUNTS ARE POSSIBLE ON NORTH AND WEST FACING SLOPES
HEADING TOWARD THE BOISE SIDE OF THE CENTRAL MOUNTAINS.
ADDITIONAL HIGH MOUNTAIN SNOW IN MOST AREAS COULD BE 1-3" WITH
LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS NORTH AND WEST OF GALENA SUMMIT.
WINDS EASE UP OVERNIGHT ACROSS THE REGION AS NORTHWEST FLOW
DEVELOPS, BRINGING AN END TO THE WIND MACHINE FOR EAST IDAHO FOR
THE TIME BEING. THIS USHERS IN THE BEGINNING OF AN INCREASINGLY
WARM AND DRY PERIOD FOR EAST IDAHO. TEMPERATURES INCREASE
THROUGH THE WEEK, TRENDING TOWARD RECORD HIGHS IN THE 70S TO
LOWER 80S TUESDAY THROUGH THE REST OF THE WEEK. ANOTHER LOW
PASSING TO OUR NORTH SHOULD BRING SOME SHOWERS TO THE CENTRAL
MOUNTAINS AND EASTERN HIGHLANDS MONDAY BEFORE WE DRY OUT WITH
THE UPCOMING PATTERN CHANGE.
AVIATION /06Z TAFS THROUGH 06Z SUNDAY/
ISSUED AT 1038 PM MDT FRI MAR 13 2026
STRONG WIND CONTINUES TO BE THE BIGGEST IMPACT DURING THE
PERIOD, ESPECIALLY TOMORROW AFTERNOON. WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO
BACK OFF SLIGHTLY OVERNIGHT. HOWEVER, EXPECT VERY STRONG WINDS
TOMORROW, ESPECIALLY IN THE AFTERNOON, BEHIND A COLD FRONT. AS
THE COLD FRONT BLOWS THROUGH ON SATURDAY, WE ARE EXPECTING SOME
LIGHT PRECIPITATION AT MOST OF OUR SITES. TEMPERATURES LOOK WARM
ENOUGH TO BE ALL RAIN ON SATURDAY, BUT CAN'T RULE OUT SOME
-RASN AT DIJ AND SUN WHERE TEMPERATURES WILL BE JUST ABOVE 32 DEGREES,
ESPECIALLY BY TOMORROW EARLY EVENING. LOWER CLOUDS WILL MOVE
THROUGH WITH THE FRONT AND PRECIPITATION, BUT THE NBM ONLY
SHOWS A 20 TO 30 PERCENT CHANCE OF MVFR CIGS, SO WILL MOSTLY GO
WITH SCT CLOUDS AT/NEAR MVFR. HAVE BRIEFLY ADDED MVFR
CONDITIONS FOR DIJ. THE OTHER BIT OF A WILD CARD WILL BE
BLOWING DUST ON SATURDAY. THERE IS A 60 TO 90 PERCENT CHANCE OF
GUSTS GREATER THAN 48 KTS AT BYI, PIH, AND IDA ON SATURDAY.
SO, WE EXPECT TO SEE SOME BLOWING DUST AROUND IDA AND PIH ONCE
AGAIN. ADDED 2SM VIS FOR IDA AND 6SM VIS FOR PIH FOR BLOWING
DUST. THERE IS A 30 TO 50 PERCENT CHANCE OF GUSTS GREATER THAN
48 KTS AT DIJ AND SUN ON SATURDAY.
PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
HIGH WIND WARNING FROM 9 AM TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY FOR
IDZ051>058-062>065-068.
BLOWING DUST WARNING FROM NOON TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY FOR IDZ053.
WIND ADVISORY FROM 9 AM TO 9 PM MDT SATURDAY FOR IDZ059>061-
066-067-069>075.
DISCUSSION...DMH/KEYES
AVIATION...TW
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