Very warm and windy Friday will lead to record highs, fire danger in eastern Iowa

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (Iowa's News Now) — Temperatures are skyrocketing under strong southwest winds Friday afternoon. As of noon, temperatures have already been around 80 in spots!

The sunshine and strong winds are contributing to the warmth, creating friction at the surface and sending in warmer air from the south.

These conditions will lead to record highs being smashed today in much of eastern Iowa.

Gusty winds will continue until late Friday night, calming down some by Saturday morning. Because it's been so dry, fire danger is elevated. The strong winds will lead to fire spreading very quickly if a spark is started. Be careful with cigarettes, grills, or anything else that can cause flames.

Clouds move in Saturday and some showers and storms will move in Saturday night into Sunday morning.