A HIGH WIND WARNING continues into the night.
A BLIZZARD WARNING continues through the night for northeast Montana.
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for the Little Belt Mountains, Highwood Mountains, and parts of eastern Montana.
A destructive wind storm produced widespread damage across Montana as most of the state experienced gusts between 60-80mph, with some places topping 100mph! Trees came down everywhere, power was knocked out to more than 100,000 people across the state, flights from major airlines were diverted out of Montana, highways and interstates were closed as semis toppled over, schools were closed to protect the children, and local Disaster and Emergency Services issued warnings for people to stay home. The wind will continue to slowly ease up through the overnight. Heavy snow showers will diminish through the night as well. It will be cold, and many people will likely not have power for an extended period as repairs will take some time. Thursday will be a quieter day with partly cloudy skies east, but mostly cloudy skies in central and western Montana. Highs will range from the 10s in the northeast corner of the state to the 30s and 40s elsewhere. Snow will begin to spread across the western Montana through the day. Some areas of rain and snow will continue on Friday as another front moves through the state. The wind on Thursday night through Friday will be stronger with some gusts topping 50mph. Saturday looks relatively quiet with seasonable temperatures, partly cloudy skies and a pretty chilly wind gusting up to 40mph. It should be good for those traveling or intending to watch the Cats-Grizz playoff game. Sunday is the official start of winter, and it should be partly to mostly cloudy with highs in the 30s and 40s.
Please be careful out there,
Curtis Grevenitz
Chief Meteorologist
