Power Outage in Miles City, MT

A tree was downed at Missouri and Fourth St in Miles City. The tree fell on and smashed a fence. Multiple branches with diameters of 3 to 4 inches were down in Riverside Park. In addition, a tree fell on and knocked a street light off a power pole on the 2100 block of Main Street. Other trees and branches with diameters of 6 inches were down across the city.

A microburst with an estimated wind gust of 70 mph caused trees to be uprooted. In addition, the wind snapped a couple of power poles causing a grass fire. The fire was reported off the Tongue River Road. The power pole lines fell on the edge of a large stack of hay bales. Local ranchers estimated 300+ hay bales were lost in the fire.

Wind damage occurred in the vicinity of Garry Owen/Spotted Eagle Roads, including a downed power line and downed trees. A few sheds were blown apart and a roof was blown off a shed.

The very strong winds downed power lines across the Miles City area which sparked some grass fires. Power lines fell on one house causing it to catch fire. The house was reported to be totally destroyed. Most of Miles City was without power for a period of time.

Thunderstorm wind gusts ranging from 63 mph to 75 mph were reported across the vicinity of Miles City. Trees 12 to 18 inches in diameter were snapped and power lines were down in Miles City. Also, a trained spotter witnessed many shingles being blown off roofs.

A severe thunderstorm that originated in the Lewistown area strengthened even more by the time it reached Custer County. A bow echo structure moved rapidly through the Miles City area. A damage assessment team indicated a very strong outflow in the 75-110 mph range occurred due to a descending inflow jet that produced a short-lived spin-up tornado. This brief touchdown of an EF1 tornado was eventually outrun by the storm outflow as it moved eastward. ||Areal coverage was about one square mile along MT State Road 332 about 13 miles south of Miles City. Debris was thrown several hundred yards from the point of origin. Several structures were impacted with parts of several roofs blown off and the side of one house blown off. Dozens of large trees 12-16 inches in diameter were uprooted and large tree limbs were thrown long distances. In addition, 12 power poles were knocked down, an irrigation pipe system was thrown several hundred feet and a camper was overturned. Other impacts included tree limbs blocking roads, power outages, campers at 12 Mile Dam (no known injuries), and major structural damage to homes, barns, and garages.

Estimated wind gusts of 60 mph were reported 2 miles south/southeast of Miles City. Trees of 6.5 in diameter were broken, as well as a 12 diameter by 7 foot long branch fell across a sidewalk. Traffic barriers were blown into a main street intersection. Many branches up to 3 in diameter were blown down. In addition, wide spread power outages were reported.

Structural damage and power lines were down due to an 82 mph thunderstorm wind gust in Miles City.

Numerous trees were blown down. Several power outages were also reported.

Numerous power outages were reported across the area.

Numerous reports of downed trees and power lines...as well as car windows broken out due to large hail in Miles City between 330pm and 430pm MST.

A powerful upper and surface low moved across central Wyoming into the Dakotas. This resulted in heavy snow and very strong northerly winds. Most highways and roads were closed during the storm, and for a time after the storm.|According to Montana-Dakota Utilities, the strong winds and heavy, wet snow downed hundreds and possibly thousands of electrical poles, destruction that might be among the worst ever seen. Hundreds of cross arms were broken and miles of poles down with the damage being unprecedented. Snowfall amounts of 12 to 15 inches were common.

A period of very strong winds occurred for several days across the Billings Forecast Area. The strongest winds with accompanied damage occurred during the late evening of the 15th through the early afternoon hours on the 16th. A very strong jet stream overhead, along with rapid pressure rises behind a cold front, resulted in very strong, damaging winds. In addition, a mountain wave formed overnight over the Beartooth Mountains. This caused the strong jet stream winds aloft to be brought to the surface in an accelerated motion on the eastern side of the mountains. Red Lodge, MT was hit the hardest with wind gusts to 81 mph. ||A wildfire occurred during the wind storm, most likely due to downed power lines. The Rosebud Fire began at roughly 11:30pm on November 15th in the West Rosebud area. Evacuations for several areas were issued around 2am on November 16th, forcing dozens of people from their homes.

The seasons first snow occurred during the second week of October. A surface low moved northeast out of the Four Corners region across Wyoming into the northern high plains. This allowed cold air to move south out of Canada while drawing moisture northward from the Gulf of Mexico. However, most of the cold air was due to dynamic cooling as a result of this powerful low. Heavy snow occurred across the entire Billings Forecast Area with the heaviest occurring across southeast Montana close to the Dakota and Wyoming borders. In addition, very strong northwest winds on the back side of the low resulted in significant blowing and drifting snow across southeast Montana.

