Wind Shift Across Wildfires Tonight

The Horsefly and Snow Creek Wildfires in Montana exhibited significant growth in hot, dry and windy conditions on Tuesday. Smoke plumes once again extend nearly 100 miles. The Horsefly Fire near Lincoln had a tremendous blowup in the afternoon and was visible from miles. The Snow Creek Fire in the Bob Marshall Wilderness also has been very active. Other fires in the state like the North Hills Fire and the Ridgetop Fire have fortunately shown little to no growth and activity. Overnight into Wednesday morning a cold front will continue to move through the state with a significant wind shift and an increasing wind from the north and east. What was a strong west wind will switch around nearly 180 degrees to the east. Wednesday will have lighter wind and slightly cooler temperatures will move throughout the state. An isolated thunderstorm will be limited to the extreme southwest corner of Montana. Thunderstorms will return through much of western Montana including the Helena and Lincoln areas on Thursday afternoon. Cooler, wetter weather with widespread thunderstorm activity will develop Friday and continue through Sunday. There will be sufficient moisture with the thunderstorms to produce a wetting rain. There is a chance this rain will at least allow firefighters to get a handle on some of these fires.
Have a great day.
Curtis Grevenitz