Top FEMA Official Says He's Been Teleported Several Ties. Including To A Waffle House

Gregg Phillips, a top official at FEMA, says he's been
teleported numerous times.  That doesn't add a lot 
of confidence about an agency that's supposed to 
help disaster victims, but has been in disarray
ever since the Trump administration took over. 

A top official at FEMA filling a critical role in disaster recovery, says he is often teleported, and he spreads wild and violent sounding conspiracy theories, we learned from various media sources this month. 

Another case of the inmates running the asylum in Washington, I guess.  And his presence at the Federal Emergency Management Agency probably does not make disaster victims rest any easier. 

The guy's name is Gregg Phillips, and hoo boy, buckle in. 

The piece of his saga that's gotten the most attention is that Phillips blames he was teleported 50 miles to a Waffle House.  Or at least he doesn't remember getting there. Here's his exact quote from a January, 2025 podcast:

"I was with my boys one time and I was telling them I was gonna go to Waffle House and get Waffle House. and I ended up at a Waffle House - this was in Georgia and I end up at a Waffle House like 50 miles away from where I was."

I dunno, Show me a person who doesn't remember traveling 50 miles to a Waffle House and I'll show you somebody who was really super drunk. Allegedly. Who knows what was going on?

We cam all laugh, but Phillips has an important role in regards to weather and climate disasters. Per CNN:

"FEMA officials have described Phillips' job as among the most consequential in the agency, involving decisions that affect search-and-rescue-operations, emergency aid, infrastructure restoration and ultimately distributing billions of dollars in disaster assistance."

 Weirdness  seems to be a thing in this administration. Trump is a teetotaler, but Secretary of Defense Pete Kegsbreath, Hegseth has a bit of a frat boy party reputation, despite his newfound devotion to his brand of devout Catholicism. 

Then there's FBI director Kash Patel who is suing the Atlantic for $250 million for what looks like a well-researched account of his, ahem, definite taste for alcohol. Allegedly, of course. 

And I don't even want to get into RFK Jr. 

For a change, I see no evidence Phillips actually has a drinking problem, but he does have a lot of  stories of being teleported.  Which is arguably worse than a drinking habit. 

He says he doesn't like the experience.

"Teleporting is no fun.....It's no fun because you don't really know what you're doing. You don't really understand it it's scary, but yet, um, but so real. And you know it's  happening but you can't do anything about it, and so you just go, you just go with the ride. And wow, what just an incredible adventure it all was."

I'm also not sure who or what supposedly teleported Phillips to destinations like a Waffle House, and why that happened. Ah, the mysteries of life. 

Phillips dropped some hints about where all the came from on Truth Social, the social media platform that Trump calls home. The teleportation had something to do with a "spiritual journey" when he was battling cancer, and that the Bible has lots of examples of supernatural events. 

 OK. I just wish he could have teleported those recent tornadoes that struck cities like Union City, Michigan, .Kankakee, Illinois and Enid, Oklahoma.

There are other things about Phillips you might not like.  He doesn't sound especially.....compassionate. Which is kinda what you need in a time of disaster. 

Phillips apparently went to the Steven Miller school of immigration. Here's what he said about migrants coming to the U.S.

"They want you dead.....They've come here to kill you And if anybody believes it any differently, they're wrong. These people are here to fight. They're here to fight us. They're here at war"

Paranoid much?

He also posted crude, typo-ridden insults against other people on social media, but I won't get into it here. 

This is another example of how Trump seems to let nutcases do the serious business of running the government, with most of them being stupid, arrogant, crooked and just weird. 

Phillips, though, believe it or not, seems to be doing a better job that most Trump appointees. That's not saying much, but that's the world we live in. Phillips took on his FEMA position shortly before a series of destructive winter storms swept much of the nation in January and February. 

The nation needed an effective FEMA, which had basically stopped being effective under former DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. 

CNN again:

"Multiple FEMA officials speaking candidly to CNN expressed initial concerns about whether Phillips was up to the job. But after a few weeks, several of them told CNN that, to their surprise, Phillips' hands-on involvement during the spate of storms had softened some of their doubts." 

