We'll have some storms here and there, but we expect above normal temperatures, below normal precipitation right up until we get our summer thunderstorm season.

What we're seeing is a rapid cooling over the Pacific. I don't really see this pattern changing.

It's shaping up to be similar to other years in which we've had some severe fires. This is worse than 2000. That's when we had Los Alamos.

It really creates a scenario that you could easily have very rapidly moving fires in those fine fuels that carry into the larger fuels (trees).

The state is primed, and, wow, it's like a loaded gun. Unless something unforeseen happens and we have a wet spring, things don't look good. I would love to see us wrong about all this.

The rivers are up to flood stage, but it's receding in between the storms. It's really strange weather right now. It'll come down in huge downpours, but then it just stops and subsides as the sun comes out. We were worried that the rain would just continue straight on without stopping, but everything is holding up fine now. It's nothing like it was earlier this year.