After record snow, record cold has hit much of Montana. Dozens of towns and cities set record cold high temperatures on Monday with readings staying in the 20s and 30s when the average highs should be in the 60s. And then the bottom fell out Monday night into Tuesday morning. Incredibly, some locations dropped below 0 for the first morning of October. Other towns including Great Falls, Cut Bank, Chester, Kevin, Fairfield and Shelby woke up to temperatures in the 0s. Temperatures were the coldest where the most snow is on the ground. More record lows are likely Tuesday night into Wednesday in this same area. Meanwhile a WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is in effect for southeastern Montana through Wednesday. Light snow could accumulate up to 6" there, but little to no snow will fall over the areas affected by the huge weekend storm. Wednesday should be a very pleasant day for the western half of Montana with more sunshine and highs in the 40s and 50s. Where there is deep snow on the ground like the Rocky Mountain Front, highs will hold in the 30s. Thursday will be a warmer day across the state with highs reaching the 40s and 50s. The next storm will spread clouds, mountain snow, and mixed rain/snow in the lower elevations on Friday. There may be a few inches of accumulation over the mountains near the Continental Divide. Rain and snow showers with strong wind will hit the lower elevations which will make for unpleasant conditions if you're outside. Highs will only be in the 40s in the lower elevations, 20s and 30s in the mountains. Saturday will be windy and partly cloudy with scattered snow showers over and near the mountains. Highs will be in the 40s and 50s, 20s and 30s in the mountains. Sunday will be a very nice day with mostly sunny skies and warmer temperatures in the 50s and 60s. True Indian Summer weather will continue with warm and dry conditions on Monday and Tuesday as well.
Have a great day and stay warm.
Curtis Grevenitz
