<img class="styles__noscript__2rw2y" src="https://s.w-x.co/iimwx/web/news/16mar15-record-highs.jpg" srcset="https://s.w-x.co/iimwx/web/news/16mar15-record-highs.jpg 400w, https://s.w-x.co/iimwx/web/news/16mar15-record-highs.jpg 800w" > Actual high temperatures on Monday March 16, 2015. Note the 80s and 90s in the Plains states.

Monday continued a weeklong streak of record warmth with unprecedented early-season heat in the Plains states, stoking wildfire concerns as a dry, windy weather pattern accompanies the warmth. Temperatures reached the 90s Monday across a large swath from western Iowa through much of Nebraska and western Kansas even as three full days of winter remain on the calendar.

Record highs have been reported every day since early last week, mostly in the West, Plains and Southeast.

However, March is a month notorious for wild swings in temperature, and for many areas this warm spell is ending.

Plains: All-time March Record Highs

Temperatures Monday skyrocketed into the 70s and 80s across most of Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and eastern Colorado. Several locations even reached the lower 90s, readings more typical of mid-July.

At 3 p.m. CDT, North Platte, Nebraska, reached a sizzling 91 degrees to set a new all-time record high for the month of March. The previous March high had been 88 on March 31, 1946. It is North Platte's first 90-degree day in the winter months; records began way back in 1874, there. Prior to Monday, North Platte had never recorded a 90-degree day before April 9.

All-time March record highs were tied at Grand Island, Nebraska (90 degrees) and Norfolk, Nebraska (92 degrees).

Numerous other Nebraska cities reached the 90s Monday. Those include McCook (93), Lexington (91), Fremont (90), Kearney (90), Hebron (90), Tekamah (90), Columbus (90), Wayne (90) and Albion (90). A Weather Underground personal weather station in Loup City reached an unofficial 94 degrees.

Several clinched not only record highs for March 16, but their warmest temperatures on record this early in the season. Those included 90 at Sioux City, Iowa; 90 in Lincoln, Nebraska; 88 in Omaha, Nebraska; 81 in Denver; and 80 in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Preliminary record highs in Kansas include 94 in Hill City, 91 in Dodge City, 91 in Garden City, 89 in Goodland, 89 in Concordia and 85 in Topeka. All five cities broke March 16 daily records set during the remarkable March 2012 heat wave.

Other Kansas towns reaching the 90s Monday included Colby (90) and Syracuse (90), both in western Kansas.

(MORE: America's Freakiest Winter Heat Waves )

The heat, combined with breezy conditions, low relative humidity and dry ground conditions, prompted the National Weather Service to issue "red flag warnings" for much of the Central Plains, meaning conditions are favorable for rapid spread of wildfires. Grass fires were reported Monday near North Platte, Nebraska; Honey Creek, Iowa; St. Joseph, Missouri; and Oklahoma City. A fire warning was issued on Monday afternoon for Woodward, Oklahoma as a grass fire was spreading and evacuations were requested.

Portions of the middle Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley and the southern Great Lakes also reached the 70s. Both Chicago and Cincinnati saw their first 70s since late October. Milwaukee, Wisconsin tied a daily record high of 71 degrees.

Monday was the final day of records threatened in the Midwest. A cold front is plunging into the Plains and Great Lakes , dropping temperatures back closer to mid-March levels. For full details on that story, click the link below.

(MORE: Cooler Temperatures Coming )

Southwest Heat Wave: Feeling More Like Summer

The warmth and the potential for records continued once again on Monday in the West.

On Monday L.A. (downtown) reached 90 degrees setting a daily record high (previous record was 87) and this was the fourth day in a row with temperatures 90 degrees or higher.

Records were set over the weekend as well.

On Saturday, numerous daily and monthly records were set in California.

Monthly records for March set on Saturday:

- Salinas, which reached 92 degrees (former record: 88)

- San Jose, which reached 89 degrees (former record: 88)

- Monterey, which reached 87 degrees (former record: 85)

Daily records set on Saturday:

- L.A. (Downtown), which reached 93 degrees (former record: 88)

- L.A. (Airport), which reached 90 degrees (former record: 86)

- Long Beach, which reached 94 degrees (former record: 85)

- San Diego (Lindbergh Field), which reach 90 degrees (former record: 83)

Anaheim, California also reached 98 degrees on Saturday - toasty, indeed!

