Residents of Lincoln and Lancaster County can look forward to a pleasant, warm, and otherwise quiet Saturday, with temperatures in the mid-80s that approach record highs for October.
Sunday, however, will be a different story. Channel 8 Chief Meteorologist Rusty Dawkins tells KLIN News that temperatures could actually reach record highs, winds will begin to pick up in the morning, there’s a chance for a tornado, and a cold front will bring in in a thunderstorm with damaging winds and hail in the evening.
Gusts will begin in the morning and pick up to the 40 to 60 mile-per-hour range, which will increase the risk of fire, especially in the dry conditions Nebraska has faced lately.
“The fire danger will be very, very high,” says Dawkins.
Sunday will also bring in a cold front to the state, which in turn may lead to a thunderstorm. As of Friday morning (Oct. 21), this system is in the Pacific Ocean, but by Sunday evening it will travel across Nebraska. Running into the present warm air mass is what could trigger the thunderstorm, which will have more hail than rain.
The chance for a tornado, however, isn’t so big.
“I know a few people have been throwing the ‘tornado’ word around a little bit,” says Dawkins, “but that threat is very small; it just doesn’t look like that kind of setup. It’s not zero, but it’s very small. The main concern will be hail and damaging wind, and that will move out quickly.”
This cold front will lead Lancaster County into more usual fall weather for the week beginning Oct. 24. Residents can expect temperatures with highs in the mid-60s.