Even so, the Phillips' teleporting claims are keeping FEMA in the midst of upheaval, even as we are now in the heart of tornado and severe storm season. 

We have this epilogue from CNN:

"After CNN first reported on Philipps' teleportation claims, the White House contacted the Department of Homeland Security - FEMA's parent agency - urging officials either to remove Phillips or keep him out of public view, a White House official told CNN"

I just wish whoever it is who does all the teleporting could just move the bozos out of FEMA and replace them with at least semi-competent people to ensure people can recover after the inevitable next spate of weather and climate disasters.

 

Enjoy Vermont Spring Now, Because It Will Come To A Temporary Halt Late This Week

Some hyanicith and daffodils enjoying spring this
week in a St. Albans, Vermont garden 

Saturday was another gorgeous spring day in Vermont, though it did, as expected, cloud up quite a bit in southwestern parts of the state. 

We have basically three and a half days more wonderful spring weather coming up before the season comes to a grinding, though obviously temporary halt at the end of the week. Weather systems often stall in the spring. 

We're lucky enough now to be stuck under sunny high pressure. By the second half of the week, we'll be mired beneath a cold pool of cold air aloft, which means clouds, very chilly air, some rain showers, and yes, mountain snow. 

 I'll do the spoiler now: The halt to spring won't wreck your garden plants and trees, but it will stop the buds from popping and more flowers from bursting for a least a couple days. 

Let's get into the details

TODAY

The disturbance that dove southeast through New York State Saturday, giving much of that state a damp, rainy Saturday is heading off into the Atlantic Ocean. That Canadian high pressure that's been giving us the cool, generally sunny weather the past couple of days is taking over again. 

It's a big one, extending from Nunavut, up in the Arctic of northeastern Canada a little west of Greenland, all the way down to New England. 

Canadian high pressure is usually chilly. And the northern part is. The forecast high in Iqaluit, Nunavut today is 9 degrees, compared to a normal high of 20.  Yep, it's cold up there in the Arctic, Captain Obvious  tells us.

However, way down here in tropical New England (practice your southern accents, y'all), the strong late April sun is cooking the air mass and making it warmer and warmer. That's why Saturday was a little warmer than Friday. And why today will be a little toastier than yesterday. 

So we'll have quite a lot of sunshine with highs generally in the low 60s today. The Northeast Kingdom will be a little cooler in the upper 50s while southern valley floors probably reach the mid 60s. 

MONDAY AND TUESDAY

The spring sunshine train will continue as that high pressure holds firm.  It'll turn even warmer both days as we get well into the 60s. A few places will flirt with 70 degrees. That's 'actually only somewhat warmer than normal for this time of year. (Normal highs are near 60 degrees) We'll take it! 

The only problem with all this is the fire danger. It's very dry and very sunny, with very low humidity. Too many verys there but you get the point. Winds should be pretty light today and tomorrow, which will help. Even so, light winds don't prevent fires. They just don't spread as fast, but they do spread. 

A brush and woodland fire in Milton looks like it spread pretty quickly yesterday afternoon, and firefighters were on the scene for about four hours putting it out. 

It'll get windier on Tuesday, so that will be the day to really watch out for woodland and field blazes. 

WEDNESDAY

A transition day as we begin to flip toward the new, definitely less pleasant stuck weather pattern. Sunshine should fade behind clouds and there might be some rain drops toward the end of the day. Highs will still reach the 60s.

THURSDAY

This will be the rainiest of the days as low pressure becomes established overhead or at least nearby. Hard to say how much rain we'll get, but early projections suggest a half inch. So not all that much, but at least it will wet the ground down and end the fire danger. 

FRIDAY/ NEXT WEEKEND

The cold pool of air will sit overhead during this time, keeping us mostly cloudy and definitely cold for this time of year. Highs Friday and Saturday might not get out of the 40s for many of us, which is why I'm saying spring will come to a stop. Plants don't like to grow when it's in the 40s. At least we won't have any real freezes to hurt anything as nighttime temperatures should stay mostly in the 30s during this nippy spell.

