Pine Gulch Fire Creates Its Own Lightning Show

From CBS Denver:

By Meteorologist Dave Aguilera

August 19, 2020

GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (CBS)- If you live in or near Grand Junction you may have been awakened in the middle of the night by thunderstorms produced in part by the Pine Gulch Fire burning north of the Grand Valley.

The trigger for the overnight lightning show began near the Wyoming border! Thunderstorms there produced an outflow boundary or gust front that pushed south across the Western Slope. This outflow produced pulsing wind gusts out of the north-northwest 25 to 35 mph over the fire area. This lifted what is called “Pyrocumulus” clouds from the fire down into Grand Junction.

According to the National Weather Service Office in the Grand Junction this process happened a few times and sent a heat burst into the area where the Grand Junction temperature rose from 78 to 90 degrees in a very short period of time.

Read more at CBS Denver