A BLIZZARD WARNING is in effect for part of northeastern Montana until 6pm Saturday. 4 to 10 inches of new snow accumulation is expected. Winds are also going to be gusting as high as 55 mph.
A WINTER STORM WARNING is in effect for most of north-central Montana until 5am/11am/2pm/6pm Saturday. 2 to 6 inches of new snow accumulation is expected. Winds are also going to be gusting as high as 50 mph.
A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for portions of central and north-central Montana until 5am/11am Saturday. 1 to 4 inches of new snow accumulation is expected. Winds are also going to be gusting as high as 55 mph.
If you do not have to travel tonight, then just stay home as roads are snow-covered in a lot of the state. If you do have to travel, then make sure you take it slow and give yourself plenty of extra time to get to where you need to go.
The main batch of snow that has been impacting western and central Montana throughout the day today will continue to work its way eastward as we go through tonight. Behind this main batch of snow, there will be some scattered snow showers around. For tomorrow, we are going to have partly cloudy skies with a few scattered snow showers around, especially in the mountains.
Between this evening and tomorrow evening, a coating to 8 inches of new snow accumulation is expected, with the highest new snow amounts expected in northeastern Montana. For central and western portions of north-central Montana, the majority of the snow accumulation is now over with.
We are also going to have gusty winds around tonight and tomorrow, especially in locations east of I-15, as wind gusts over 40 mph are going to be possible at times. The wind direction is also going to shift from the east early on tonight to the west-northwest later on tonight/tomorrow behind a cold front. It is also going to be cold tonight and tomorrow as lows tonight are going to be in the single digits and teens, and highs tomorrow are going to range from the mid teens to the mid 30s, with the warmest temperatures around the Helena area.
Also, just a reminder that Daylight Saving Time begins this weekend, so before you go to bed Saturday night, please remember to set your clocks forward one hour. And yes, it sucks that we lose one hour of sleep, but at least sunsets will be after 7pm beginning on Sunday!
Talking about Sunday, we are finally going to have a day with nice and quiet weather. There are going to be areas of fog around during the morning, but outside of that, you can expect partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies and mainly dry conditions. It is also going to be cold again on Sunday along the Hi-Line as highs are going to be in the mid to upper teens and low to mid 20s. South of the Hi-Line, it is going to be a bit warmer on Sunday as highs are going to be in the 30s and mid to upper 20s. There is also going to be little to no wind around on Sunday.
Partly cloudy skies and mainly dry conditions are then expected on Monday. Warmer temperatures are also expected on Monday as highs are going to be in the 30s and 40s. It is also going to be breezy on Monday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
On Tuesday, we are going to have mostly cloudy skies with some isolated rain and snow showers around in north-central Montana and some scattered rain and snow showers around in central Montana as a disturbance passes through our area. There are then going to be some more scattered rain and snow showers around on Wednesday, especially in central Montana, as another disturbance passes through our area. We are also going to have partly cloudy skies on Wednesday.
We are also going to have gusty winds around on Tuesday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 30 mph, and wind gusts over 40 mph are going to be possible at times. It is then going to be breezy on Wednesday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph. It is also going to be mild on Tuesday as highs are going to range from the mid 30s to the low 50s. Cooler temperatures are then expected on Wednesday as highs are going to be in the 30s and low to mid 40s in most locations.
Partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies and mostly dry conditions are then expected on Thursday and Friday as high pressure is going to be in control of our weather. We are also going to have cool temperatures on these two days as highs are going to be in the 30s and 40s in most locations (mid to upper 20s in northeastern Montana).