Much of the time should be rain free, but there will always be a risk of light rain showers at any time. But especially in the afternoons and evenings as the April sun makes the cold air less stable. 

And yes, it will be cold enough for snow in the highest elevations. Not much, but some. And even in the valleys, a particularly robust shower might bring down some extra cold air, and you'll end up with something called graupel. 

Graupel is basically teeny tiny snowballs.  They are snowflakes that had super cooled water attach to them. So they're these little white sleety things that remind me of bits of packing material or styrofoam. 

So. Yay. 

BEYOND NEXT WEEKEND

It'll warm up a little after next weekend, but we're stuck in a chilly, unsettled weather pattern at least into the middle of May, and possibly beyond. There's a good chance you'll see an occasional sunny, warmish day thrown in from time to time, but generally speaking, it will be cool and showery much of the time. 

It's way too soon to figure out if we'll get some soaking rains out of this pattern, or just some annoying sprinkles. As far as I'm concerned, if it's going to rain, we might as well get some good drenching here and there to get the gardens and farm fields in shape for the start of summer. 

Time will tell, as it always does..

Gorgeous Spring Weekend In Vermont, Stays Beautiful Beginning of Wee

Yesterday afternoon's satellite view tells the story. Narrow high
pressure nosing down from Quebec is keeping Vermont
sunny for the most part. Low pressure in eastern
Canada kept the Northeast Kingdom cloudy yesterday.
Today, that eastern Canada is gone so the Northeast Kingdom
will be sunny today. Those clouds you see in the upper
left corner are diving to the southeast. That might
turn far southwest Vermont cloudy later today but
it'll be sunnier the further northeast you go. 

Our spell of dry, more or less sunny weather in Vermont continues today through Tuesday. With a warming trend to boot.  

It was almost too cool on Friday, especially in the Northeast Kingdom  

Low pressure spinning near the Maritime Provinces of Canada and high pressure way the hell up there around Hudson Bay provided Vermont with two dramatically different types of weather.

North and east of Interstate 89, it was a cloudy, breezy and notably chilly day.  Shades of March, actually. Highs never got out of the 40s and wind chills at times were in the 30s. Not a nice day. 

South and west of Interstate 89, it was entirely a different story. Sure, it was cool and breezy, but temperatures were in the low to mid 50s, so pretty reasonable. And quite sunny and bright. The southwestern third of the state had not one single cloud in the sky.

It cleared up everywhere overnight. The dry air, the clear skies and the lighter winds got us pretty chilly by dawn today. I noticed Morrisville was down to 24 at 6 a.m. and Montpelier was at 25. Most of us were in the 27 to 33 degree range as the sun began to rise.

Other than those chilly temperatures this morning, that high pressure is gradually nosing down from northern Quebec. But it's not really bringing any really cool air with it. At least this far south. So a slow warm up will start today and continue

TODAY

We'll pick up a few extra degrees this afternoon compared to  yesterday as temperatures make it into the mid and upper 50s.  It'll be places south and west of Interstate 89 that eventually get the clouds today as a rainy disturbance treks from around Toronto and western New York this morning, making it down to New York City tonight. 

It won't be an overcast sky for the most part, but when you get down toward Bennington, it'll probably be pretty gray by the end of the day.  A sprinkle might even make it as far as Bennington tonight, but otherwise the rain will stay in New York. 

Meanwhile, the Northeast Kingdom, which was so cloudy yesterday, might see some high clouds, but the day will be sunny. 

SUNDAY

The National Weather Service is going with partly sunny skies tomorrow, which makes sense as there might be some lingering clouds from that thing that went through New York State. But it's going to be a gorgeous day no matter. Highs should top out near 60 degrees. Get out there and enjoy it. 

MONDAY/TUESDAY

The start of the week will be call in sick to work days. Not because you are sick, I hope, but because you're "sick" enough to just adore spring.  Highs both days will get well into the 60s, maybe even flirt with 70 degrees.  You'll want to enjoy these days because....

WEDNESDAY AND BEYOND

........ no good weather in Vermont goes unpunished.

