This Sunday afternoon-evening featured one of the most concerning fire weather setups of the fall 2022 season within South Central Nebraska, and unfortunately, it came to fruition in the form of several wind-driven wildfires, a couple of which were fairly sizable (several thousand acres). Although fires only directly impacted a tiny percentage of the 24-county area, the entire domain experienced several hours of strong south or southwesterly winds gusting at least 45-55 MPH (localized/brief 60+ MPH), and several counties endured a few hours of least minor visibility reductions from widespread blowing dust. In tandem with the strong winds, the stage was set for the blowing dust and wildfires thanks to unseasonably-warm temperatures and extremely dry conditions, with the majority of South Central Nebraska mired in longer-term drought ranging from Moderate (D1) to Extreme (D3), and with even worse drought conditions including Exceptional (D4) noted in the dust's primary source region of southwestern Kansas. Although wildfires and blowing dust indeed materialized, fortunately the local area was spared the possibility of a more widespread severe thunderstorm threat. Despite roughly the eastern half of the area being assigned a Marginal to Slight Risk of severe storms by SPC, convective development proved to be very spotty/weak overall, with only one (unverified) Severe Thunderstorm Warning issued for a few northern counties.
The day's biggest stories centered around the two largest wildfires, one which scorched roughly 11,000 acres along a 12-mile, south-north swath through southwestern Nuckolls County (initiating near Bostwick) and the other which burned roughly 4,000 acres along a 6.5 mile, southwest-northeast corridor in southwestern Franklin County (igniting near Naponee). Fortunately, both fires occurred in very rural areas, sparing towns, although each destroyed at least a few outbuildings and the Nuckolls County fire claimed one home. The homeowner only had only 10 minutes notice of the impending fire but was at least able to save a few farm implements before the inferno arrived. Interestingly, both fires raged across Highway 136, although separated in space/time by 50 miles and several hours (for more details on these two fires please refer to the associated event narratives). In addition to the two primary fires, there were two smaller-but-newsworthy ones within South Central Nebraska during the afternoon: 1) a roughly 600-acre blaze that burned along a 2.5 mile path seven miles southeast of Ravenna, consuming mainly cropland but also one barn and some farm equipment...2) a fire seven miles southeast of St. Paul that charred approximately 100 acres of pasture land. Turning to the blowing dust situation, the overall greatest concentration of visibility reductions to one mile or less focused within counties along/south of Highway 6 and along/east of Highway 183, where a Blowing Dust Advisory was issued at mid-afternoon as larger-scale dust plumes advected into the area from the southwest. Getting back to the strong south/southwest winds themselves...most official and unofficial sensors in South Central Nebraska clocked peak gusts of 45-55 MPH, including official ASOS gusts of 54 MPH at Grand Island/50 MPH at Ord. A few unofficial mesonet stations breached High Wind criteria, including: 64 MPH near Oak and Shickley, and 59 MPH near Sutton. Aside from the wildfires, there were no known reports of significant wind damage.
Concluding with a closer look at the meteorological setup on the 23rd, the main player in the mid-upper levels was an expansive/deep trough slowly shifting from the Intermountain West into the Central Rockies over the course of the day. At the surface, the day began with a 988 millibar low pressure center over northeast CO. By early afternoon, an elongated, southwest-northeast oriented trough axis intensified to 986 millibars from northeast CO to far north central NE, with South Central Nebraska firmly in the warm sector and within a tightening surface pressure gradient. This gradient, in tandem with steep low-mid level lapse rates and resultant deep mixing, drove the persistent 45-55 MPH gusts throughout the afternoon and early evening, with a subtle pre-frontal trough causing local winds to average more true southerly east of the Highway 281 corridor and more southwesterly to the west. The deep mixing also allowed temperatures to soar and dewpoints/relative humidity to plummet. High temperatures across most of South Central Nebraska topped out in the upper 80s (Grand Island airport even reached 90...setting a new daily record), while relative humidity values plunged to between 15-25 percent across all but far eastern counties during the mid-late afternoon. By sunset, the primary surface low migrated into eastern SD, allowing a trailing cold front to enter far western/northern portions of the local area...turning winds northwesterly and easing gusts to more manageable levels as it passed. By around 1 a.m. CDT on the 24th, this front finally cleared the far southeastern fringes of South Central Nebraska.

