South Dakota Weather 3/8 Midday - 20° Above Normal

Good afternoon. South Dakota. I'm Matt Mullins. Step outside and you're greeted by 59 degrees. Gorgeous. But here's the kicker — we're about to shatter expectations this afternoon. Statewide, highs climb into the low to mid 70s. That's about 20 degrees above normal for early March. Sioux Falls hits 72. Rapid City pushes to 73. Aberdeen reaches 70. Some spots could tie records set decades ago. But there's a catch. West winds gust between 25 and 40 miles an hour this afternoon. Humidity drops to around 25 percent. That combination creates very high grassland fire danger across most of the state. Northwestern South Dakota has a Wind Advisory until 6 P.M., with gusts potentially hitting 50. If you're burning anything outdoors, don't. Tonight, temperatures crash fast. Lows drop to the mid 30s statewide under partly cloudy skies. Winds ease off to 5 to 15 miles an hour. Monday stays pleasant with mostly sunny skies. Highs range from the upper 50s in central areas to the upper 60s out west. A cold front approaches Monday night, bringing a chance of rain and snow after midnight, especially in western counties. Tuesday turns cooler with highs in the low to mid 40s and a chance of light snow. Best odds are in the west, where the Black Hills could see light accumulations. Wednesday clears out with highs in the mid 40s. Thursday warms back up to the mid to upper 60s, but another system Friday brings more chances for snow. The weekend stays unsettled with temperatures in the 40s and lingering snow chances. One more thing — clocks spring forward tonight. You lose an hour of sleep, but we're gaining nearly three minutes of daylight. See you this evening.