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Lightning may add to weekend's withering weather Lightning may be in store for Southern Oregon late Sunday through Monday. [Mail Tribune File Photo] Saturday Jun 24, 2017 at 11:14 AM Jun 24, 2017 at 11:14 AM Local report If you survive the heat of the weekend, the weather gods have another treat in store for Sunday and Monday: the possibility of thunderstoms. The National Weather Service has issued a fire weather watch warning for Sunday evening through Monday evening, with "significant lightning possible" in the region. The NWS had already issued an excessive heat warning for the area, with temperatures predicted to climb as high as 109 degrees in the Rogue Valley today and 106 on Sunday. On the heels of that hot, dry weather this weekend, thunderstorms are expected to develop over Northern California Sunday afternoon and spread northeastward into Southern Oregon Sunday evening through Monday evening. Significant lightning is possible in the mountains, the NWS says, with thunderstorms also a threat for Southern Oregon's valleys on the west side of the Cascade Mountains. Portions of Jackson, Josephine and Curry counties are included in the fire watch. The storms may bring dry lightning, traditionally a major cause of wildfires in the region. The Weather Service notes that while a wet winter has helped reduce fire danger, finer fuels are drying out and could help spread a fire, especially if winds accompany the thunderstorms.