Our region is under an enhanced risk of brush fires through Saturday afternoon.
Dry and windy conditions Thursday and Friday have set the stage for the enhanced fire danger. Gusty winds will persist throughout the day Saturday.
The National Weather Service warns:
- Gusty winds are expected Saturday afternoon across much of the
area. - Low relative humidities are forecast during this time as well, with values below 30 percent.
- While some areas had rain in the last 24 hours, windy conditions and low humidity on Friday will have dried out fuels across the area.
- Outdoor burning is strongly discouraged during this time.
- Please refer to your local burn permitting authority on whether you can burn.
- If you do burn, use extreme caution and ensure fire
suppression is readily available.
According to the weather service, a wind advisory is effective until 7 p.m. Saturday.
- West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph.
- Portions of northern, central and southern Maryland and northern Virginia, including the Baltimore and Washington metropolitan areas.
- From noon to 7 PM EST Saturday.
- Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down. A few power outages may result.
The weather services urges drivers to be extra cautious, especially if operating a high profile vehicle. Homeowners should secure outdoor objects, it adds.
The fire warning comes on the same day brush fires broke out in Prince William and Stafford counties 12 years ago. Drivers traveling on Interstate 95 saw smoke billowing from the woods that caught fire.
At Potomac Mills mall in Woodbridge, high winds blew away a portion of the original green and white circular sign, erected over 140 above I-95 when the mall opened in 1985.
A blue circular sign later replaced the original sign, only to to damaged by a windstorm in 2018. State police closed portion of the highway while the sign leaned. Contruction crews eventually pulled the sign to the ground.
A replacement sign, the third of its kind since the mall opened, stands in its place.