The punishment starts next Wednesday or Thursday, as we'll get into a much cloudier, more showery pattern that looks like it could last well into May. I'm waffling on which day because some computer models hold off the showers until Wednesday night or Thursday. 

It looks like an annoying weather pattern more than anything else. It won't rain all the time, but almost every day starting Wednesday and continuing on more than a week after should have at least a chance of showers. 

Unless a very wet weather system to poke its nose into this weather pattern - an iffy proposition - we also might not have the kind of soaking rain we occasionally need to keep everything moist enough. Especially now that everything is getting set to bloom and the forests are getting ready to leaf out. 

Instead, it would be mostly those pesky, light showers. Or very, very brief downpours that also don't really soak everything down. It will also be a cool weather pattern. Monday and Tuesday might be the warmest days you'll see in quite awhile. 

I think May might turn out to be one of those months that are cool, and damp, a reluctant spring. Then, sometime later in the month, we might flip right over to hot summer weather. I have no forecasts that says that's going to happen.  Because it's impossible to forecast the weather a month in advance.

But I just have that feeling. I've seen it before, and I think we might see it again. As always, stay tuned.  

 

Spring Rains Easing Lingering Vermont Drought: A Dry Week Will End In A Wet Spell

All winter and early spring, the U.S Drought
Monitor showed continues moderate drought
in northeast Vermont, (orange) and 
abnormal dryness south (yellow)......

Lingering drought in Vermont was literally frozen in place all winter. 

The very serious drought the state experienced last summer and fall had eased somewhat thanks to decent rains in the late autumn. 

Severe drought in northeastern Vermont improved to moderate drought as we went through December, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor. But then the improvement stopped. 

The northeastern third of the state remained in moderate drought, and southern Vermont was abnormally dry through the winter and early spring. 

Rivers, lakes and the ground had frozen as we'd gotten deeper into winter. Most of the precipitation fell as snow. Snow is only potential drought relief. It doesn't really help anything unless it melts.  The question remained: Was the drought continuing to est. 

The thawing of spring has cleared that up. The dry conditions are improving. 

We didn't actually see any change in the weekly drought reports until the April 16 weekly report. Drought had been reduced to a small area in the Connecticut River valley. The Northeast Kingdom and southern Vermont were still abnormally dry, but not quite in drought. 

This week's U.S. Drought Monitor report, released yesterday, shows just a sliver of the Connecticut River Valley between about White River Junction and Springfield still in drought. That area represents only about 4% of Vermont's land area were still in drought. 

Most of the rest of southern Vermont was still abnormally dry, but that designation was removed in the Northeast Kingdom. The drought in northern parts of the Green Mountain State that began last August  is finally over, at least for now. 

The measurements the U.S. Drought Monitor uses go up to Tuesday, two days before the report is released. 

This week's U.S. Drought Monitor, released
yesterday. has only a small area of drought
near White River Junction and Springfield
and abnormal dryness in southern
Vermont. Elsewhere the trough is over. 

This week, Vermont has entered a notable dry spell. Nothing other than isolated sprinkles and a few snowflakes have fallen since this past Tuesday. 

No rain is forecast until at least next Tuesday. The air will remain very dry over the next few days, with rock-bottom humidity levels. Strong April sun will penetrate to the ground through still-leafless trees. 

That means we might  have a little backsliding in next week's U.S. Drought Monitor report, but I wouldn't worry too much.

Week-long spells of very dry weather are common in late April and early May. It doesn't mean they will last that long. 

In fact, forecasters have relatively high confidence that we'll enter a wetter period starting in about five days or so. I don't' see boatloads of rain coming,

Most of the time over the next couple of weeks, we won't have any actual storms bringing steadier rain to the North Country. We'll probably have a couple such storms, but they won't represent the majority of the weather we'll face.

Instead, a pool of very cold, subfreezing air will settle in several thousand feet overhead. In the winter, that would have meant a long, miserable slog of overcast skies and light snow flurries.

This time of year, with the strong spring sun, that means the cold air aloft will create tall, billowing clouds.  That means frequent showers, especially in the afternoons and evenings, mixed with a few breaks of clouds. We might well get into an early May pattern where it rains every day or close to it, but very few days would be a washout. 