On Sunday, San Diego broke its record high when the thermometer hit 89 degrees. Los Angeles (Downtown) got even hotter when its Sunday high temperature reached 92 degrees, which is 7 degrees higher than its previous record.

Across in the interior West, Colorado Springs reached a record high temperature of 74 degrees on Sunday. Salt Lake City set a daily record high of 73 degrees.

Additional Records Recap

Over the past weekend, record highs were set very early in the day in parts of the Plains.

Late Sunday morning, daily record highs for March 15 had already been set in Aberdeen, South Dakota (68 degrees at 11 a.m. CT), Grand Forks, North Dakota (63 degrees at 11 a.m. CT) and Cheyenne, Wyoming (68 degrees at 11 a.m. MT). By Sunday afternoon, Aberdeen rocketed up to 79 degrees, Grand Forks hit 75 degrees, and Cheyenne topped out at 76.

Fargo, North Dakota smashed its daily record high of 62 degrees by hitting 70 degrees at 12 p.m. CT. This is also the earliest 70-degree day since records began in Fargo. Bismarck, North Dakota also set a daily record high by 12 p.m. CT with a temperature of 69 degrees. In the afternoon, Fargo topped out at 75 degrees, a full 13 degrees higher than its previous record.

Numerous records were also set in Nebraska, including Scottsbluff, where the thermometer topped out at 84 degrees on Sunday afternoon – 8 degrees higher than its previous record. It is the earliest in the year Scottsbluff has recorded a temperature that high. North Platte also had its warmest day on record so early in the year, hitting 85 Sunday.

Cheyenne, Wyoming hit 76 on Sunday, missing its all-time March record by just one degree.

On Friday, numerous record highs were set including downtown Los Angeles (90), Long Beach, California (89), San Diego (89), La Crosse, Wisconsin (71), Duluth, Minnesota (58) and Cut Bank, Montana (65). A few places in Florida tied their record high for the date including Tampa (86) and Naples (89).

Thursday record highs included 90 at Naples, Florida; 79 in Norfolk, Nebraska; and 67 in Jamestown, North Dakota. See below for more on this week's reported record highs.

Eight record highs were confirmed as tied or broken Wednesday in the Southeast, including 83 in Charlotte and 87 in Savannah, Georgia. While not a daily record, Orlando reached 90 degrees for the first time since Oct. 11.

In the Plains, Fargo, North Dakota (59) and Mitchell, South Dakota (69) tied their daily records Wednesday. This was the third straight daily record tied or set in Fargo. Pierre, South Dakota missed its daily record high, but still managed to soar to 79 degrees.

The lowest temperature recorded in the contiguous U.S. Wednesday was 9 degrees above zero in Gunnison and Leadville, Colorado, according to NOAA. This was the first day without any zero or subzero temperatures in the Lower 48 states since Dec. 14, 2014.

At least 64 record high temperatures were tied or broken Monday and Tuesday, according to National Weather Service record reports. These records spanned locations as far apart as Quillayute, Washington, and Daytona Beach, Florida.

On Tuesday, daily record high temperatures included Duluth, Minnesota (58); Minneapolis/St. Paul (66); Daytona Beach, Florida (85); South Lake Tahoe, California (64) and Spokane, Washington (67).

Impressively, the National Weather Service office in Negaunee Township, Michigan (just outside Marquette) still had 31 inches of snow on the ground Tuesday. Despite that, temperatures still topped out at a record high of 58.

The record-breaking high of 77 Tuesday in Walla Walla, Washington, was the warmest on record so early in the year there since records began in 1949 at the city's airport.

While not a daily record, Des Moines, Iowa and Omaha, Nebraska reached the 70-degree mark Tuesday for the first time since October 27. Tuesday brought the Twin Cities its first high in the 60s since before Halloween (Oct. 27).

New York hit the 50s Monday. In the Big Apple it ended a 63-day streak without reaching 50; that's the eighth-longest streak in 140 years of records there, and the longest such streak since the winter of 1976-77.

Meteorologist Chris Dolce and senior meteorologist Nick Wiltgen contributed to this report.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Cities With Their Record Warmest Winter 2014-2015