A HIGH WIND WARNING is in effect for the lower elevations along the Rocky Mountain Front as well as eastern Glacier County, central Pondera County, and western Toole County from 2am Sunday until 6am Monday. Sustained wind speeds are going to be between 35 and 45 mph, and wind gusts up to 70 mph are going to be possible at times. This wind is going to be coming out of the SW.
A HIGH WIND WATCH is in effect for the higher elevations along the Rocky Mountain Front from 2am Sunday until 6am Monday. Sustained wind speeds are going to be between 35 and 45 mph, and wind gusts up to 65 mph are going to be possible at times. This wind is going to be coming out of the SW.
It is going to continue to be windy tonight along the Rocky Mountain Front as gusts up to 60 mph are going to be possible at times. In locations east of the Rocky Mountain Front, it is going to be breezy tonight as wind gusts up to 40 mph are going to be possible at times. Also, this wind is going to be coming out of the west/southwest in most locations. We are also going to have decreasing clouds and chilly temperatures tonight as lows are going to be in the 30s in a lot of locations.
The wind is going to continue to be a nuisance this weekend and on Halloween (Monday). On Saturday, we are going to have a gusty westerly-southwesterly breeze around 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 windy on Sunday and Monday as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 15 and 35 mph, and wind gusts over 50 mph are possible along and east of I-15, while wind gusts over 60 mph are possible along and just east of the Rocky Mountain Front (locations west of I-15). Valley locations, including Helena, will miss out on the brunt of the wind though as there is just going to be a little bit of a breeze around through Halloween with sustained wind speeds between 5 and 20 mph.
It is also going to be mild this weekend and on Monday as highs are going to be in the 50s and low to mid 60s in most locations, with Halloween being the warmest day. We are also going to have partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies on Saturday, and partly to mostly cloudy skies on Sunday and Monday. Mostly dry conditions are also expected this weekend and on Monday (just a few isolated rain and snow showers around along the Continental Divide).
On Tuesday, we are going to have mostly cloudy skies with some scattered rain and mountain rain/snow showers around, generally during the afternoon/evening, as a cold front begins to pass through our area. This rain will then start to mix in with and switch over to snow Tuesday night as the cold front passes through our area. There are then going to be areas of light to moderate snow around throughout the day on Wednesday behind this cold front, and a few inches of snow accumulation is possible.
The temperatures are also going to cool down some between Tuesday and Wednesday as highs on Tuesday are going to be in the upper 40s and low to mid 50s, and highs on Wednesday are going to be in the 30s. There is also going to be less wind around on these two days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 5 and 20 mph.
On Thursday, we are going to have partly cloudy skies with a chance of snow showers, generally during the morning and generally in locations east of I-15, as Tuesday/Wednesday’s disturbance leaves our area. We are then going to have partly to mostly cloudy skies on Friday with some isolated snow and rain showers around as the next disturbance begins to approach our area.
It is also going to be cold on Thursday as highs are going to be in the 30s. It is then going to be a little warmer on Friday as highs are going to be in the upper 30s and low to mid 40s. Breezy conditions are also expected on these two days as sustained wind speeds are going to be between 10 and 25 mph.