We'll have to wait a few days to see if the weather will work out exactly that way. We'll also have to wait until next week to determine which days turn out mostly wet, and which turn out mostly dry with just a few showers. 

SPECIFIC VERMONT FORECAST

In the meantime, sunshine is the name of the game.

Here are some specifics

Today/Saturday

Today will be the coolest day of the bunch. Most of us had a frost and freeze this morning. No worries, we always get those this time of year and it wasn't enough to harm garden plants. 

Highs this afternoon will only get to the upper 40s in the Northeast Kingdom to the low 50s elsewhere. There should be some mid-50s on southern valley floors. 

It will feel a little confusing out there, just as it did yesterday. When there's a lull in the wind, it will feel warm and you'll wonder why you're wearing that damn fleece.  Then a little gust of wind will come along and you'll know why. 

Tonight will actually be a little colder than last night. Almost everyone will get into the mid and upper 20s. It might be closer to 30 in the warmer valleys. 

Such temperatures would be a big problem in mid-May when everything is blooming. But the early stuff out there now should do just fine. 

The storm that caused the tornadoes and rough weather in the Plains Thursday is shearing apart. The remains of the storm will create an area of rain that will dive down from basically Buffalo, New York, to New York, City on Saturday. 

That will leave us in the clear, with maybe some high clouds, especially in southwestern Vermont.  It'll be a few degrees warmer than today, but still just a touch on the cool side. 

Sunday/Monday

The sunshine fest will continue, as highs top out near 60 degrees both days. That's roughly normal for this time of year. Yes, 60 is normal. We're in full spring now. 

Tuesday and Beyond

We might squeak out one more sunny day Tuesday. It depends on the pace of a weakening storm that will be headed our way. After that, the showery regime I mentioned should settle in for awhile. 

Vehicles Emerge In Somerville, Massachusetts After Massive Piles Of Snow Dumped On Them In Winter Storms

A junked car emerges from an enormous snow pile melting
this month in Somerville, Massachusetts. The cars were
buried intentionally because they were junk and city
officials didn't have tine to move them when two
enormous snowstorms covered the city this winter, 

 Back in those horrible snowy days in January and February, some cities, especially in hard hit southeast New England, hauled the snow off of clogged streets and piled it up into immense piles in empty lots and back alleys until it all melted in the spring. 

About two weeks ago, something odd began emerging from the massive snow pile in Somerville, Massachusetts.

A vehicle. Actually vehicles. Plural. Six of 'em. 

The first vehicle anyone notices was an old Ford Escape, which clearly did not escape the clutches of this past winter. It turns out the car belongs to the city of Somerville Department of Public Works.Did it belong to someone who's been looking for their vehicle since a blizzard struck last February. 

Actually no. Somerville buried the cars. On purpose.   

According to CBS Boston/WBZ:

"The Somerville Department of Public Works says these cars are inoperable and awaiting disposal. With back to back major snowstorms this year, they didn't want to divert storm resources to move the cars. With dwindling places to put snow, burying them was their best choice."

Somerville is one of the most densely populated cities in New England, so there were very few places to put the feet of snow that fell on the city this past winter. The relatively large lot comprising four acres at 90 Washington Street with the junked municipal cars was the most logical places to put the snow. 

The weight of the snow took their toll on the cars, it seems. Meteorologists at CBS Boston estimated there might have been 50,000 to 60,000 pounds of snow and ice on top of the cars

News video of the Ford Escape that had been most exposed from the melting snow showed. Its tires were flat and it appeared the axles might have broken under the weight. The rear window is broken out and the entire body of the vehicle appears somewhat flattened. 

Even though the vehicles were buried on purpose, the jokes about the situation raced through social media. 

"Hey boss, I found that car we've been missing for  4 months," someone deadpanned on Reddit. 

A photo on the WBUR website of a person peering inside a still-half buried vehicle had a caption that read, "Oh, that's where left my wallet."

