GREAT FALLS — An AIR QUALITY ALERT is in effect for the Hi-Line and eastern Montana until at least 8am Wednesday.
A HEAT ADVISORY is in effect for western Montana until 12am Thursday and for portions of central Montana until 9pm Thursday.
An EXCESSIVE HEAT WARNING is in effect for eastern Montana until 9pm Thursday.
A RED FLAG WARNING is in effect for central/eastern Glacier County, Liberty County, western/central Pondera County, and Toole County until 9pm Thursday.
A RED FLAG WARNING is also in effect for southwestern and portions of western Montana from 12pm until 9pm Wednesday.
A FIRE WEATHER WATCH is in effect for a lot of central and eastern Montana from 12pm Thursday until 12am Friday.
Widespread haze and smoke (from wildfires burning locally, in Canada, and throughout the western U.S.) is expected tonight and tomorrow, and at times the air quality will be unhealthy for sensitive groups. Some cleaner air will then begin to work its way into Montana later tomorrow, and although it will continue to be hazy tomorrow night and Thursday, the haze won't be nearly as bad as it has been so far this week, which means better air quality and better visibility for the second half of the week.
We are going to have mainly clear skies and mainly dry conditions tonight. It is also going to be mild tonight as lows are going to be in the 60s and mid to upper 50s in most locations. There is also going to be a breeze around tonight along the northern part of the Rocky Mountain Front.
For tomorrow, we are going to have increasing clouds with a few scattered showers and thunderstorms around during the afternoon and evening. A couple severe thunderstorms with strong winds (58+ mph) are also possible tomorrow afternoon and evening. There are then going to be some scattered showers and thunderstorms around tomorrow night and on Thursday (mainly during the PM hours and generally in locations east of I-15) as a cool front works its way through our area. We are also going to have partly to mostly sunny skies on Thursday.
There is also going to be a good breeze around tomorrow in western portions of north-central Montana and around the Helena area as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph. Widespread gusty to strong winds are then expected on Thursday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 30 mph, and wind gusts up to 50 mph are possible. Due to the combination of hot temperatures, low relative humidity, gusty to strong winds, and lightning and gusty outflow winds from thunderstorms, the fire danger tomorrow and Thursday is going to be extremely high, so please do your part to not start any new fires. New fire starts from lightning are also likely the next two days, so make sure to alert the proper authorities if you see any new smoke.
Dangerously hot temperatures are also expected tomorrow as highs are going to range from 95° to 110°, with the hottest temperatures in eastern Montana. It is then still going to be hot, but slightly cooler on Thursday as highs are going to range from the mid 80s to the low 100s, with the hottest temperatures once again in eastern Montana.
Cooler temperatures are then expected Friday and this weekend as highs are only going to be in the 80s and low 90s. We are also going to have mainly sunny/hazy skies and mainly dry conditions on Friday and Saturday. We are then going to have mostly sunny skies with some isolated showers and thunderstorms around on Sunday as a disturbance passes through our area. It is also going to be breezy again on Friday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph. There is then going to be a little breeze around this weekend as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
Lots of sunshine and mainly dry conditions are then expected on Monday and Tuesday as high pressure is going to be in control of our weather. It is also going to be very warm to hot and a bit breezy on these two days as highs are going to be in the mid to upper 80s and low to mid 90s, and sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
