High Wind in Judith Basin County and Judith Gap, Montana

Quite a few sensors measured sustained winds of 40 mph or greater averaged over at least an hour or gusts of 58 mph or greater, including mesonet stations MTEDD Eddies Corner (MT DOT), MTGYS Geyser (MT DOT), MWSM 2 W Moccasin, AWOS station K1CM Charlie, and Montana mesonet stations Moccasin and Judith Gap. The peak gust of the day was observed at Judith Gap (84 mph).

Robust low to mid level flow westerly flow associated with a potent shortwave and attendant cold fronts resulted in a prolonged period of high-end winds and gusts across the entire region Dec 17 into the 18th. Multiple gusts in excess of 90 mph were observed in populated areas, with a peak observed gust of 104 mph west of Bynum. Prolonged power outages were observed across the region, mostly due to trees being damaged/falling over completely. Additional societal impacts included extremely difficult to impossible travel conditions, which prompted a Civil Emergency Message for areas along the Rocky Mountain Front the afternoon of the 17th.