Strong westerly flow continued to produce strong down-slope winds along the Rocky Mountain Front and portions of North-Central MT.
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 TFX wrote it up.
Strong westerly flow continued to produce strong down-slope winds along the Rocky Mountain Front and portions of North-Central MT.
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 Great Falls, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 25, 4:15 AM MST, 3 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT 415 AM MST Sat Jan 25 2014 Updated Aviation Discussion .DISCUSSION... Today through Monday...An upper level high pressure ridge remains over the West Coast this morning with northwest flow aloft over central Montana. A tight surface pressure gradient also remains across the lee slopes of the Rockies and strong gusty winds will continue over this area. The current high wind warning has been continued. The surface winds do not have a lot of upper level support although a weak shortwave will approach the region today and this will help tighten the gradient further. By Saturday night the mid-level winds strengthen, especially over the northeast zones, and remain strong through Sunday. An upper level jet will drop south tonight and a stronger shortwave will approach the Canadian border late tonight. An associated cold front will be crossing the border around sunrise...earliest across the northeast. Strong and gusty winds, snow, and blowing snow will accompany frontal passage. Most of the plains and lower elevations will see 1 to 3 inches of snow with higher elevations receiving 3 to 6 inches, and a winter weather advisory will be issued. Much colder air will move move into the region behind the front with temps dropping through the day. The upper level trof will remain over the zones through Monday and keep the cold air mass in place over central Montana. A secondary shortwave will move through this trof Monday but most dynamics will be to our east. An increase in low level moisture will occur, however, and thus increase the chance for light snow. Zelzer Monday Night through Saturday...A period of dry conditions is expected Monday night through Tuesday night before a cooler and unsettled period of weather develops Wednesday into next weekend. Cold surface high pressure centered over eastern MT and the Dakotas Monday evening will move off to the SE Monday night with a weak lee-side surface trough developing over southern AB and extending south into N-central MT on Tuesday. Temperatures will warm as a result on Tuesday, especially over the plains, thanks to breezy downslope west winds which will continue through Tuesday night. A fairly complex change in the upper level weather pattern evolves Wednesday through the remainder of next week as the persistent cold upper low over eastern Canada begins to break down with several shortwaves dropping down the back side of the low through western Canada, eventually establishing a farther west mean upper trough over central Canada by late next week. Meanwhile, shortwave energy in the Eastern Pacific begins to undercut the high amplitude ridge in place just off the west coast, eventually resulting in a broad trough extending from central Canada into the Western US by next weekend. This pattern shift will open the door to a cooler Canadian airmass arriving from the north on Wednesday over north central MT, eventually expanding south into SW MT by next weekend, though models still vary with timing and extent of this southward expansion. Moist Pacific shortwave and upper jet energy begins to stream into the region on Wednesday, setting up a good chance for widespread precipitation across central/N-central MT late Wed/Wed night. As additional energy moves in Thursday through Saturday the location of the cold air boundary will be key in placement of precipitation, however models still vary with the location at this timeframe. Hoenisch && .AVIATION... UPDATED 1115Z. A dry north to northwest flow aloft will persist over the region VFR conditions prevailing through most of tonight and just some scattered high clouds through this evening. Surface winds will be breezy from the west to southwest across the north-central MT plains with lighter winds in the SW MT valleys. Late tonight, a strong cold front will cross the US/Canadian border and surge south across the region Sunday morning. A wind shift to the north and period of strong north winds is likely to reach the KCTB terminal by 12z Sunday morning, affected areas to the south and east later Sunday morning. Lower ceilings and reduced visibility in snow and blowing is expected to follow the frontal passage. Hoenisch && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... GTF 52 26 29 1 / 0 10 70 10 CTB 50 22 23 -2 / 0 20 70 10 HLN 48 24 33 6 / 0 10 90 30 BZN 43 21 34 4 / 0 0 80 30 WEY 33 3 29 -2 / 0 0 30 50 DLN 46 24 37 11 / 0 0 40 50 HVR 51 27 27 -4 / 0 20 70 10 LWT 50 27 27 -2 / 0 10 90 10 && .TFX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY from 5 AM to 5 PM MST Sunday Broadwater...Cascade...Central and Southern Lewis and Clark... Chouteau...Eastern Glacier...Fergus...Judith Basin...Meagher... Northern Rocky Mountain Front...Southern Rocky Mountain Front. HIGH WIND WARNING until 5 PM MST this afternoon Northern Rocky Mountain Front. && weather.gov/greatfalls www.twitter.com/NWSGreatFalls www.facebook.com/US.NationalWeatherService.GreatFalls.gov
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT 339 AM MST SAT JAN 25 2014 MTZ009-261215- NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT- 339 AM MST SAT JAN 25 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A HIGH WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 5 PM THIS AFTERNOON. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW IS IN EFFECT FROM 5 AM TO PM SUNDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. MTZ010-012>014-046-048-050-051-053-054-261215- EASTERN GLACIER-CASCADE-CHOUTEAU- CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN LEWIS AND CLARK-EASTERN PONDERA- SOUTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT-JUDITH BASIN-FERGUS-BROADWATER- MEAGHER- 339 AM MST SAT JAN 25 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL MONTANA...NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER TODAY IS LOW. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW IS IN EFFECT FROM 5 AM TO PM SUNDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. MTZ008-011-015-044-045-047-049-052-055-261215- BEAVERHEAD-HILL-MADISON-TOOLE-LIBERTY-BLAINE-EASTERN TETON- JEFFERSON-GALLATIN- 339 AM MST SAT JAN 25 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE PROBABILITY TODAY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY A COLD FRONT WILL BE CROSSING THE CANADIAN BORDER EARLY SUNDAY MORNING AND MOVE INTO SOUTHWEST MONTANA BY LATE AFTERNOON. THIS WILL BRING SNOW...BLOWING SNOW...AND MUCH COLDER TEMPERATURES ACROSS THE REGION. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.
6 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High sustained winds measured at 38KT (44MPH) were reported 1 mi E of East Glacier Park, MT at the Two Medicine Bridge DOT sensor.
High winds measured at 63KT (73MPH) were reported 8 mi SE of East Glacier Park, MT at the Deep Creek RAWS.
High winds measured at 55KT (63MPH) were reported 6 mi NE of Whitlash, MT.
High winds measured at 50KT (58MPH) were reported 21 mi SE of Cascade, MT at the Millegan sensor.
High winds measuring 50KT (58MPH) were reported in Judith Gap, MT.
High winds measured at 51KT (59MPH) were reported 6 mi SW of Hays, MT.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, January 2014
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: 492546, 492547, 492548, 492549, 492551, 492550.