Storm system clipped the southwestern corner of the area (southwest Phillips and Petroleum counties) with snow and blowing snow.
Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS GGW wrote it up.
Storm system clipped the southwestern corner of the area (southwest Phillips and Petroleum counties) with snow and blowing snow.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Glasgow, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 5, 8:46 PM MST, 3 hours 14 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 846 PM MST SAT FEB 5 2011 .SHORT TERM...FOR NORTHEAST MONTANA...TONIGHT THROUGH MONDAY... CANCELLED THE CURRENT WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY...BUT ISSUED A WINTER STORM WATCH FOR LATE SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY FOR THE SW 4 ZONES. REPORTS O LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS OR FLURRIES WERE COMING IN WITHOUT SIGNIFICANT DRIFTING. SNOWPACK PRETTY SOLID NOW CWA-WIDE SO EVEN WITH WINDS GUSTING TO 30 MPH IN SOME PLACES...DRIFTING NOT A MAJOR CONCERN. WITH SNOW SHOWERS EXPECTED TO AFFECT THE SOUTHEAST ZONES FOR PROBABLY A COUPLE MORE HOURS...INCREASED POPS. BUT QPF SHOULD BE LIGHT...SO LOWERED VALUES FOR MOST AREAS. REST OF FORECAST LOOKED GOOD. JAMBA PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... WEAK DISTURBANCES IN THE NORTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT ARE GENERATING SOME SHOWERS TODAY AND MAY CONTINUE TO THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING...HOWEVER...SNOW AND OR RAIN AMOUNTS HAVE BEEN LIGHT AND SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE LIGHT UNTIL EARLY MONDAY MORNING WHEN A STRONGER FEATURE FROM THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST WILL BEGIN TO AFFECT THE AREA. MOST SHOWERS THIS AFTERNOON HAVE BEEN RAIN MIXED WITH SNOW. ANY SNOW HAS BEEN MELTING AS THE SURFACE HAS WARMED ABOVE FREEZING. AS THE AIRMASS COOLS THIS EVENING PRECIPITATION SHOULD TURN OVER TO ALL SNOW AND BEGIN TO STICK. THIS COULD CREATE INCREASING PROBLEMS FROM BLOWING SNOW OVERNIGHT AS WINDS WILL REMAIN MODERATELY STRONG THROUGH SUNDAY MORNING. FOLLOWING THIS PERIOD OF ACTIVITY...A MORE SIGNIFICANT WAVE WILL AFFECT AT LEAST PART OF THE AREA FROM EARLY MONDAY MORNING THROUGH MONDAY EVENING. MODEL BLEND AND SREF HAVE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT SNOWFALL FROM THIS EVENT IN THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF THE CWA...THOUGH THE GFS HAS SIGNIFICANT SNOW OVER A LARGER PART OF THE AREA. AN ADVISORY OR WARNING FOR SNOW FALL IS LIKELY FOR SOME PART OF THE AREA FOR MONDAY. MUCH COLDER AIR IS BEGINNING TO POUR INTO THE AREA ON NORTHWESTERLY FLOW WHICH WILL BECOME MORE NORTHERLY TONIGHT. INITIAL PUSH OF COLD AIR ON SUNDAY WILL BE REINFORCED BEHIND THE STORM SYSTEM ON MONDAY. WINDCHILL CONDITIONS SUFFICIENT FOR AN ADVISORY WILL BE POSSIBLY ANY TIME FROM SUNDAY EVENING THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING IN ANY AREAS WITH APPRECIABLE WIND...ESPECIALLY IN NORTHERN ZONES. MARTIN .LONG TERM...MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY... OVERALL LONG TERM FORECAST REASONING REMAINS THE SAME. A QUIET AND COLD PERIOD IS EXPECTED FROM TUESDAY MORNING THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING BEHIND A COLD ARCTIC FRONT AND SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE OVER NORTHEAST MONTANA. EXTENDED MODEL SOLUTIONS IN VERY GOOD AGREEMENT KEEPING ALL PRECIP CHANCES FAR AWAY FROM OUR CWA. THE WEST COAST UPPER RIDGE RETURNS TO THE NORTHERN ROCKIES REGION AGAIN THURSDAY THROUGH THE REMAINDER OF THE LONG TERM FORECAST PERIOD BRINGING WARMER TEMPERATURES TO THE AREA FOR NEXT WEEKEND. AT THE END OF THE EXTENDED FORECAST PERIOD...UPPER LEVEL FLOW BECOMES MORE WESTERLY AS CHANCES FOR PRECIPITATION INCREASE. FOR NOW...ONLY SHOWED THIS INCREASING TREND WITH SILENT POPS GIVEN THE INHERENT VARIABILITY OF MODEL SOLUTIONS AT THIS FAR OUT TIME PERIOD. MICKELSON PREVIOUS LONG TERM DISCUSSION...MOSTLY DRY WEATHER WITH NO SIGNIFICANT PRECIP- PRODUCING WEATHER SYSTEMS, THE LONG-TERM STARTS VERY COLD THOUGH WITH AN ARCTIC HIGH CENTER...UP TO 1050 MB...DIRECTLY OVER NE MT MON NIGHT AND TUE. THIS NOT QUITE AS STRONG AS