A strong Pacific front swept across the Billings Forecast Area. Strong subsidence occurred behind the front. This subsidence, combined with a powerful jet stream, resulted in strong winds mixing to the surface. Many locations reported winds over 60 mph. Very little damage was reported, but some locations had a few downed power lines.

On January 13, 2021, a particularly strong wind event impacted the entire Billings Forecast Area with strong, damaging winds, not only along the foothills (where strong winds are common), but also across the lower elevations of south central and southeast Montana. These strong winds were associated with a cold frontal passage and lasted for several hours. ||The arrival of a Pacific cold front on the 13th was followed by a period of subsidence and very strong winds across the lower elevations. Aloft, a strong northwesterly oriented jet stream was driving through the northern Rockies, resulting in strong winds at mountain top level. In addition, the cold front also produced light shower activity which enhanced the gustiness of the surface winds. The combination of all these ingredients resulted in the very strong winds. Westerly, wind gusts of 60 to 80 mph were common, and gusts exceeded 90 mph at some mountain sites. ||In addition to the wind, intense drying occurred behind the front and resulted in the development and rapid spread of a few grass fires. The largest fire was in Musselshell County near North Delphia Road just east of Roundup. Musselshell County Department of Emergency Services reported the loss of three primary residences and several secondary structures.||The following wind gust records at local airports occurred:|The peak wind gusts at Billings (69 mph) and Miles City (75 mph) were each records for January. Sheridan (67 mph) reported its 4th highest January gust. The following day (January 14th) Miles City reported a peak gust of 66 mph, which ranks 2nd for January.||The following is a list of impacts that occurred during this high wind event:|-Many large trees blown down|-Many power lines downed resulting in power outages. |-Several semis blown over|-Frequent reports of near zero visibility in blowing dust, resulting in severe driving conditions|-Scattered minor property damage|-Several grass fires|-A United Airlines flight was diverted from Billings to Bozeman|-Montana Department of Transportation reported 35-40 incidents statewide and a high volume of calls (1000).

A strong Pacific cold front swept across the Billings Forecast area during the afternoon and early evening of the 10th. Thunderstorms developed ahead of and along the front. Temperatures ahead of the front were very hot with low dewpoints. As a result, these thunderstorms produced very strong and damaging wind gusts. Although many areas reported strong wind gusts, the only location that reported damage was Miles City in Custer County.||The very strong winds downed power lines across the Miles City area which sparked some grass fires. Power lines fell on one house causing it to catch fire. The house was reported to be totally destroyed. Most of Miles City was without power for a period of time.

A powerful winter storm moved out of the Central Rockies into the central plains on Christmas Eve and into Christmas Day. This low resulted in tight pressure gradients across eastern Montana and the western Dakotas. In addition, the low wrapped abundant moisture out of the Gulf of Mexico north and westward across southeast Montana. As a result, heavy snow fell across Rosebud, Custer, Fallon, Powder River, Carter and portions of Southern Big Horn Counties, as well as Sheridan County in Wyoming. In addition, the tight pressure gradients resulted in very gusty northwest winds which created blizzard conditions across these areas. The following impacts resulted from this major winter storm: I-90 was closed from Sheridan, Wyoming to the South Dakota line on Christmas Day. Periodic road closures occurred across southeast Montana on Highways US212, US12, MT39 and MT59.

A cold air mass moved south out of Canada and combined with a powerful storm system that moved in from the Pacific Northwest Coast. This resulted in periods of heavy snow across portions of the Billings Forecast Area. In addition, a freezing drizzle/snow mix occurred across the eastern portions of the area resulting in numerous vehicle slide offs.

