Montana, 2022

High Wind in Montana, January 1 to 3, 2022

January 1 to 3, 2022 · NWS BYZ · 5 events in 4 counties and zones

A prolonged period of tight surface pressure gradients across the western portions of the Billings Forecast Area resulted in high wind gusts, mainly along the mountain foothills.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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 BYZ wrote it up.

A prolonged period of tight surface pressure gradients across the western portions of the Billings Forecast Area resulted in high wind gusts, mainly along the mountain foothills.

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 Billings, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 1, 8:11 AM MST, 4 hours 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 1, 8:11 AM MST, 4 hours 49 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 1, 2:53 AM MST, 10 hours 7 minutes before
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In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 1, 9:36 AM MST, 3 hours 24 minutes before
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Local storm report, Jan 1, 11:02 AM MST, 1 hour 58 minutes before
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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Northern Sweet Grass

When
January 1, 1:00 PM MST to January 2, 5:55 AM MST
Where
Northern Sweet Grass forecast zone
Measured
57 kt (66 mph) measured gust
Reported by
AWOS
Coordinates
45.814, -109.941 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winds gusted up to 66 mph across the area.

High Wind, Melville Foothills

When
January 1, 10:15 PM MST to January 2, 5:15 AM MST
Where
Melville Foothills forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
46.140, -109.892 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winds gusted to 60 mph across the area.

High Wind, Southern Wheatland

When
January 1, 10:58 PM MST to January 2, 4:58 AM MST
Where
Southern Wheatland forecast zone
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by
RAWS
Coordinates
46.466, -109.844 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winds gusted to 58 mph across the area.

High Wind, Livingston Area

When
January 2, 1:10 PM MST to January 3, 6:20 AM MST
Where
Livingston Area forecast zone
Measured
55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by
ASOS
Coordinates
45.488, -110.526 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winds gusted to 63 mph across the Livingston area.

High Wind, Northern Sweet Grass

When
January 3, 12:30 PM MST
Where
Northern Sweet Grass forecast zone
Measured
53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
45.814, -109.941 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winds gusted to 61 mph just southeast of Melville.

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Montana in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, January 2022

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: 999520, 999517, 999516, 999524, 999525.