HELENA — Governor Greg Gianforte on Friday issued an executive order declaring a disaster in Missoula County and Mineral County following Wednesday evening's storms.
The thunderstorms – with wind speeds of more than 80 miles per hour, lightning, heavy rain, and even a gust of 109 mph – toppled utility poles across western Montana, leaving tens of thousands of people and businesses without power.
In addition, many trees were toppled, leaving in their wake a huge amount of debris.
“A recent severe thunderstorm toppled trees and downed power poles in the Missoula area, leaving too many residents without power. I appreciate the rapid response of our electric cooperatives to restore power to affected communities,” Gianforte said in a news release. “Today’s disaster declaration is a next step to help residents and coops in the area recover.”
Cleanup is continuing following the storms and thousands are still without power as of Friday.
According to a news release, now that Gianforte has issued the disaster declaration, the State of Montana will "expend funds from the general fund to meet contingencies and needs arising from these conditions and help impacted communities get back on their feet as quickly as possible."
Missoula County Commission Chair Dave Strohmaier and Mayor Andrea Davis verbally declared a state of emergency Thursday morning which will be formally declared at a public meeting next week.
Click here to read the disaster declaration.
(THURSDAY, JULY 25) The effects of Wednesday evening's storms are still being felt across Missoula County and other parts of western Montana, with downed trees and power outages across the region.
A line of severe thunderstorms brought extreme winds. Wind speeds of 81 miles per hour were recorded at the Missoula Airport, and gusts of up to 109 mph were recorded at the top of Mount Sentinel.
Many people have been without power for hours. Some of the large outages include more than 2,400 customers west of Missoula in the Mullan Road area; 2,500 customers in downtown Missoula; 2,300 customers in the Target Range area; 1,200 customers in the South Hills and 1,100 in the area of Russell and Third streets. Another large outage was being reported in the Bonner area with 1,500 NorthWestern Energy customers in the dark.
The Missoula Police Department is asking people not to take to the roads because of safety hazards. Numerous traffic lights are not working in Missoula, the power remains out for thousands of people, and there are downed trees and powerlines, as well as other debris on the roads.
"We urge everyone to exercise caution while driving, biking, and walking. We request essential travel only due to the multiple safety hazards. Reducing traffic volume on the roadways will allow power crews to address these issues more efficiently and clear the roadways," Missoula Police Department spokeswoman Whitney Bennett said.
Drivers who do head out should treat all intersections where the stoplights are not working as a four-way stop.
People are being advised not to float on the Bitterroot River between Lolo and Missoula. Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks has been told that power lines are down across a portion of the water between Lolo and Buckhouse Bridge. This also applies to people using the Oral Zumwalt access just south of Missoula. FWP cautions that some of the power lines, such as those across the Bitterroot River, can be hard to see from far away. State wildlife officials also note that water will be carrying more debris in the aftermath of the storm, which can create dangerous hazards, and access sites might have obstacles.
Missoula County officials are telling people to stay away from rivers and streams due to downed powerlines. "County and city officials are receiving reports of downed powerlines in area streams and rivers that could be energizing the water. Residents should absolutely not recreate in or around the water until further notice," a news release states.
The University of Montana campus was hit hard by the storms. While UM planned to open on Thursday morning, power remained out, impacting several services.
The City of Missoula Public Works is asking Missoula Water customers to conserve water. The pumps that run the water are on generators and there is a limited ability to refuel them.
