Thunderstorm Wind in Teton County, Wyoming

Thunderstorm outflow wind descended the east slopes of the Teton Range and generated a swath of damage from near Wilson north along the Moose-Wilson Road and through Grand Teton National Park. The damage began near Wilson around 1645MST and spread north until shortly after 1700MST. Downed trees damaged power lines, crushed parked vehicles, made roads impassable, and even stranded park visitors on the Signal Mountain Summit Road. Just under 1000 customers were impacted by power outages due to the downed power lines, including park employee housing at Beaver Creek. In all, over 150 trees were cleared and all park visitors were rescued by 2200MST.

An upper level disturbance crossed eastern Idaho and northwest Wyoming during the afternoon and initiated the development of severe thunderstorms. The thunderstorms generated gusty outflow wind and toppled trees in Teton County and both Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. The downed trees caused power outages, smashed vehicles, and stranded motorists on area roads.