Name: Extreme Cold in Montana, December 17, 2016
Start: 2016-12-17T00:52
End: 2016-12-17T05:29
Location: Montana

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS TFX wrote it up.

A strong arctic ridge of high pressure settled into the region from the Alberta and Saskatchewan prairies on Friday, December 16th and Saturday, December 17th. Appreciable winds and temperatures in the range of 0 to -30 degrees Fahrenheit yielded wind chills as low as the -40 to -55 degree range Friday night into Saturday morning.

What forecasters said that day

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 Dec 16, 10:20 PM MST, 2 hours 32 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 16, 10:20 PM MST, 2 hours 32 minutes before

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Event by event

8 extreme cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Fergus

When: December 17, 12:52 AM MST
Where: Fergus forecast zone
Reported by: RAWS

Judith Peak RAWS reported wind chill of -43 degrees due to temperature of -19 degrees and wind of 14 mph.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Cascade

When: December 17, 12:53 AM MST
Where: Cascade forecast zone
Reported by: ASOS

Great Falls Airport ASOS reported wind chill of -46 degrees due to temperature of -21 degrees and wind of 15 mph.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Judith Basin

When: December 17, 1:35 AM MST
Where: Judith Basin forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

MT DOT weather station in Geyser reported wind chill of -41 degrees due to temperature of -16 degrees and wind of 16 mph.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Madison

When: December 17, 2:00 AM MST
Where: Madison forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet

MesoWest station 5 miles west of Big Sky reported wind chill of -55 degrees F due to temperature of -25 degrees and 20 mph wind.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Toole

When: December 17, 2:30 AM MST
Where: Toole forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

MT DOT weather station in Sweetgrass reported wind chill of -40 degrees due to temperature of -18 degrees and wind of 12 mph.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Hill

When: December 17, 4:53 AM MST
Where: Hill forecast zone
Reported by: ASOS

Temperature of -20 degrees and wind of 18 mph created wind chill of -47 degrees at Havre Airport ASOS.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Gallatin

When: December 17, 5:00 AM MST
Where: Gallatin forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet

Wind chill of -50 degrees F reported at Bridger Bowl due to temperature of -19 degrees and 27 mph wind.

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill, Southern Lewis and Clark

When: December 17, 5:29 AM MST
Where: Southern Lewis and Clark forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

MT DOT weather station in Sieben Flats reported wind chill of -41 degrees due to temperature of -19 degrees and wind of 12 mph.

What these are

Extreme Cold/Wind Chill: Temperatures or wind chills at or below the local warning criteria, or cold that caused deaths.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Montana in 2016 Every state in 2016 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, December 2016

Sources

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 662947, 662945, 662955, 662940, 662953, 662943, 662941, 662944.