High Wind — Absaroka Mountains, Wyoming

2022-12-27 · Absaroka Mountains, Wyoming

Event narrative

Winds gusted as high as 88 mph along the Chief Joseph Highway in the northern Absarokas.

Wider weather episode

A cold front and trough moved across Wyoming and brought heavy snow to portions of the western mountains and high winds to much of central Wyoming. The highest snowfall amounts were in the Tetons where as much as 13 inches of snow was reported. The main story though was the wind. In the Wind River Mountains, periods of snow combined with wind gusting over 80 mph caused the closure of Wyoming Route 28 over South Pass for several hours. The strongest wind in the lower elevations occurred in Natrona County where many locations recorded wind gusts over 70 mph with a maximum gust of 89 mph along Wyoming Boulevard south of Casper. The high winds caused minor property damage, including a trailer that was destroyed at a restaurant. Wind gusts of hurricane force also occurred in the Absarokas and the Green Mountains.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1072435. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.