A powerful thunderstorm moved across Rosebud and Custer Counties during the late afternoon and early evening hours of the 18th. Large hail and significant wind damage was reported in the Forsyth and Miles City areas. ||Damage occurred on/near I-94 between exits 135 and 148. A speed limit sign was blown from its pole and carried 20 yards at exit 135. A large blue services road sign was snapped in the middle and blown backwards. Some of the 2ft sheets of metal from the sign were not found. HRH Hospital light pole signs were damaged. About 1.5 miles east on I-94 another large green route sign was snapped in half and 2ft sheets of metal from the sign were blown across the interstate and into a fence. In addition, about 1/4 mile SSE of exit 141, a power pole was snapped about midway-up and appeared to be suspended in the wire. A distribution and transmission pole just outside of Miles City were reported to be broken. Five miles further east on Curcher Road, an approximate 80ft tree with a diameter of around 5ft was uprooted and fell across a ditch crushing a fence. About 1/2 half mile to the east of that location, a billboard was removed of 1/2 of its panels and they were sent in random pieces across the ditch toward the interstate. One mile east on I-94 another billboard was completely flattened; the four supporting poles were snapped off at ground level. Approximately two miles west of exit 148 on I-94, a billboard was missing a couple of approximately 7 foot tall wooden panels.||Extensive property damage was also reported along U.S Highway 12 just east of Miles City. High winds damaged several businesses and residences and brought down numerous large trees. A roof was taken off part of a home just east of Miles City along Highway 12 as well. In addition to the roof damage, the wind brought down a large cottonwood tree and pushed a boat across the yard. Across the highway, the Cenex Harvest States Seed Plant sustained significant damage. Debris from a building on top of the plant was scattered all the way across a neighboring pasture. In addition, several trailers were damaged at Big Sky Campground.

A very strong spring storm system brought significant precipitation to southeast Montana and portions of south central Montana during the first two days of the month. The heaviest precipitation occurred over the higher terrain of southeast Montana. Enough cold air was generated by the storm system that heavy snow developed. In addition, deep surface low pressure that was situated over western South Dakota resulted in strong northwest surface winds. These strong winds that combined with the snow resulted in blizzard conditions and whiteout conditions at times. Total losses for this storm are not known except for Carter County where upwards of $3 million of losses were reported. ||The following is a comprehensive list of snow reports: 12 inches 24SE Ekalaka, Ridgeway, 9 ESE Webster, and in Alzada, 7 inches (2.85 of liquid) in Belltower, 6 inches 12S Plevna, and 10SE Roundup, 6 inches in Volborg with strong winds and wet snow on power poles and power lines causing three power poles to break, 8 inches in Melstone and 1S Red Lodge, 26 inches in Ekalaka (100 power poles down with 90% of the county without power. Highway 7 was closed.), 11 inches 3 ENE Mill Iron and 3E Lame Deer, 24 inches 8S Ekalaka, 9 inches in Rock Springs, 10 inches 1N Volborg(lost calf to snow), Angela, Lame Deer, 15W Biddle(lost calf to snow), and in Sonnette, and 6 inches 10N Decker.

A powerful Spring upper level low slowly moved across Central Wyoming and Southeast Montana during a 48 hour period . As a result, a heavy, prolonged precipitation event occurred. The precipitation started as rain but quickly changed over to snow. The snow became heavy at times with snowfall rates of one to two inches per hour. In addition to the heavy snow, very strong northwest winds of 25 to 40 mph created blizzard conditions across portions of Southern and Southeastern Montana. Zero to near zero visibilities were common as a result of the combined heavy snow and strong winds. |The following are the many reports that were received from this major Spring blizzard: 13 inches in Biddle (2 day liquid equivalent 1.42 inches), 12 inches 14N Albion(snow total from the afternoon of the 29th through 8am on the 30th), 17 inches in Lame Deer, 24 inches with 3 foot drifts in Lodge Grass, 24 inches 1N Busby with drifts to 3 feet, 36 inches 1N Busby with cattle dying, 7 inches in Forsyth, 10 inches in Colstrip, 12 inches in Volborg(2 day liquid equivalent 1.76 inches), 10 inches 44S Ekalaka, 12 inches in Fort Smith, 6 inches 8NNE Powderville, 8 inches 8SW Biddle, 12 inches in Colstrip, 8 inches in Albion(2 day liquid equivalent 1.92 inches), 8 inches at the Billings Airport (new daily record snowfall), 8 inches 10N Bridger, 11 inches Billings West End(8 to 11 inches reported on Rimrock Road), 8 inches 2SE Park City (5 to 8 inches with numerous 2-3 foot drifts, significant and numerous drifting across many area roads).

