Montana To See Dangerous Travel With 14" More Snow, Strong Winds

Travel in the southern portion of Montana could get quite dangerous through Friday morning, as the higher elevations along the border are expecting over foot of snow and gusty winds up to 40mph.

Obviously, the most snow is expected over high mountain passes and ridgelines, but interstate travel may be drastically affected at times with blowing and drifting snow. Low visibility will be a serious issue at times leading up to the weekend.

FOR RED LODGE AREA (High Elevations): A WINTER STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM WEDNESDAY EVENING TO 5 AM FRIDAY.
WHAT...Heavy snow expected.
Total snow accumulations between 8 and 14 inches.
Winds gusting as high as 35 mph.
WHERE...Absaroka/Beartooth Mountains, Beartooth Foothills, and Red Lodge Foothills.
WHEN...From 11 PM Wednesday evening to 5 AM Friday.
IMPACTS...Roads, and especially bridges and overpasses, will likely become slick and hazardous.
Recreation in the high country will be impacted by heavy accumulating snow.
Patchy blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Highest accumulations will be on east and northeast facing aspects. (Places such as Cooke City will see significantly less accumulations.)
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Persons should consider delaying all travel.
If travel is absolutely necessary, drive with extreme caution.

Heading further west around Dillon and the surrounding area, less snow is expected but the gusty winds will still be an issue. Also, the dangers are forecasted at far LOWER elevations, but for a shorter period of time.

FOR DILLON AREA: A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 11 PM WEDNESDAY EVENING TO 11 PM THURSDAY.
WHAT...Snow expected.
Total snow accumulations between 2 and 5 inches south of Dillon, with amounts up to 2 inches north of Dillon.
Winds gusting as high as 40 mph.
WHERE...Beaverhead and Western Madison below 6000ft.
WHEN...From 11 PM Wednesday evening to 11 PM Thursday.
IMPACTS...Travel could be difficult.
Snow covered roads Thursday may become slushy in the late morning, and remain slushy through the evening.

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For the eastern part of the state, Billings looks pretty decent at this point - but if you need to travel south into Wyoming, snow and wind are expected. Visibility will be an issue.

SOUTHEAST OF BILLINGS: A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM THURSDAY TO 5 AM FRIDAY.
WHAT...Snow expected.
Total snow accumulations of 2 to 4 inches.
Winds gusting as high as 30 mph.
WHERE...Bighorn Canyon, Southeastern Carbon, and Southern Big Horn.
WHEN...From 2 AM Thursday to 5 AM Friday.
IMPACTS...Roads, and especially bridges and overpasses, will likely become slick and hazardous.
Patchy blowing snow could significantly reduce visibility.
ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Higher totals are possible near Fort Smith.

Weather.gov

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