Warm, Sunny Weather To Remain In Wenatchee, NCW Into Next Week

.The weather will be especially warm over the next week, 

Temperatures that are normally in the 40s and 50s are soaring into the low 70s. 

National Weather Service Meteorologist Rachael Fewkes says it's the result of an extended pattern. 

“It’s really easy to get temperatures like that when we have a strong prolonged ridge this time of year with the increasing daylight hours and a higher sun,” said Fewkes. 

She says the current weather pattern will stay in place for a while. 

“We will eventually cool back down to near average in the 40a and 50s toward the end of the week, but that ridge is going to be stubborn and hold on for a while.”  

The current El Niño weather pattern will be replaced by La Niña conditions in the next couple of months. 

The change will bring warmer and drier-than-normal weather that's projected to last through the summer. 

Meanwhile, a Department of Natural Resources weather specialist is forecasting a normal wildfire season this summer. 

Meteorologist Matthew Dehr doesn't think there will be heavy spring rainfall, which would increase grass growth that would turn into wildfire fuel when it dries out. 

Dehr credits the upcoming La Niña pattern that should bring lower-than-normal precipitation. 

As far as wildfires, Dehr says his focus approaching summer is twofold: 1. How quickly does the snowpack melt off and allow the forest fuels to start drying out, and 2. How much precipitation falls in the foothills and grasslands, which can lead to increased grass growth. 

Although he’s predicting a normal wildfire season, Dehr says there could still be some big fires.  

He said there’s always the possibility of conditions favorable for wildfires during the summer months, such as 10 percent humidity and 50-mile-an-hour wind.