The Freese-Notis weather forecast and weather information for Atlantic.

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LIGHT SNOW FELL OVER PORTIONS OF THE STATE OVERNIGHT. THE HEAVIEST
SNOW FELL ALONG A CORRIDOR FROM SAC CITY THROUGH THE DES MOINES
METRO AREA SOUTHEAST TOWARDS CHARITON. THE AREA OF SNOW IS
EXPECTED TO EXPAND THROUGH THE MORNING HOURS. ACUMULATIONS WILL BE
LIGHT THROUGH THE MORNING COMMUTE BUT ROAD TEMPERATURES HAVE
FALLEN BELOW FREEZING AND THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR THE FALLING
SNOW TO CREATE SLICK SPOTS ON ROADWAYS…ESPECIALLY WHERE SOME
MELTING MAY HAVE OCCURRED FROM EARLIER SNOWFALL. LESSER TRAVELED
ROADS AND OVERPASSES WILL ALSO BE ESPECIALLY VULNERABLE TO SLICK
SPOTS.

DRIVE SLOWLY AND ALLOW EXTRA TRAVEL TIME DURING THE MORNING
COMMUTE AND BE SURE TO ALLOW EXTRA SPACE BETWEEN YOURSELF AND THE
VEHICLE AHEAD OF YOU.

With winter behind us, Iowans need to get in the mindset to be prepared for different potential weather dangers associated with spring — like hail, lightning, flash flooding and tornadoes. Jeff Johnson, the warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service, says today (Monday) marks the start of Severe Weather Awareness Week in Iowa. One key element will be a statewide tornado drill on Wednesday morning. “We’ll have the watch at 10, followed by a Tornado Warning at about 10:15,” Johnson says. “It’s an excellent time to exercise your home plan, if you have one, or your school response to a tornado or your business response.”

Each day this week will focus on different types of severe weather, including flash flooding, severe thunderstorms, developing a family emergency plan and how watches and warnings have changed in recent years. Johnson says 2013 was another unusual year as Iowa had very few tornadoes.  “The numbers were inflated a little bit from that event in early October, particularly in northwest Iowa, but if you took that out, if you take out that event and Belmond, we had seven tornadoes in the Belmond area in June of last year, it was very quiet,” Johnson says. “Even with those two events, we had in the upper 20s for tornadoes.”

Iowa averages 48 tornadoes a year, but recorded 120 twisters in 2004. Johnson says it’s difficult to predict what kind of year will be ahead, especially after such a cold, snowy winter.
“It all depends on where the weather patterns set up in April, May and June,” Johnson says. “I always tell everybody prepare for the worst and we’re going to have severe weather at some point. We’re going to have tornadic storms, flash flooding storms, large hail and wind.”

This month, the National Weather Service will hold storm spotter classes across Iowa. The classes offer information about cloud development, how to spot tornadoes and more. Learn more about Severe Weather Awareness Week and the spotter classes at www.weather.gov/dmx.

(Radio Iowa)

Today Snow likely, mainly before 1pm. Cloudy, with a high near 38. Southeast wind 8 to 13 mph becoming northwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.

Tonight A slight chance of snow between 2am and 3am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 20. Wind chill values as low as 10. Northwest wind 10 to 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Tuesday Sunny, with a high near 34. Wind chill values as low as 5. Breezy, with a northwest wind 11 to 17 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph.

Tuesday Night Mostly clear, with a low around 22. Light and variable wind becoming south southeast 5 to 10 mph after midnight.

Wednesday Mostly sunny, with a high near 56. Windy, with a south southeast wind 13 to 18 mph increasing to 24 to 29 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 40 mph.

Wednesday Night A slight chance of rain, then a chance of rain and thunderstorms after 1am. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 41. Windy. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.

Thursday Rain likely and possibly a thunderstorm. Cloudy, with a high near 53. Breezy. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Snow is expected in eastern Nebraska and Iowa on Monday. The National Weather Service says a fast-moving storm will deliver a quick blast of snow to the area. The storm will move in from the northwest.

Most of eastern Nebraska will receive less than an inch of snow, but it could fall during the morning commute. Forecasters say much of Iowa will receive 1-to-2 inches of snow by Monday evening.

