High Wind in Montana, January 13 to 15, 2021

In the area surrounding and including the Little Rocky Mountains of southwestern Phillips County, sudden severe wind gusts began at 11:21 AM MST on the 13th, and persisted at least each hour through all the rest of that day and through 1:00 AM MST on the 14th. At the Malta South US-191 DOT site (MTMAL), the peak wind gust of 73 mph was recorded both around 2:00 PM MST and 8:30 PM MST on the 13th. After winds subsided somewhat through the morning of the 14th, sustained winds of at least 40 mph returned for more than 3 hours during the afternoon of the 14th.

Sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph began as early at 11:41 AM MST and lasted through 5:52 PM MST on the 13th across Petroleum County. The peak wind gust of 72 mph was recorded at 2:41 PM MST on the 13th at the Dry Blood Creek RAWS site (DBCM8).

From multiple locations across Garfield county, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph began as early as 12:08 MST on the 13th. After intermittently pausing and returning over the following day or so, it ended as late as 3:43 PM MST on the 14th. The peak wind gust of 88 mph was recorded at 2:08 PM MST on the 13th at the South Sawmill Creek RAWS site (SSMM8).

At multiple locations across central and southern Valley County, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph began as early as 1:35 PM MST on the 13th, and ended as late as 3:20 PM MST on the 14th, with some hours of weaker winds interspersed overnight. The peak wind gust of 79 mph was recorded at the Glasgow airport ASOS site (KGGW) at 9:05 PM MST on the 13th.

Across central and eastern Daniels County, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph began as early as 1:43 PM MST on the 13th and lasted as long a 2:41 PM MST on the 14th. The peak wind gust of 75 mph was recorded from 11:26 PM to 11:31 PM MST on the night of the 13th at the Navajo MT-5 DOT site (MTRED).

At the Bluff Creek RAWS site (BLUM8), strong sustained winds and severe wind gusts were common for most of the afternoon and evening on the 13th. The peak wind gust of 71 mph was recorded at 4:44 PM MST.

Across multiple locations in central and southeast Phillips County, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and wind gusts of at least 58 mph were recorded for about 2 1/2 hours in the early afternoon of the 13th. The peak wind gust of 71 mph was measured at the Saco US-2 DOT site (MTSCO) around 2:30 PM MST on the 13th.

Intermittent, multiple-hour periods of sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph were recorded from the afternoon of the 13th to the afternoon of the 14th. The peak wind gusts of 70 mph were measured at the Lindsay Divide MT-200 DOT site (MTLND) from 11:18 PM to 11:23 PM MST on the 13th.

At multiple sites across McCone County, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and wind gusts of at least 58 mph lasted at least intermittently from the afternoon of the 13th to the afternoon of the 14th. The peak wind gust of 71 mph was recorded at the Fort Peck Dam handar mesonet site at 10:50 PM MST on the 13th.

Sustained winds of at least 40 mph and wind gusts in excess of 58 mph were common across multiple Sheridan County locations from the afternoon of the 13th into the afternoon of the 14th. The peak wind gust of 85 mph was recorded at 11:11 PM MST on the 13th at the Comertown Turn-Off MT-5 DOT site (MTCOM).

From the afternoon of the 13th to the afternoon of the 14th, intermittent, multiple-hour periods of sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph were measured across Prairie County. The peak wind gust of 71 mph was recorded at 12:08 AM MST on the 14th at the Big Sheep Mountain RAWS site (LCFM8).

From the afternoon of the 13th through the entire day and night of the 14th, a nearly continuous period of sustained winds in excess of 40 mph and wind gusts well in excess of 58 mph were recorded in western Wibaux County. The peak wind gusts of 81 mph were measured from 12:17 AM to 12:23 AM MST on the 14th at the Beaver Hill I-94 DOT site (MTBVR).

Sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph occurred at least steadily each hour from the afternoon of the 13th, to a bit less regularly through the afternoon of the 14th. The peak wind gust of 74 mph was measured from 11:16 PM to 11:19 PM MST on the 13th at the McDonalds MT-13 DOT site (MTMCD).

For multiple locations across Richland County, sustained winds of at least 40 mph and/or wind gusts of at least 58 mph were common at least from the afternoon of the 13th into the overnight hours early on the 14th. The peak wind gusts of 61 mph were recorded both at 7:01 PM MST on the 13th at the Badger Creek mesonet site (F2498), and from 11:53 PM MST on the 13th to 12:13 AM MST on the 14th at the Sioux Pass MT-16 DOT site (MTSOO).

For multiple locations across eastern Roosevelt County sustained winds of at least 40 mph and wind gusts of at least 58 mph occurred mainly from the evening through the late night of the 13th, but lingered intermittently through the morning of the 14th as well. The peak wind gust of 68 mph was recorded at the US-2 @Stateline DOT site (MTSTA).