GREAT FALLS — A dust devil at a track meet in Whitewater was caught on video by Pierre Bibbs on Thursday, April 24, 2025:
A dust devil at a track meet in Whitewater today! Wild Montana weather. #mtscores 🎥: Pierre Bibbs pic.twitter.com/CdRk88OBvk
— Tom Wylie (@WylieTom) April 24, 2025
Whitewater is north of Malta in Phillips County.
The National Weather Service says dust devils are formed when a ground surface heats the air dramatically just above the ground. Usually, dust devils occur when the sky is clear, unlike tornadoes.
As air rises, it will cool and descend back through the center of the vortex. As hot air rises along the outer wall of the vortex, cooler air sinks as the vortex forms.
The dust devil will then move across the ground picking up debris, which allows its movement and shape to be seen.
This comes just a few days after two small landspout tornadoes were confirmed in north-central Montana:
