A strong disturbance, pushing a dry cold front through southern Saskatchewan suddenly dropped high winds from aloft all the way down to the surface over the northeast corner of Montana during the overnight and early morning hours.
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.
A strong disturbance, pushing a dry cold front through southern Saskatchewan suddenly dropped high winds from aloft all the way down to the surface over the northeast corner of Montana during the overnight and early morning hours.
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 Jan 26, 9:32 PM MST, 3 hours 6 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 932 PM MST TUE JAN 26 2016 .SHORT TERM...FOR NORTHEAST MONTANA...TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY... UPDATE... TEMPERATURES ALONG THE HI-LINE HAVE ALREADY FALLEN THROUGH THE EXPECTED OVERNIGHT MINIMUMS. ADJUSTED TEMPERATURES DOWN FOR MOST LOCATIONS BASED ON CURRENT TRENDS. DID NOT ADD ANY POPS HOWEVER WILL HAVE TO WATCH AN AREA OF RADAR ECHOES OFF THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT THAT MIGHT REQUIRE AN UPDATE LATER. OTHERWISE GOING FORECAST HAS THE CURRENT SITUATION HANDLED WELL. PROTON PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... UPPER RIDGING IS IN PLACE OVER NORTHEAST MONTANA...MAKING FOR PARTLY SUNNY SKIES AND WARM TEMPERATURES. TONIGHT A WEAK DISTURBANCE WILL PUSH DOWN ON THE UPPER RIDGE AS IT PASSES THROUGH SOUTHERN CANADA...SENDING A WEAK COLD FRONT THROUGH NORTHEAST MONTANA. AHEAD OF THE FRONT SOME VALLEY FOG COULD AGAIN REDEVELOP IN THE MILK RIVER VALLEY. BEHIND THE FRONT NORTHWEST WINDS WILL PICK UP...SCOURING OUT ANY FOG AND THE LOW LEVEL INVERSION WHICH WILL ALLOW TEMPS TO HOLD STEADY OR RISE SLIGHTLY LATE TONIGHT. WEDNESDAY INTO THURSDAY WARM AND DRY CONDITIONS CONTINUE AS UPPER RIDGING HOLDS. POST FRONTAL NORTHWEST WINDS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE DAY ON WEDNESDAY...WITH A SWITCH OVER TO LIGHTER SOUTHWEST WINDS ON THURSDAY. GILCHRIST .LONG TERM...THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY... THE UPPER RIDGE WILL BE IN THE PROCESS OF COLLAPSING THURSDAY NIGHT AS A MEDIUM-WAVE TROUGH CRASHES THROUGH MONTANA. IN ADDITION...A SURFACE TROUGH IN THE LEE OF THE NORTHERN AND CANADIAN ROCKIES WILL BE IN THE PROCESS OF CLOSING OFF. THIS WILL RESULT IN INCREASED VEERING WINDS THAT BECOMES NORTHWESTERLY AFTER MIDNIGHT. MODELS ARE SHOWING LIGHT PRECIPITATION WITH THIS WAVE. BUT TIMING AND LOCATION ARE UNCERTAIN. A BLEND WILL REQUIRE AT LEAST SLIGHT CHANCE POPS RIGHT OFF. SO BUMPED UP INITIAL POPS HIGHER THROUGH THE WEEKEND. TEMPERATURE PROFILES SUGGEST A COMPLEX SPREAD OF RAIN TO SNOW DEPENDING ON DAY AND LOCATION. USED THE POT PROCEDURE TO DETERMINE WX TYPE AND SNOW AMOUNTS. FRIDAY WILL SEE A SHORT-WAVE RIDGE QUIET THE WINDS AND END THE LIGHT PRECIPITATION. HOWEVER OFF TO THE WEST IS ANOTHER DEVELOPING TROUGH..THIS ONE A LONGER WAVE AND MORE OF A DIGGING TROUGH. THIS SHOULD SEND PRECIPITATION INTO THE REGION BEGINNING FRIDAY NIGHT. THE PATTERN BECOMES MORE COMPLEX WITH A SHORT-WAVE TROUGH DROPPING THROUGH SASKATCHEWAN THAT SENDS A COLD FRONT INTO MONTANA SATURDAY NIGHT/SUNDAY. EXPECT TEMPERATURES TO TREND LOWER AS LOW STRATUS/LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS SET UP OVER THE AREA. TOTAL SNOW ACCUMULATION THROUGH SUNDAY IS EXPECTED TO ADD UP TO LESS THAN AN INCH. SCT PREVIOUS DISCUSSION... THE EXTENDED PERIOD BEGINS THURSDAY NIGHT