A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for the Hi-Line from 12pm Thursday until 5am Friday. 1 to 4 inches of snow accumulation is expected.
A Winter Weather Advisory is in effect for locations south of the Hi-Line in central Montana from 6am until 10pm Thursday. 2 to 7 inches of snow accumulation is expected in the lower elevations and 5 to 10+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the higher elevations.
A Winter Storm Warning is in effect for the Rocky Mountain Front from 6am Thursday until 12am Saturday. 5 to 10 inches of snow accumulation is expected in the lower elevations and 10 to 20+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the higher elevations. Blowing and drifting snow is also expected Thursday night and Friday, which is going to create near-blizzard conditions.
A Wind Chill Warning is in effect for northeastern Montana until 3pm Thursday, and a Wind Chill Advisory is in effect for central Montana until 3pm Thursday. Wind chills as low as 50 below zero are possible in northeastern Montana, while wind chills as low as 40 below zero are possible in central Montana. With wind chills this low, frostbite can occur on exposed skin in as little as 5 to 15 minutes.
We are going to have increasing clouds tonight as a warm front begins to approach our area. Prior to midnight, some very light snow is possible. After midnight, moderate snow is going to begin to work its way into central Montana, reaching Helena between 2 and 4am and Great Falls between 4 and 6am. Widespread snow is then expected on Thursday, and this snow may be heavy at times. There are then going to be some scattered areas of snow around Thursday night, especially along the Rockies and in locations east of I-15.
By Friday morning, a coating to 2 inches of snow accumulation is expected in northeastern Montana (including Glasgow); 1 to 4 inches of snow accumulation is expected along the Hi-Line (including Cut Bank and Havre); 2 to 7 inches of snow accumulation is expected in the lower elevations south of the Hi-Line (including Great Falls, Helena, and Lewistown); 5 to 10+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the higher elevations south of the Hi-Line (including the Little Belt and Big Belt Mountains) and in the lower elevations just east of the Rocky Mountain Front (including Browning); and 10 to 20+ inches of snow accumulation is expected in the Rockies.
This snow is going to create slippery road conditions in the lower elevations and hazardous to dangerous driving conditions in the higher elevations, especially in the Rockies, so please be careful when driving and give yourself plenty of extra time to get to where you need to go tomorrow and tomorrow night.
Frigid temperatures and dangerous wind chills are expected again tonight as lows are going to be in the -10s and -20s in a lot of locations, and wind chills as low as 40 to 50 below zero are possible. For tomorrow, we are going to have a wide range of temperatures as highs are going to range from the single digits below zero along the Hi-Line to the mid to upper 20s and low 30s around Helena. In and around Great Falls, the temperatures are going to top out in the teens tomorrow.
On Friday, we are going to have mostly to partly cloudy skies with some scattered snow and rain showers around as a warm front leaves our area and as a cold front begins to approach our area. It is also going to be warmer on Friday than it is going to be tomorrow as highs in a lot of locations are going to be in the 30s and 40s. It is also going to be windy on Friday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 15 and 30 mph, and wind gusts over 40 mph are going to be possible at times. Per usual, even stronger winds are expected in the Rockies and along the Rocky Mountain Front. This wind is also going to cause there to be areas of blowing and drifting snow around, which may create dangerous travel conditions, especially in the Rockies and along the Rocky Mountain Front where near-blizzard conditions are possible.
Colder temperatures are then expected on Saturday as highs are going to be in the single digits and teens in north-central Montana, and highs are going to be around 30 degrees in Helena. We are also going to have partly cloudy skies on Saturday with some isolated snow showers around, generally during the morning.
Partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies and mainly dry conditions are then expected from Sunday through Wednesday as high pressure is going to be in control of our weather. On Sunday, we are going to have near average temperatures as highs are going to be in the 20s and low 30s. We are then going to have above average temperatures on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday as highs are going to be in the 30s and 40s. It is also going to be breezy in north-central Montana on these four days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 20 mph.
