Critical Weather Day Status
Current Status: CRITICAL
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Critical Weather Day has been declared.
REASON:
Severe thunderstorm ops from the Great Plains into the Upper Midwest and wildfire ops across portions of the Southwest and Southern Plains.
START: 1200Z Sun May 17 2026
END: 1200Z Tue May 19 2026
START: 1200Z Sun May 17 2026
END: 1200Z Tue May 19 2026
All steps will be taken to support critical Severe Thunderstorms and Wildfire operations.
CWD Directive | IT Playbooks (NOAA access)
CWD Directive | IT Playbooks (NOAA access)
Alerts:
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Updated 0826Z Sun May 17 2026
12
18
00
06
Sun May 17: Critical
12
18
00
06
Mon May 18: Critical
12
18
00
06
Tue May 19: Normal
Critical Weather Day is in effect from 12Z Sunday, May 17th through 12Z Tuesday, May 19th in support of Severe Weather ops from the Great Plains into the Upper Midwest and Fire Weather ops across portions of the Southwest and Southern Plains. While not currently expected, CWD potential is being monitored from 12Z Tuesday, May 19th through 12Z Wednesday, May 20th due to continuing Severe and Fire Weather threats.
Hazards
Severe Thunderstorms
Wildfire
Excessive Rainfall
Winter Weather
Space Weather
There was an error retrieving space weather conditions. Please visit SWPC for the lastest on space weather.
Day 1
R1-R2
R3-R5
S1 or
greater
greater
--
G
none
Day 2
R1-R2
--
R3-R5
--
S1 or
greater
greater
--
G
none
Day 3
R1-R2
--
R3-R5
--
S1 or
greater
greater
--
G
none
Tropical Cyclones
Flooding
Tsunamis
Error retrieving tsunami alerts. Please visit Tsunami.gov for the latest tsunami threats
Earthquakes
Error retrieving earthquake data. Please visit USGS for the latest earthquake threats
Volcanoes
Error retrieving volcano data. Please visit USGS for the latest volcano threats
