Wind Advisory 8, NWS Missoula, MT

Issued

Jun 15, 2026, 10:30 AM MDT (16:30 UTC)

In effect from

Jun 16, 2026, 1:00 PM MDT

Expired

Jun 17, 2026, 12:00 AM MDT

In force

11 hr

Issued by

NWS Missoula, MT

Counties Lemhi County, ID, Deer Lodge County, MT, Flathead County, MT, Granite County, MT, Lake County, MT, Lincoln County, MT, Mineral County, MT, Missoula County, MT, Powell County, MT, Ravalli County, MT, Sanders County, MT, Silver Bow County, MT

The Missoula radar (KMSX), 18 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 16:28 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

424 
WWUS75 KMSO 151630
NPWMSO

URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE
National Weather Service Missoula MT
1030 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

IDZ009-010-170400-
/O.NEW.KMSO.WI.Y.0008.260616T1900Z-260617T0400Z/
Western Lemhi County-Eastern Lemhi County-
1030 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM TO 10 PM MDT TUESDAY...

* WHAT...West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected.

* WHERE...Lemhi County.

* WHEN...From 1 PM to 10 PM MDT Tuesday.

* IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree
  limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high
profile vehicles such as semis and RVs. Use extra caution.

&&

$$

MTZ001>004-043-170400-
/O.NEW.KMSO.WI.Y.0008.260616T1900Z-260617T0400Z/
Kootenai/Cabinet Region-West Glacier Region-Flathead/Mission
Valleys-Lower Clark Fork Region-Potomac/Seeley Lake Region-
1030 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM TO 10 PM MDT TUESDAY...

* WHAT...West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph expected.

* WHERE...Flathead/Mission Valleys, Flathead Lake, Kootenai/Cabinet
  Region, West Glacier Region, Lower Clark Fork Region, and
  Potomac/Seeley Lake Region.

* WHEN...From 1 PM to 10 PM MDT Tuesday.

* IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree
  limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.
  Choppy conditions on area lakes may create hazardous conditions for
  small watercraft.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high
profile vehicles such as semis and RVs. Use extra caution.

&&

$$

MTZ005-170400-
/O.NEW.KMSO.WI.Y.0008.260616T1900Z-260617T0400Z/
Missoula/Bitterroot Valleys-
1030 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM TO 10 PM MDT TUESDAY...

* WHAT...West winds 15 to 25 mph with gusts up to 45 mph expected.
  There is a 40 percent chance wind gusts could exceed 55 mph for
  western portions of the Bitterroot valley between Victor and
  Charlos Heights.

* WHERE...Missoula/Bitterroot Valleys.

* WHEN...From 1 PM to 10 PM MDT Tuesday.

* IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree
  limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high
profile vehicles such as semis and RVs. Use extra caution.

&&

$$

MTZ006-007-170400-
/O.NEW.KMSO.WI.Y.0008.260616T1900Z-260617T0600Z/
Bitterroot/Sapphire Mountains-Butte/Blackfoot Region-
1030 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM TUESDAY TO MIDNIGHT MDT TUESDAY
NIGHT...

* WHAT...West winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected.
  There is a 40 percent chance of gusts to 60 mph along Montana
  Highway 1 between Georgetown Lake and Interstate 90 and over
  MacDonald Pass.

* WHERE...Bitterroot/Sapphire Mountains and Butte/Blackfoot Region.

* WHEN...From 1 PM Tuesday to midnight MDT Tuesday Night.

* IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree
  limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high
profile vehicles such as semis and RVs. Use extra caution.

&&

$$

NWS Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this wind advisory went out at Jun 15, 3:10 AM MDT, 7 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Missoula MT
310 AM MDT Mon Jun 15 2026

.DISCUSSION...

KEY MESSAGES:

-  Warming trend through next week.

-  Strong winds gusting 40 to 50 mph on Tuesday across much of
   western Montana and north-central Idaho.

-  65% chance for winds briefly exceeding 50 mph in the Pinesdale
   area of the western Bitterroot Valley, 80% chance in Anaconda
   later Tuesday. Isolated tree damage possible.

-  Considerable heat risk in the lower valleys of north-central
   Idaho as highs could reach upper 90s.

Tuesday will be unseasonably warm as strong afternoon mixing will
help push valley temperatures into the 80s, and even 90s in the
lower valleys of north-central Idaho and in the Salmon region.
Highs could be in the upper 90s in the Salmon River valley south
of Grangeville, throughout the Hells Canyon region, and towards
Orofino.

Along with the heat, winds will begin developing by late morning
and ramp up through the afternoon, potentially peaking by early
evening. This will bring choppy lakes, which could be hazardous
for small craft. High profile vehicles such as semis and RVs could
be negatively impacted by strong crosswinds. Damage to trees and
branches is possible along with localized power outages. Across
southwest Montana, elevated fire weather concerns will exist as it
will be hot, dry and windy. Winds could be sustained near 20 mph
and gusts 30 to 40 mph across western Montana and in the higher
terrain of Idaho.

Attention then turns to how conditions will evolve Tuesday
evening as a weak and dry cold front moves north to south across
the area. The pressure rises after 6 PM MDT will generally be
several millibars...which is more like a broad pressure change
rather than a sharp, punchy front. The main challenge is deciding
how much of that evening wind profile actually reaches the ground.
Cool air moving in aloft will strengthen the mid-level winds to
around 58 MPH across west-central Montana. While these winds
crossing the mountains will generate elevated mountain waves,
high-resolution models suggest the strongest downward parts of the
waves may miss the valley floors. Without showers or virga to help
drag that momentum down, pulling the stronger winds through a
developing evening cooling/stable layer will be more difficult.
Even so, the threat cannot be entirely ruled out; the NBM shows 25
to 45% probability for localized winds briefly exceeding 50 mph
along the west half of the Bitterroot Valley, up to 65% chance in
the Pinesdale area.

There is a chance for showers and a few thunderstorms to pop off
in the Glacier National Park, specifically over the Divide Tuesday
evening. Impacts would be isolated lightning, gusty winds and
small hail.

Wednesday will run 5 to 10 degrees cooler, which knocks
temperatures briefly back to near seasonal normals. The exiting
disturbance will likely bring showers and thunderstorms to
northwest Montana, especially along the Continental Divide.
However most other locations will remain dry.

A strengthening of the ridge looks likely again for Thursday and
Friday, allowing temperatures to warm to similar levels as
Tuesday, if not even slightly warmer. Another disturbance late
Friday into Saturday again has the potential to bring wind and
showers to the region.

&&

.AVIATION...VFR conditions will prevail today under high pressure,
with localized terminal winds remaining under 15 knots. A strong
northwesterly jet arrives Tuesday, bringing widespread surface
gusts of 30 to 45 knots to western Montana terminals, with
localized gusts near 50 knots possible downwind of the
terrain(i.e. Bitterroot Mountains and mountains along the
Continental Divide). Expect mountain wave activity and moderate
turbulence aloft to peak between 6 PM MDT through 10 PM MDT
Tuesday evening following a mostly dry frontal passage.

&&

.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT...None.
ID...None.
&&

Wind Advisories in Montana, 2026Wind Advisories in Idaho, 2026Every wind advisory in 2026

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.