LAST WEEK...THE THE ARCTIC AIR ASSOCIATED NOT QUITE AS COLD AS INDICATED BY THICKNESSES...850 MB TEMPS...AND OBS UPSTREAM OVER AK/YUKON. HOWEVER WITH CLEARING SKIES...LIGHT WIND...AND EXPECTED FRESH SNOW COVER...RADIATION AL COOLING WILL BE VERY STRONG WITH WIDESPREAD LOWS -20 TO -25F...NOT LIKELY TO GET ABOVE ZERO MANY AREAS TUE. THERE IS A WEAK COLD FRONT FROM THE N THAT BRINGS A SECONDARY SURGE OF ARCTIC AIR INTO THE AREA FOR WED. WHILE MODELS VARY ON THE DEGREE OF THIS SECONDARY ARCTIC PUSH...THEY ALL AGREE THAT THE FRONT ITSELF IS WEAK WITH LITTLE MOISTURE...SO KEEPING POPS AT NO MORE THAN 10 PCT. THERE APPEARS TO BE A SIGNIFICANT PATTERN CHANGE LATER IN THE PERIOD. THE PERSISTENT UPPER HIGH ALONG THE W COAST SHIFTS INLAND ACROSS THE WESTERN SATES...STEADILY WEAKENING AS IT DOES SO THOUGH. THIS WILL BRING MUCH WARMER AIR TO OUR AREA THURSDAY THRU SATURDAY WITH TEMPS LIKELY ABOVE FREEZING ALL AREAS BY SATURDAY...AND SOME WARM ADVECTION CLOUDS THURSDAY. WHILE MODELS AGREE WITH THIS...THEY SHOW A LOT OF DISAGREEMENT WITH OTHER LONG WAVE FEATURES...AS OFTEN OCCURS IN A MAJOR PATTERN SHIFT. SIMONSEN && .AVIATION... SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS WILL CONTINUE THIS EVENING THEN TAPER OFF TONIGHT. CONDITIONS WILL VARY FROM VFR TO IFR THIS EVENING AS SCATTERED LOW CLOUDS AND BRIEF VISIBILITY REDUCTIONS MOVE THROUGH THE AREA. MORE WIDESPREAD LOW CLOUDS IN SASKATCHEWAN WILL MOVE INTO NORTHEAST MONTANA OVERNIGHT WITH MORE WIDESPREAD MVFR AND IFR CEILINGS WHILE THE SNOW SHOWERS BECOME ISOLATED. THE LOW CLOUDS AND ISOLATED SNOW SHOWERS WILL LINGER THROUGH THE DAY ON SUNDAY. NORTH TO NORTHWEST WINDS 15 TO 25 KNOTS WILL DIMINISH TO 10 TO 20 KNOTS LATE TONIGHT AND INCREASE TO 15 TO 25 KNOTS DURING THE DAY ON SUNDAY. && .GLASGOW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WATCH FROM LATE SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY AFTERNOON FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS...PETROLEUM... GARFIELD...SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS. && WEATHER.GOV/GLASGOW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 908 PM MST SAT FEB 5 2011 MTZ016-021-022-060-071300- CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS-PETROLEUM-GARFIELD- SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS- 908 PM MST SAT FEB 5 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY A WINTER STORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR LATE SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY. 5 TO 8 INCHES OF SNOW IS POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. THE HEAVIEST SNOW IS EXPECTED TO IMPACT SOUTHERN PHILLIPS...WESTERN GARFIELD AND ALL OF PETROLEUM COUNTIES. BITTER COLD ARCTIC AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA SUNDAY AND REMAIN OVER THE AREA THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK. WIND CHILLS OF 20 BELOW TO 40 BELOW ZERO ARE LIKELY FROM MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY. MONDAY NIGHT IS EXPECTED TO BE THE COLDEST NIGHT WITH LOWS OF 15 BELOW TO 30 BELOW ZERO OVER MOST OF THE AREA. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MTZ017>020-023>027-059-061-062-071300- CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY-DANIELS-SHERIDAN-WESTERN ROOSEVELT- MCCONE-RICHLAND-DAWSON-PRAIRIE-WIBAUX-NORTHERN PHILLIPS- NORTHERN VALLEY-EASTERN ROOSEVELT- 908 PM MST SAT FEB 5 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY BITTER COLD ARCTIC AIR WILL MOVE INTO THE AREA SUNDAY AND WILL REMAIN OVER NORTHEAST MONTANA THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF THE WEEK. WIND CHILLS OF 25 BELOW TO 45 BELOW ZERO ARE LIKELY FROM SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY. MONDAY NIGHT IS EXPECTED TO BE THE COLDEST NIGHT WITH LOWS OF 20 BELOW TO 30 BELOW ZERO OVER MOST OF THE AREA. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Six inches of new snow fell in Winnett. Drifting was reported county-wide.
Heavy snow fell Sunday night with 6 inches. Lots of drifting was reported too from a spotter 8 miles southwest of Zortman.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, February 2011
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 284447, 284445.