After a foot of snowfall and below zero wind chills late last week, a chinook wind spiked temperatures into the 50s and even the low 60s by Sunday afternoon. Great Falls shattered its previous record high temperature for December 14th, reaching 63 degrees.
Today's Forecast:
Multiple rounds of high winds expected throughout the workweek. First, a High Wind Warning goes into effect at noon today through 11 a.m. Tuesday for central Montana. Strong west-southwest winds develop throughout the morning along the Rocky Mountain Front and then spread east across the plains into the afternoon and evening. Sustained speeds of 25-45 mph and gusts up to 60-65 mph are expected across the plains, while the Rocky Mountain Front will see intense gusts of 80-90+ mph, with sustained winds of 30-50 mph.
The wind eases a little bit on Tuesday, but another round of stronger and more impactful winds Tuesday night into Wednesday. A High Wind Watch is in effect across the same region from Tuesday evening through Wednesday evening. High-profile vehicles and those towing trailers should prepare for intense crosswinds, especially on north-south oriented roads and highways.
Pacific moisture will continue bringing low-elevation rain and mountain snow to western Montana and areas along the Divide over the next few days. A heavier wave of valley rain and mountain snow Tuesday night into Wednesday.
A Winter Storm Watch is in effect from Tuesday evening through Wednesday evening for the mountains along the Continental Divide and the Rocky Mountain Front. Snow accumulations between 8-16 inches and wind gusts over 70 mph will create very difficult travel conditions. This will mainly impact the mountains north of Rogers Pass to the Canadian border.
Behind the cold front, cooler temperatures arrive on Thursday, with highs in the 30s in central Montana and in the 10s and 20s in eastern Montana. Another round of gusty winds is forecast for Friday, with high temperatures returning to the upper 30s and 40s across central and eastern Montana.
This weekend, temperatures cool further, with highs in the upper 20s and 30s in central Montana and upper 10s and 20s for the Hi-Line east of Havre. The good news is that we are finally going to see some sunshine.
