Southeast Wisconsin weather stays calm with some challenges ahead
MILWAUKEE - A calm second week of October is in store for Wisconsin. While it will be enjoyable to go to the pumpkin patch, put out fall decorations and enjoy the weather outside, there are still challenges we may experience this week.
Temperatures in the morning of Monday, Oct. 7 were in the middle to upper 30s inland.
Cold temperatures along with clear skies and light enough winds allowed frost to form. It was warmer near the lake with temperatures in the 40s which prevented frost in lakeshore areas.
There is the potential for additional patchy frost to form in inland areas as temperatures could fall into the 30s again Monday night into Tuesday morning and Tuesday night into Wednesday morning.
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To be on the safe side, cover up vegetation and/or bring them inside to prevent damage.
The combination of cooler nights and warmer afternoons has allowed the leaves to begin changing colors in more areas across the state of Wisconsin. At the start of the second week of October, the entire state has some views of color change. Central and northern portions of Wisconsin are seeing higher fall foliage as expected.
Since it will be dry this week, it will be nice to view the fall foliage outside. However, we need rain in southeast Wisconsin. From September through the start of October, southeast Wisconsin has a deficit of almost 2" of rain. Portions of our area are in abnormally dry to moderate drought conditions. I would expect this to worsen for some areas with more dry days in the forecast.
With the dry vegetation and low relative humidity across the state, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has Wisconsin under moderate, high, and very high fire risk categories. This shows how high the potential is for a fire to spread due to the current conditions. It is advised not to start fires in areas with a high risk or above. Moderate areas can burn, but it will need to be monitored carefully.
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The fire risk should lessen by the end of this week as more moisture will move in ahead of the next weather system. This could maybe bring us some rain by Sunday.