About a week ago, the city used equipment to pull some of the cars out and break apart sections  of the snow pile, which might hasten its melt a little. But snow piles as big as the one in Somerville can stick around until June.

There might not be any more snow dumps or vehicles hidden under the snow at that lot in Somerville. The city is planning to sell the property for redevelopment, WBUR reports.  

April Wildfires Rage In U.S. There's Even A FIre Threat Here In Vermont

Screen grab of a report from WPTZ of a brush fire that
got out of control in Shelburne Wednesday. Much
of the state has a high fire danger today. Elsewhere
in the U.S. much, much worse wildfires have been raging

It's been a terrible wildfire year already in the U.S. and it continued to get worse on Wednesday. 

Fires raged in Georgia, Florida and other states. It's a continuation of a fiery spring in the United States. 

So far this year, through April 17, the nation has seen 20,915 wildfires, the most in recent history and far above the average of 13,597 through that date, the National Interagency Fire Center reported. 

As of April 17, 1,748,490 acres have burned, far above the average of  875,957 through mid-April.  With drought raging in much of the nation, the fires will only get worse as we head into the summer. 

The last few days have made things even worse.

In drought-stricken southern Georgia, at least 50 homes were destroyed by wildfires.  Hundreds of people have been evacuated. Much of Georgia is under mandatory burn bans for the first time in the state's history. The fires are mostly in southern Georgia and northern Florida, where an intense drought is worsening. 

In northern Floria, firefighters battled more than 130 wildfires that burned 39 square miles, NBC News reported. 

Further north, a smoky haze engulfed Atlanta.

In Colorado, a fast moving fire southeast of Colorado Springs prompted evacuation. 

Today, fire alerts run from New Mexico and northwest Texas all the way to eastern North Dakota and western Minnesota.

VERMONT FIRES

Here in Vermont, things are not nearly as dire as they are in Florida, Georgia, Colorado and other places beset with big wildfires.

But April and early May represent peak wildfires season here in the Green Mountain State. Mostly because said Green Mountain State is not that green yet. Last year's dead brush and leaves, exposed to the sun through leafless trees, dry out in a flash. Even a day or two after rain or snow. 

We've already a few dry episodes with fires this spring. This year through yesterday, 28 Vermont fires have burned 143.6 acres, according to data from the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. 

 Just yesterday in Shelburne, WPTZ reports that somebody called the town's fire department for a burn permit after already setting the field alight. The fire department turned down the request. 

Meanwhile the fire got out of control as winds gusted to as high as 25 to 30 mph. Firefighters from three departments got the fire contained after it burned about a half acre. No word from the report as to whether the property owner was cited. 

Officials are warning of potential fires today, especially in lower valleys. The National Weather Service office in South Burlington has issued a special weather statement warning of fire danger in the Champlain and lower Connecticut River valleys and the valleys of southwest Vermont. 

Very dry air and gusty winds could really spread fires today. Now is not the time to burn your brush pile, or flick a cigarette out your truck window. 

Dry weather will continue through the weekend, which keeps the fire danger going. But winds starting tomorrow will be lighter than the 25 to 30 mph gusts we'll see today. 

GREAT WEATHER!

A daffodil enjoying some early morning sunshine
today in St. Albans, Vermont. We have great
spring weather coming for the next few days
but there is a high fire danger, especially today.

Aside from the fire danger, we have just launched into a spell of great spring weather. Skies should have at least a fair amount of sun daily through Sunday or Monday. April showers bring May flowers, but so does April sunshine. 

Cool weather, especially today and tomorrow will be invigorating for those of you who want to go out and get yard work done. 

Highs today and tomorrow should mostly be in the low and mid 50s

We will have freezes tonight and tomorrow night as readings  fall to between 25 and 30 degrees both nights. This won't be cold enough to endanger spring plants like the sharper, colder spell we had Monday and Tuesday morning. 

At least around my area in northwest Vermont, most of my spring plants survived Tuesday morning's frigid temperatures. They'll do fine this time, too. 

But if you are hardening off more tender plants on your deck or whatever, bring them in tonight, tomorrow night and maybe the night after that, too. 