High Wind in FILLMORE, NEBRASKA
From 23-OCT-22 16:23:00 to 23-OCT-22 16:23:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 56.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

A wind gust of 64 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located four miles north of Shickley.

High Wind in CLAY, NEBRASKA
From 23-OCT-22 16:22:00 to 23-OCT-22 16:22:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 51.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

A wind gust of 59 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile south of Sutton.

Wildfire in FRANKLIN, NEBRASKA
From 23-OCT-22 15:45:00 to 24-OCT-22 07:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 80.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Shortly before 5 p.m CDT on Sunday the 23rd, local authorities were notified via NWS Hot-Spot Notification of a wildfire that had ignited approximately one mile northeast of Naponee near the intersection of 22 1/2 Road and G Road (this fire was later determined to be caused by a hot brake).  Driven by strong southwesterly winds gusting to around 50 MPH, this fire raced to the northeast over the next few hours, crossing Highway 136 and eventually being halted near the intersection of Ridge Road and M Road, approximately seven miles northeast of Naponee. Along the way, this fire scorched roughly 5,000 acres of crop and pasture land (per post-fire satellite imagery), along a swath around 6.5 miles long and generally one-half mile to one mile wide. Fortunately, no injuries were reported and no homes were impacted, but at least two structures were destroyed, including one that contained some computer equipment at a sand and gravel business toward the end of the fire's path. At least 25 agencies were involved in the response (fire, EMS, and law enforcement). Although the majority of the fire was extinguished overnight, it was not declared to be fully contained until the later evening of Monday the 24th. It was reported that efforts to contain the fire were hindered not only by the strong and shifting winds, but also the relatively rough terrain in the very rural area.

High Wind in NUCKOLLS, NEBRASKA
From 23-OCT-22 16:12:00 to 23-OCT-22 16:12:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 56.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

A wind gust of 64 MPH was measured by a mesonet station located one mile west of Oak.

Wildfire in NUCKOLLS, NEBRASKA
From 23-OCT-22 11:30:00 to 24-OCT-22 07:00:00 (CST-6)
Property damage: 750.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

At approximately 12:30 p.m. CDT on Sunday the 23rd, a transformer malfunction ignited a wildfire near the intersection of Road D and Road 3100...about 1 mile east of Bostwick. Pushed by strong southerly winds gusting to at least 50 MPH, this fire raced north along Road 3100 and across Highway 136, making a slight turn to the north-northwest between Roads J and K. This swiftly moving fire was finally halted approximately six miles west of Nelson, near the intersection of PQ Road and Road 3000. Along the way, this fire scorched roughly 11,000 acres of crop and pasture land, along a swath around 12 miles long and up to two miles wide. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, but one rural home and six outbuildings were destroyed. The homeowner had only 10 minutes of notice before the inferno reached his property, but was able to move a few farm implements out of its way in time. However, in addition to the loss of his home and a few outbuildings, around 20 antique cars and a semi-truck were also destroyed. As for utility infrastructure, South Central Public Power District reported the loss of around 30 utility poles along with two electrical transmission buildings. Agriculture-wise, numerous hay bales and some unharvested crops also went up in flames. Smoke from the fire caused widespread visibility restrictions in the area, and Highway 136 was closed for a period of time. In all, approximately 20 area fire departments (and 150-200 firefighters) were involved in the response, mainly from Nuckolls, Clay, Thayer and Webster counties (along with a few from Jewell County Kansas). At least ten area farmers assisted with fire suppression by cultivating farm ground ahead of the fire. As a testament to the aggressive nature of this fire's spread, one responder noted that flames outpaced them while they were driving alongside them at 45 MPH. The fire was finally declared to be 100 percent contained with no active hot spots around 8:30 a.m. CDT on Monday the 24th.