Proposed Changes to Eastern Washington Fire Weather Zones in 2022

The National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Spokane, WA (WFO OTX) and Weather Forecast Office in Pendleton, OR (WFO PDT) are proposing reconfiguration of all fire weather zones across Eastern Washington.

One fire weather zone boundary will not change - East Portion of North Cascades National Park/Lake Chelan National Recreation Area however the assigned zone number will change.

Additionally, there will be a transfer of fire weather responsibility between Pendleton and Spokane Weather Forecast Offices.

1) WFO Pendleton will transfer responsibility to WFO Spokane: Lower elevations of Asotin, Garfield, and Columbia counties (not within the Blue Mountains).

2) WFO Spokane will transfer responsibility to WFO Pendleton: East Slopes of the Cascades south of Chelan County including Kittitas and Yakima counties. This includes the Kittitas Valley and Yakima Training Center.

3) Images are provided below

Why are NWS Spokane and Pendleton Proposing the Fire Weather Zone Changes?

Fire weather zones are being reconfigured to align with Eastern Washington Fire Danger Rating Areas (FDRAs) that were developed in 2019 by the Eastern Washington Fire Danger Operating Plan Interagency Working Group. Fire Danger Rating Areas are based on an analysis of the components of fire danger; vegetation, climate, topography and incorporate interagency fire business. Firefighters are briefed daily on the fire environment using two primary metrics of differing temporal relevance; fire weather and fire danger. Bringing the Fire Weather Zones into alignment with Fire Danger rating areas will help simplify relevant information and reduce the potential for confusion across differing boundaries and among fire management personnel.

How were the boundaries created?

The National Weather Service started out directly aligning Fire Weather Zones with FDRA boundaries. Utilizing these boundaries as a starting point, nested Fire Weather Zones were created in an effort to capture microclimates common to Eastern Washington. This will allow for greater detail within the Fire Weather Forecasts and enhanced messaging for Fire Weather Watches and Red Flag Warnings during critical fire weather patterns.