A powerful spring storm affected southeast Montana beginning April 17th and lasting through the 20th. Severe thunderstorms produced damaging hail in Carter County on the 17th breaking out windows in at least one home. From the 17th, into the early morning hours of the 18th, widespread rainfall totals of 1 to 2 inches fell over this area before changing over to snow. Snow began across the higher elevations early on the 18th and across the lower elevations by the afternoon of the 18th. Spotter reports across much of Carter County and portions of Fallon County indicated 2 to 3 feet of snow fell. In addition to the heavy snow, winds of 50 mph to 60 mph began on the 18th and lasted through the 19th building drifts averaging 4 to 5 feet deep. Drifts near Ekalaka were reported as high as 10 feet deep in places. Power was lost across much of Carter County outside of the immediate Ekalaka area...with spotty power outages reported over Fallon and Eastern Powder River Counties. Reports indicated numerous power poles snapped and power lines down across Carter County. The following is a comprehensive list of storm reports of snow and rain that were received:8 inches 17 NE Ashland; 10 inches 2NNE Albion (1.79" liquid equivalent; electricity out for 48 hours; tops broken off of 25 year old trees); 15 inches in Plevna; 32 inches in Willard with 8 foot drifts; 18 inches 13SE Baker (power outages; cows broke through fences; many calves lost); 20 inches 15NE Ekalaka (heavy tree damage due to heavy snow and ice; dams around the area are full; some thunder and lightning with the onset of the snow; snow is blue in color with heavy moisture content)12 inches 15W Ekalaka (1.50" of rain before the snow started; 40 to 50 mph winds with 3 foot drifts; power out for 48 hours); 24 inches 11N Ekalaka (1.48" of rain before snow started; 50 mph winds with 4 to 5 foot drifts); 12 inches 18NNE Baker; 18 inches in Ekalaka (24 inch snow depth; 1.96" liquid for previous 24 hours); 12 inches 3E Webster (6 to 7 foot drifts; 2.30" liquid; numerous cattle missing; only travel via 4 wheel drive tractors); 16 inches 3ENE Mill Iron ( 5 foot drifts; 2.95" liquid); 30 inches 3S Webster (8 to 9 foot drifts; 1.50" of rain before the snow started); 2.71 inches of rain 8NNE Powderville (heavy wet snow took out power; winds were in excess of 50 mph)12 inches 10ENE Alzada with drifts of 3 to 7 feet and power outages; 24 inches 2S Ekalaka with 4 to 5 foot drifts (two Blue Spruce trees 6 inches in diameter snapped off with 50 mph winds); 30 inches in Ekalaka with 10 foot drifts and 40 mph winds (3.5 inches of liquid with the event); 10 inches in Boyes. (rancher lost some lambs; 3 inches of liquid with the event); 8 inches 5SW Albion with 2 foot drifts and 60 mph winds; 12 inches in Alzada with 2.1 inches of liquid; 20 inches 1NE Willard; 30 inches 5W Willard with 8 to 9 foot drifts; 24 inches with 6 foot drifts 12SW Ekalaka; 18 inches with 6+ foot drifts and trees down 5W Ekalaka; 10 inches with 4 foot drifts 1N Albion (50-60 mph winds; power outages; 1.79 inches of liquid)12 inches with 5 foot drifts 10S Ekalaka (50 mph winds. No power for two days); 18 inches 6S Ekalaka (No power outside of Ekalaka; roads closed throughout the county; 8 to 9 foot drifts; 1.9 inches of rain prior to the storm; 8 inch branches knocked off trees); 3.14 inches of rain 18WSW Willard before turning to snow (lost power); 12 inches with 8 foot drifts 15WNW Ridgeway (2 inches of rain before the snow event);15 inches with 60 mph winds and 10 foot drifts resulting in broken power poles and broken wires in the bell tower area 8N Capitol; 12 inches with 6 to 10 foot drifts 6NE Albion (Possible loss of 100 calves, ranch hand became lost and rode out the storm in an abandoned building)

11 inches 4W Red Lodge (Red Lodge Ski Resort); 6 inches in Miles City (Highway 12 out of Miles City reported closed to the North Dakota state line. Interstate 94 also closed from Glendive to the North Dakota state line.); 12 inches in Volborg; 4 inches in Nye...5SW Nye and 3SW Absarokee; 5 inches 10S Big Timber; 14 inches 2NW Sonnette; 7 inches 9S Big Timber; 14 inches in Colstrip; 4 inches in Joliet and Boyd; 5 inches in Belfry; 14 inches in Ekalaka; 4 inches in Molt; 6 inches 1SW Wyola; 5 inches in Roundup; 5 inches with power outages in Delphia; 5 inches in Hysham along with numerous tree limbs down and power outages; 8 inches 8SW Hysham with numerous tree branches down and power outages; 18 inches 4S Sonnette with numerous branches down and power outages; 10 inches 11E Musselshell with numerous tree branches down; 4 inches 1W Columbus with many branches down and power outages; 5 inches 3S Belfry