A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for the Helena area and portions of north-central Montana (including Great Falls and Lewistown) from 11pm Thursday until 11pm Friday (5am Friday until 5am Saturday for southwestern Phillips County).
We are going to have mostly cloudy to overcast skies tonight with some light snow around during the first half of the night in central Montana, generally around Helena. The snow will then become more widespread and heavier in central Montana and southern portions of north-central Montana (including around Great Falls, Helena, and Lewistown) during the second half of the night. There is then going to be widespread snow around tomorrow (generally south of the Hi-Line) as a disturbance passes by our area to the south. Some of the snow that falls late tonight and tomorrow may be heavy at times. As we go through tomorrow afternoon and evening, the snow will gradually taper off from west to east.
Please be careful when traveling tomorrow and give yourself plenty of extra time to get to where you need to go as roads are going to be slick/snow-covered and there are going to be areas of reduced visibility. Also, if you live around Great Falls, Helena, Lewistown, Stanford, or Townsend, give yourself some extra time to get to work and school tomorrow as it is going to be a nasty morning commute with low visibility and slick/snow-covered roads. Visibility will be better in most areas for the evening commute, but roads will still be slick/snow-covered, so continue to use caution when driving.
The lowest snow amounts with this disturbance will be along the Hi-Line east of I-15 where little (a coating) to no snow accumulation is expected in most spots. Along the Hi-Line west of I-15, a coating-2” of snow is expected. South of the Hi-Line, 1-6” of snow is expected, with the snow amounts increasing the further south you go. In the mountains in central Montana, 3-9” of snow is expected.
It is also going to be frigid again tonight as lows are going to be in the 0s, -0s, and -10s, with the coldest temperatures along the Hi-Line. It is then going to be cold again tomorrow as highs are going to be in the 0s and low 10s. There is also going to be a little breeze around in a few localized areas in central Montana tonight and tomorrow, so watch out for some blowing and drifting snow.
On Saturday, we are going to have partly to mostly sunny skies, mainly dry conditions, and warmer temperatures as highs are going to be in the teens and low to mid 20s. Gusty winds are also expected on Saturday along the Rocky Mountain Front as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 15 and 30 mph, and it will be breezy in portions of the plains on Saturday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
There is then going to be scattered snow around on Sunday, especially in central Montana (including around Great Falls, Helena and Lewistown) and along the Rocky Mountain Front, and there is going to be some scattered snow around on Monday, mainly in central Montana (including around Great Falls, Helena, and Lewistown) and along the Rocky Mountain Front, as a disturbance passes through our area. The temperatures are also going to cool down some over these two days as highs are going to be in the teens on Sunday and the -0s and 0s on Monday. It is also going to be a little breezy on Sunday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
There are then going to be a few isolated snow showers around on Tuesday and Wednesday, generally in the mountains, and we are going to have a chance to see some snow on Thursday as a couple more disturbances pass through our area. We are also going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies on these three days and it is going to be frigid on these three days as highs are going to be in the -0s, 0s, and low 10s, with wind chills well below zero.