WHICH HAS FAIRLY ACTIVE ZONAL FLOW ACROSS THE NORTHERN HIGH PLAINS INTO FRIDAY WHILE A TROUGH BEGINS TO DEEPEN OVER THE WESTERN CONUS. EMBEDDED SHORTWAVES WILL PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PRECIPITATION THOUGH GIVEN PROGRESSIVE NATURE...WILL BE TOUGH TO TIME. THUS...WILL HAVE SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FOR RAIN AND/OR SNOW SHOWERS TO COVER POTENTIAL. TROUGH DEEPENS AND PROGRESSES EAST INTO NEXT WEEKEND WHICH WILL LEAD TO COLDER TEMPERATURES FOLLOWING HEIGHT FALLS. GIVEN COOLER TEMPERATURES...ONE WOULD EXPECT ANY PRECIPITATION CHANCES TO BE OF THE FROZEN VARIETY. THIS IS REFLECTED IN THE WX GRIDS...HOWEVER... POPS WERE KEPT LOW GIVEN ENSEMBLE 500MB HEIGHT SPREAD AT LARGER TIME SCALES. GIVEN BROAD DYNAMIC FORCING FOR ASCENT ASSOCIATED WITH LARGE TROUGH THOUGH DID DECIDE TO KEEP IN AT LEAST A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR THE DURATION. MALIAWCO && .AVIATION... FLIGHT CATEGORY: VFR SYNOPSIS: A COLLAPSING AND EXITING RIDGE THIS EVENING HAS A SHORTWAVE ON THE BACK SIDE OF IT THAT WILL PASS THROUGH DURING THE MORNING HOURS. MID TO UPPER LEVEL MOISTURE IS PLENTIFUL FOR MID TO HIGH CLOUDS BUT SURFACE MOISTURE IS MINIMAL WITH DOWNSLOPE WINDS OUT OF THE SOUTHWEST. THEREFORE... LOW STRATUS IS NOT ANTICIPATED. AS THE SHORTWAVE LATCHES ONTO A LEE MOUNTAIN TROUGH... IT WILL MOVE IT THROUGH THE TERMINALS DURING THE MORNING HOURS AND INCREASING WINDS FROM THE WEST. VIRGA MAY BE POSSIBLE WITH THE INITIAL FRONTAL PASSAGE BUT SHOULD NOT REACH THE GROUND AND IMPACT THE TERMINALS. LLWS: SURFACE INVERSION IS HOLDING STRONG WINDS ALOFT WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE SHORTWAVE AND FRONT THIS EVENING. WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE FRONT WIND SHEAR WILL BE POSSIBLE UNTIL MECHANICAL MIXING MAKES IT ALL THE WAY TO THE SURFACE AND TERMINAL WINDS PICK UP. MOST OF THE SHEAR CONCERNS SHOULD BE OVER BY 15Z. WINDS: OUT OF THE SOUTHWEST AROUND 5 TO 10 KTS THROUGH MIDNIGHT.... VEERING TO THE WEST TO NORTHWEST AND INCREASING TO 10 TO 15 KTS AFTER MIDNIGHT. GAH && .GLASGOW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && WEATHER.GOV/GLASGOW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 921 AM MST TUE JAN 26 2016 MTZ021>027-060-062-271200- PETROLEUM-GARFIELD-MCCONE-RICHLAND-DAWSON-PRAIRIE-WIBAUX- SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS-EASTERN ROOSEVELT- 921 AM MST TUE JAN 26 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MTZ016>020-059-061-271200- CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS-CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY- DANIELS-SHERIDAN-WESTERN ROOSEVELT-NORTHERN PHILLIPS- NORTHERN VALLEY- 921 AM MST TUE JAN 26 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .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 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The Navajo MT-5 DOT site measured sustained winds of 40 mph beginning at 12:38 AM. The verifying wind gust of 60 mph was recorded at 2:30 AM. Sustained winds diminished below 40 mph after 2:40 AM.
The Comertown Turn-Off MT-5 DOT site measured sustained winds greater than 40 mph beginning at 2:09 AM and ending at 4:20 AM. The first verifying wind gust of 60 mph was recorded at 2:50 AM and the peak wind gust of 61 mph was recorded at 3:00 AM.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, January 2016
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: 616633, 616634.