An unusually early taste of summer is taking hold across the western U.S., with dangerous heat building through the Southwest and spreading into parts of the Plains over the next several days. While the biggest headline is the expanding heat, elevated to critical fire weather conditions will also raise concerns across the High Plains and southern Plains. Elsewhere, the Pacific Northwest stays wet for a bit longer, and the East remains stuck in a cooler, unsettled pattern with occasional rain and snow before conditions gradually settle.