Idaho, 2026

High Wind in Idaho, April 23, 2026

April 23, 2026 · NWS PIH · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Widespread wind gusts up to 65 mph occurred over southeast Idaho.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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
4

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 PIH wrote it up.

Widespread wind gusts up to 65 mph occurred over southeast Idaho.

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 Pocatello, ID wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 23, 12:46 PM MST, 14 minutes earlier. Its key messages:

  • Additional snow accumulations of 2-4" will impact mountain passes in the eastern highland through Friday morning, and Winter Weather Advisories remain in effect.
  • Windy conditions ease this evening throughout the region, but remain breezy Friday. Wind Advisory for gusts around 45 mph remains in place through the evening.
  • Sub-freezing temperatures are expected tonight, with a Hard Freeze possible outside the Interstate corridors. FREEZE WARNING for tonight. Hard Freeze expected most areas Friday night, and additional FREEZE WARNING will be needed.
Area forecast discussion, Apr 23, 12:46 PM MST, 14 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Pocatello ID
146 PM MDT Thu Apr 23 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

- Additional snow accumulations of 2-4" will impact mountain
  passes in the eastern highland through Friday morning, and
  Winter Weather Advisories remain in effect.

- Windy conditions ease this evening throughout the region, but
  remain breezy Friday. Wind Advisory for gusts around 45 mph
  remains in place through the evening.

- Sub-freezing temperatures are expected tonight, with a Hard
  Freeze possible outside the Interstate corridors. FREEZE
  WARNING for tonight. Hard Freeze expected most areas Friday
  night, and additional FREEZE WARNING will be needed.

&&

.DISCUSSION...
Issued at 146 PM MDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Satellite water vapor imagery this afternoon reveals a complex
upper-level low centered over Alberta, Canada. A secondary
shortwave is currently pivoting southeast through western
Montana, trailing the initial system that exited East Idaho
earlier today. Surface winds remain a primary concern into the
evening, particularly across the southern Snake Plain from
Shoshone to Pocatello. While clearing skies may allow for deeper
mixing and wind gusts approaching 45 mph, the development of
shallow convective clouds within these clear slots is expected
to limit the overall mixing potential. A WIND ADVISORY remains
in effect through early this evening to account for these
localized higher gusts.

Lingering snow showers in the eastern highlands will briefly
taper this afternoon before intensifying tonight as the next
shortwave approaches. Additional snowfall accumulations of 2 to
4 inches are expected, primarily above valley floors, impacting
mountain passes through early Friday morning. High-resolution
guidance suggests the heaviest rates will occur late this
afternoon and evening, specifically for the Big Hole Mountains
and surrounding areas. This activity may extend westward into
the Snake Plain near Idaho Falls and shift as far south as
Blackfoot by early evening. Showers will likely redevelop
overnight and spread across the southern and eastern regions
through Friday afternoon; therefore, WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES
remain in effect for much of the eastern highlands.

Cold overnight lows remain a concern tonight and into the
weekend. Overnight lows are forecast to drop below freezing for
most areas outside the immediate Interstate corridors tonight,
with a "Hard Freeze" (temperatures at or below 28°F) possible in
some areas. A FREEZE WARNING has been issued for the entire
Snake Plain for tonight. Even colder air arrives Friday night
into Saturday morning, where there is a greater than 75%
probability of a widespread Hard Freeze across the Snake Plain,
and additional FREEZE WARNINGS are likely. Broad troughing
associated with the Canadian low will likely persist through
mid-week, maintaining showery conditions and below-average
temperatures. Ensemble clusters show positional differences in
the trough axis draped across the region for much of the next
work week, so there is still plenty of uncertainty regarding
exact temperature and precipitation trends.

&&

.AVIATION /18Z TAFS THROUGH 18Z FRIDAY/...
Issued at 1238 PM MDT Thu Apr 23 2026

Seeing an occasional break in clouds across valley terminals
which has allowed occasional VFR to be observed but overall,
still seeing SCT/BKN CIGs around 2-4kft feet throughout much of
the region. KSUN has seen the most breaks in cloud cover and
this will likely continue with VFR conditions expected there.
KIDA and KDIJ will have some potential for showers, maybe a
thunderstorm, later today with the highest chance at the latter
terminal. Localized reductions to MVFR or IFR will be possible
in and around showers along with gusty winds. Speaking of wind,
it remains breezy throughout the area, especially in the Snake
Plain and Magic Valley where winds 20-30 kts are expected into
the evening before lessening later tonight. At least low-end
precip chances remain in the forecast during the overnight and
into the day on Friday.

&&

.PIH WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
Wind Advisory until 8 PM MDT this evening for IDZ051.
Freeze Warning from 3 AM to 10 AM MDT Friday for IDZ051>055.
Winter Weather Advisory until midnight MDT tonight for IDZ060-
063-064-066.

&&

DISCUSSION...DMH
AVIATION...McKaughan

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Teton Valley

When
April 23, 1:00 PM MST to 7:00 PM MST
Where
Teton Valley forecast zone
Measured
55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
43.924, -111.450 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A 63 mph wind gust was recorded at Fall River on US Highway 20. 59 mph was recorded at Canyon Creek and Botts.

High Wind, Arco-Mud Lake Desert

When
April 23, 1:00 PM MST to 7:00 PM MST
Where
Arco-Mud Lake Desert forecast zone
Measured
53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
43.537, -112.374 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A 61 mph wind gust was measured at Tom Cat Summit on US Highway 20. 60 mph were measured at Craters of the Moon and INL Puzzle.

High Wind, Upper Snake River Plain

When
April 23, 2:00 PM MST to 7:00 PM MST
Where
Upper Snake River Plain forecast zone
Measured
52 kt (60 mph) measured gust
Reported by
Mesonet
Coordinates
43.805, -111.767 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A 59 mph wind gust was recorded at Sugar City and 60 mph at Ririe.

High Wind, Lower Snake River Plain

When
April 23, 2:00 PM MST to 8:00 PM MST
Where
Lower Snake River Plain forecast zone
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) measured gust
Reported by
ASOS
Coordinates
42.860, -112.488 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

The Pocatello Regional Airport ASOS recorded a 58 mph wind gust. At 420 PM MDT a single engine aircraft was blown off the runway at the airport which recorded a 45 mph wind gust at that time. No injuries occurred in the aircraft.

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 Idaho in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, April 2026

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1330035, 1330047, 1330048, 1330057.