A BLIZZARD WARNING remains in effect for a lot of northeastern Montana until 5pm Wednesday.
A WINTER STORM WARNING remains in effect for northern Blaine County until 11pm Tuesday.
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for portions of north-central Montana until 8pm Tuesday and for portions of northeastern Montana until 6am Wednesday.
A HIGH WIND WARNING remains in effect for a lot of central Montana until 8pm Tuesday and for portions of northeastern Montana until 5am Wednesday.
Winter returned in full force to Montana today as a cold front worked its way through the state. There was widespread snow, and roads are slick in a lot of areas due to the snow that did fall. The temperatures also got colder as the day went on, and as of 5pm, it is 40-50° colder in a lot of locations than it was 24 hours ago. It was also blustery today, which allowed the wind chills to drop below zero and caused there to be a lot of blowing and drifting snow.
Here is the detailed forecast:
Snow will continue to fall in northeastern Montana through early tomorrow morning. The rest of north-central Montana will be mostly dry tonight, although there will be a few snow showers around as we get closer to sunrise. It is also going to be partly to mostly cloudy tonight. An additional 1-5” of snow is possible in northeastern Montana tonight, while little to no additional snow accumulation is expected elsewhere. Roads will also be slick in a lot of areas tonight, so use extreme caution when driving.
It is going to be blustery tonight in central and eastern portions of north-central Montana as gusts up to 50 mph are possible. This wind will lead to blowing snow and reduced visibility in some areas, so please be careful when driving. In western portions of north-central Montana, it is just going to be a bit breezy tonight as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
Lows tonight are going to be in the -0s and 0s, but when you factor in the wind, it is going to feel like it is in the -10s, -20s, and -30s. Due to the bitterly cold wind chills, an EXTREME COLD WARNING is in effect for Glacier, Liberty, central/western Pondera, and Toole County until 12pm Wednesday, and a COLD WEATHER ADVISORY in effect for most of the rest of north-central Montana until 12pm Wednesday. Definitely bundle up when you head to work and school tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow will be the coldest day of the month as highs are only going to be in the -0s and 0s in most locations. It is also going to continue to be blustery tomorrow in eastern portions of north-central Montana as gusts up to 40 mph are possible. Elsewhere, it will be a little breezy tomorrow with sustained wind speeds between 5 and 20 mph. This wind will cause wind chills to be below zero for the entire day, so bundle up when you are outdoors.
There are also going to be some scattered snow showers around tomorrow and tomorrow night as a weak disturbance passes through our area, and light snow accumulations of up to 1.5” are possible. Tomorrow will be mostly cloudy to overcast in a lot of areas, but some sunshine is expected in eastern portions of north-central Montana.
Thursday will be cold, but a littler warmer as highs are going to be in the teens and low to mid 20s in a lot of locations. In eastern portions of north-central Montana, it will be mostly cloudy on Thursday, while in western portions of north-central Montana, it will be partly to mostly sunny. There will also be a few isolated snow showers around on Thursday, but most locations will remain dry. The wind will also be weaker on Thursday, although it will still be a little breezy as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
There will be a few scattered snow showers around on Friday as another disturbance passes through our area. It is also going to be partly to mostly cloudy and chilly on Friday as highs are going to be in the 20s and low 30s.
Nice weather is expected this weekend as high pressure is going to be in control of our weather. It is going to be mainly dry this weekend with partly to mostly sunny skies on Saturday and partly to mostly cloudy skies on Sunday. It is also going to be chilly this weekend as highs are going to be in the 20s and low to mid 30s in most spots. There is also going to be a little breeze around this weekend as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
Above average temperatures return early next week as highs on Monday and Tuesday are going to be in the 40s and mid to upper 30s. Monday will be partly cloudy with a few isolated rain and snow showers around. There are then going to be some scattered rain and snow showers around on Tuesday as another disturbance passes through the state. It is also going to be a little breezy in some areas on these two days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
