public-safety
Red Flag Warning issued Oct. 23, 2026 by NWS Rapid City SD
Red Flag Warning issued October 23 at 10:42AM MDT until October 23 at 11:00PM MDT by NWS Rapid City SD. Areas named: Northern Foot Hills; Butte County Area; Northern Campbell; Southern Campbell; Crook County Plains; Weston County Plains; Wyoming Black Hills.
Published automatically from public-record data — not yet reviewed by an editor.
Key facts
- What
- Public safety
- When
- Record date Oct. 23, 2026; Added Oct. 27, 2026
- Source
- Weather alerts
- Read time
- About 4 minutes
NWS Rapid City SD issued a Red Flag Warning at 10:42 a.m. MDT (11:42 a.m. CDT) Oct. 23, 2026, according to the National Weather Service's public alert record.
The alert states that it takes effect at 10:42 a.m. MDT (11:42 a.m. CDT), gives the onset as 11 a.m. MDT (noon CDT) and expires at 11 p.m. MDT Oct. 23 (midnight CDT as Oct. 24 begins). It may reach both of South Dakota's time zones, so each time is given in both.
The alert separately states that the hazard itself ends at 11 p.m. MDT Oct. 23 (midnight CDT as Oct. 24 begins), which can differ from when the message expires.
Whether this alert is currently in effect is not stated in this text, deliberately: it depends on the time you are reading, so it is computed from the expiry above each time the page is loaded, rather than stored as an answer that would go out of date without anyone noticing. The status shown at the top of this page is the computed one.
The issuing office classified this message as severity "Severe", certainty "Likely" and urgency "Expected". Those are the National Weather Service's own categories, reproduced exactly, not re-ranked or translated into another scale.
The recommended response type on the message is "Prepare".
The alert names these areas: Northern Foot Hills; Butte County Area; Northern Campbell; Southern Campbell; Crook County Plains; Weston County Plains; Wyoming Black Hills. The National Weather Service zone codes are SDZ323, SDZ327, WYZ314, WYZ315, WYZ316, WYZ317 and WYZ318.
The issuing office's own summary line, as written at 10:42 a.m. MDT (11:42 a.m. CDT) Oct. 23:
RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM MDT THIS EVENING
The full text of the alert as issued at 10:42 a.m. MDT (11:42 a.m. CDT), reproduced without changes:
...RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 11 PM MDT THIS EVENING DUE TO GUSTY WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY FOR NORTHERN FOOT HILLS, BUTTE COUNTY AREA, NORTHERN CAMPBELL, SOUTHERN CAMPBELL, CROOK COUNTY PLAINS, WESTON COUNTY PLAINS, AND WYOMING BLACK HILLS...
.Warm temperatures, humidities as low as 13%, and southwest winds gusting to 50 mph ahead of an approaching cold front will create widespread critical fire weather conditions Friday afternoon through Friday evening. Southwest winds increase over northeastern Wyoming after 10 am Friday morning with sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph and gusts of 40 to 50 mph through the afternoon. Winds will shift to the northwest after midnight as the front moves through. While some showers may accompany the front, not expecting any widespread wetting rains.
* AFFECTED AREA...Fire Weather Zones 314, 315, 316, 317, 318, 323, and 327.
* TIMING...Until 11 PM MDT this evening.
* WINDS...Southwest winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph.
* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 13 percent.
* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will spread rapidly. Outdoor burning is not recommended.
The protective-action text the issuing office attached, reproduced without changes:
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.
The National Weather Service superseded this message at 8:52 p.m. MDT (9:52 p.m. CDT) with a later one. This article records the message as issued.
This alert is a work of the United States federal government — the National Weather Service, part of NOAA — and is in the public domain; no copyright is claimed on it and none is asserted here. The alert is reproduced without added meteorological judgement. For live conditions and alerts, go to the National Weather Service.
Only alerts the National Weather Service gave a window of two hours or longer appear here, checked once a day. Short-notice warnings — including tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings, which the service typically issues for under an hour — are NOT carried here, so their absence here says nothing about whether one was issued. For those, and for live conditions, go to the National Weather Service.