Extreme Cold/Wind Chill — Eastern Glacier, Western Toole, and Central Pondera, Montana

2025-02-19 · Eastern Glacier, Western Toole, and Central Pondera, Montana

Event narrative

A few mesonets measured criteria cold the morning of the 19th, including mesonet station MTSWT Sweetgrass (MT DOT) which measured a wind chill of -59 F.

Wider weather episode

A stout closed low over Manitoba swung a shortwave around its western periphery and then southward toward the Northern Rockies Feb 16. The wave stalled over MT, resulting in a strongly cyclonic flow aloft, while the main upper disturbance exited eastward.. This allowed for a long duration snow event that lasted into the 18th.

After this system cleared out, a strong surface high resulted in another period of extreme cold. This episode will also serve as the location for additional extreme cold highlights from June 16 through the morning of the 19th.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1246501. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.