TODAY…SUNNY. HIGH IN THE MID 30S. NORTHEAST WIND AROUND 5 MPH SHIFTING TO THE NORTHWEST IN THE AFTERNOON.

TONIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY UNTIL EARLY MORNING…THEN A 50 PERCENT CHANCE OF SNOW EARLY IN THE MORNING. LOW IN THE MID 20S. SOUTHEAST WIND 5 TO 10 MPH.

MONDAY…SNOW IN THE MORNING…THEN SNOW LIKELY EARLY IN THE AFTERNOON. A CHANCE OF SNOW LATE IN THE AFTERNOON. SNOW ACCUMULATION AROUND 2 INCHES. HIGH IN THE UPPER 30S. SOUTH WIND 10 TO 15 MPH SHIFTING TO THE WEST IN THE AFTERNOON. CHANCE OF SNOW 80 PERCENT.

MONDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY THROUGH MIDNIGHT THEN BECOMING PARTLY CLOUDY. LOW AROUND 20. NORTHWEST WIND 10 TO 15 MPH.

TUESDAY…SUNNY…BREEZY. HIGH IN THE LOWER 30S. NORTHWEST WIND 10 TO 20 MPH.

TUESDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLEAR. LOW IN THE LOWER 20S.

WEDNESDAY…MOSTLY SUNNY. BREEZY…WARMER. HIGH IN THE LOWER 50S.

Today:  Partly sunny, with a high near 35. North wind 13 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.

Tonight:  Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 19. North northeast wind 5 to 15 mph.

Sunday:  Sunny, with a high near 37. North northeast wind around 5 mph.

Sunday Night: A 50 percent chance of snow after 1am. Increasing clouds, with a low around 23. Southeast wind 5 to 15 mph. New snow accumulation of less than one inch possible.

Monday:  Snow, mainly before 1pm. High near 35. Southeast wind 10 to 15 mph becoming west northwest in the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 90%. New snow accumulation of 2 to 4 inches possible.

Tuesday:  Sunny, with a high near 32.

Wednesday:  Mostly sunny, with a high near 48. Windy.

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COUNTIES: MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT-PAGE–
1232 PM CDT FRI MAR 21 2014

…RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR
    WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA AND
    SOUTHWEST IOWA…

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN OMAHA/VALLEY HAS ISSUED A RED
FLAG WARNING FOR WIND AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY…WHICH IS IN
EFFECT UNTIL 9 PM CDT THIS EVENING.

* WINDS…NORTHWEST 20 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 35 MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AS LOW AS 15 TO 25 PERCENT.

* IMPACTS…VEGETATION IS VERY DRY ACROSS THE AREA. WITH LOW
RELATIVE HUMIDITY…GUSTY WINDS…AND DRY FUELS…FIRES CAN
IGNITE AND SPREAD QUICKLY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW…OR WILL SHORTLY. A COMBINATION OF
STRONG WINDS…LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY…AND WARM TEMPERATURES CAN
CONTRIBUTE TO EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR.

While other counties in southwest Iowa have elected to issue a ban on open burning, Cass County will not being doing so at this time. The was the consensus of the fire chiefs who attended the Cass County Fireman’s Association meeting Thursday night, in Marne. Cass County Emergency Management Director Mike Kennon says a ban on open outdoor burning won’t be necessary if people use common sense. He says for the most parts area residents have acted responsibly, and if they continue to act responsibly, the County will refrain from issuing a burn ban.

Acting responsibly means planning ahead before you conduct any outdoor burning. Kennon says residents should check the weather forecast to make sure the winds won’t be strong, call your local fire chief to confirm the time and place of the intended burn. You also need to call the Cass County Communications Center at 243-2204 well ahead of time, so they know not to send out fire crews and equipment when they receive calls from the public fearing a fire is out of control.

Even though there is no burn ban currently in effect in Cass County, Kennon and the area Fire Chiefs are urging residents not to burn for the next couple of days because conditions are expected to be dry and windy. Once a fire is lit, according to Kennon, it needs to be attended to and monitored even when you think it has been extinguished.

He said some of the larger brush piles can burn for days, so to can’t just walk away. They need to be monitored closely.

The Freese-Notis weather forecast and weather information for Atlantic.

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