The weekend will turn a little warmer, with highs near 60, which is about normal for this time of year. It looks like skies will be partly to mostly sunny, so we have a fantastic weekend coming up, fingers crossed. 

The Vermont Maple Festival is this weekend in St. Albans, so it'll be a perfect weekend for that, too! 

Wild Weather Coming To Much Of Nation, But Boring Weather Here In Vermont. Boring Is A Good Thing

Lightning set a grove of palm trees ablaze yesterday
outside of San Diego,  California. It was part of an
opening salvo of volatile weather expected across
much of the U.S. in coming days. Here in
Vermont, the weather will stay blissfully boring

 On Tuesday, two tornadoes appeared in of all places near Fresno, California. 

It was part of some storminess that socked California with bursts of heavy rain, thunderstorms and wind. Lightning strikes set a grove of palm trees on fire not far from San Diego, burning about 100 of the trees in a spectacular if very bizarre fire.  

A tornado and strong thunderstorms in California make me nervous. Especially during severe weather and tornado season. 

Forecasters are already calling for a tornado and storm outbreak in the coming days in  the Plains states. The Fresno tornado makes it seem all the more likely. 

It's all part of a weather pattern that's pretty common this time of year. Strong southwest winds bring dry air into the western Plains and eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains. Humid southeast winds come into the southern Plains and Midwest from the Gulf of Mexico.  Cool air comes in from the northern Plains. That sets up the volatile weather situation. 

Meanwhile this weather pattern brings a relatively gentle northwest flow of air to New England. The result is relatively cool, and definitely boring weather. More details on Vermont's weather further down in this post, but first, the set-up:

ROUGH WEATHER

The rough weather will begin today with a widespread fire hazard across a huge area of the eastern Rockies and western Plains as those dry southwest winds blow in from the Desert Southwest. The main area of worry today is in northern New Mexico, northwest Texas, eastern Colorado, eastern Wyoming and parts of South Dakota. 

The Southeastern United States has also endured wildfires amidst their drought and that will continue today.   

In terms of severe weather, we've already had at least one rough episode this month. At least 110 tornadoes were reported in the Midwest on April 17,  

The expected severe weather begins modestly today with a few severe storms possible in a narrow corridor in the Central Plains, 

Tomorrow, severe thunderstorms, a few with gorilla hail and a few tornadoes are forecast in the central Plains. Gorilla hail, for the uninitiated, does not involve primates, unless a human is hit with one of those scary hailstones.  Gorilla hail  are really, really, really big hailstones.  On Friday, severe thunderstorms will focus on Arkansas.

Forecasters are especially worried about areas around Oklahoma and Kansas. It's not possible to be sure this far in advance, but there could be a very nasty tornado outbreak over the weekend. Especially on Sunday. Stay tuned.

VERMONT FORECAST

All that rough weather in the Plains is not going to bother us here.  This type of weather pattern either shears apart and destroys those storm systems as they try to approach us. Or they shunt them down to our south.  

So our weather gets boring. In this case, boring is very good. No drama like we've had in recent days. No tornadoes. No hail. No snow. No hard freezes. No heavy rain. Just cool, quiet spring weather 

It'll be cool today through Friday, with highs within a few degrees of 50 today and in the low 50s tomorrow and Friday. We should be in the upper 50s this time of year. So, a bit chilly, but nothing unreasonable like we had earlier this week. 

The only thing we really have to worry about in the next few days is brush fires. It still hasn't really greened up out there. All that dried up grass and weeds and last autumn's' leaves dry up fast this time of year. Relatively stiff breezes, especially tomorrow, raise the risk of brush fires.  Now is not the time to play with matches. Well, it's never a good time to play with matches, but especially now.

The first in a series of storms from the Plains will wash out on approach to us this weekend. There's a slight chance some light showers will hang in there and give us some brief dampness Saturday or Sunday, but don't count on it. 

It'll turn slightly warmer, too with highs within a few degrees either side of 60 Saturday and Sunday. 

The next chance of rain still looks to be on April 29. But even then, that storm looks like it might be weakening as it approaches us, so we might not get much out for that one either.