Winter Weather — Elkhorn and Boulder Mountains, Montana

2024-01-09 · Elkhorn and Boulder Mountains, Montana

Event narrative

Snow Squall. Starting at 11:15 AM, the precipitation sensor was detected and live webcams showed precipitation increasing from the west. Road surface temperatures were recorded to be between 25 degrees at the start and 23 degrees by 12:30 PM. Wind gusts were between 10 mph and 23 mph from 11:15 AM to 12:30 PM. MDT 15 minute webcam imagery showed near zero visibility between 12 PM and 1 PM. Precipitation sensor stopped reporting activity at 12:45 PM and webcam imagery showed visibility improvement after 1 PM MST.

Wider weather episode

A brief period of warm conditions accompanied strong to gusty southwesterly winds across much of North-central and Southwest Montana. An Arctic cold front arrived shortly after, which brought much colder temperatures and accumulating snow to much of the Treasure State, including snow squalls to portions of Southwest Montana.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1150884. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.