Power Outage in Sidney, MT

Intermittent blizzard conditions were reported from the morning to mid-afternoon on the 23rd, at the Sidney-Richland Airport (KSDY) ASOS. Time of event ending is estimated due to power loss during the afternoon.

Nearly a mile of power line poles were snapped either a third to half way up off the ground between county roads 130 and 129. A newer metal building in the area sustained roof damage on its southwest portion, which was blown away to the northeast. A mesonet station within three miles of this location measured a wind gust of 90 mph.

Multiple public reports, along highway 16 near the town of Savage, of less than 1/4 mile visibility in blowing dirt, likely due to recently plowed fields and strong frontal winds. Power pole was snapped along highway 16 in Sidney. A 66 mph wind gust was recorded at the Sioux Pass MT-16 DOT site at 4:01 pm local time.

Public reported quarter-sized hail. Power out for roughly two hours.

Trained spotter estimated 60 mph winds causing power surges in their home.

Public reported power poles knocked down. Power not restored for several hours.

Winds were sustained at 35 to 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph for several hours. A peak gust of 75 mph was reported at the Sioux Pass DOT station. Snow amounts ranged from 2 to 8 inches, which contributed to the blizzard conditions. Power lines and trees were knocked down by the heavy/wet snow and damaging winds.

Spotter near Sioux Pass observed rime ice to the thickness of softballs on local power lines. No power outages were observed.

Trained spotter recorded wind gust with a Kestrel unit. Power was then lost while pea size hail fell.

Five miles northeast of Savage a 10 inch diameter tree was blown over by an estimated 60 mph gust. At 1330 MST ten miles southeast of Lambert reported sustained winds of 40 mph for over 3 hours. Power outages were reported.

Initial wind gust was from the west-northwest. Straight line wind damage, or a macroburst was the cause of the damage in Sidney. Power was out for several hours in the Sidney area as power lines were broken by fallen trees and branches. The majority of the damage appears to be with uprooted and snapped evergreen trees, although some cottonwoods and poplars were also damaged. A storage building was destroyed just north of Sidney. A window was ripped out of its frame at 405 pm on the east side of town.

Initial wind gust was from the west-northwest. Straight line wind damage, or a macroburst was the cause of the damage in Sidney. Power was out for several hours in the Sidney area as power lines were broken by fallen trees and branches. The majority of the damage appears to be with uprooted and snapped evergreen trees, although some cottonwoods and poplars were also damaged. A storage building was destroyed just north of Sidney. A window was ripped out of its frame at 405 pm on the east side of town.

High winds blew down a total of 13 wooden power poles.

Several days of freezing fog accumulated on power lines across the area. Minor power pole damage was noted due to the accumulation of rime ice.

A storm system moved from southern California into the northern Rockies and northern Plains. Very stable conditions ahead of the storm system created several days of very dense fog from the 18th through the 22nd of January. This fog created significant delays of commercial and general aviation flights, as well as emergency medical flights having to be grounded. The freezing fog and rime ice, and some light freezing rain accumulated on power lines, causing the lines to snap starting on the 20th and 21st of January. As the storm approached, snow quickly spread from south to north across the area on the afternoon of the 22nd. When the main cold front finally moved through late on the 22nd and the 23rd, the winds switched from the east to the north and northwest with speeds from 25 to 40 mph, resulting in blizzard conditions. Widespread road closures and whiteout conditions kept power crews from being able to restore power, and many residents were without power until January 25th and 26th. Snowfall measurements were difficult to obtain east of Valley and Garfield counties due to the strong winds.

An unseasonably strong upper level low lifted out of the Great Basin on October 11th spreading a swath of heavy wet snow across northeast Montana. The combination of heavy wet snow on several trees that had yet to lose their leaves created numerous power outages, small fires from the power lines arcing and broken tree limbs. The slow movement of this low pressure system resulted in significant early season snowfall accumulations throughout most of the region with a record daily maximum snowfall for October having occurred in Glasgow. The majority of the reports were from 6 to 12 inches, with a few higher reports, including 16 inches in the Larb Hills southwest of Hinsdale, and 18 on the top of Big Sheep Mountain northwest of Terry.

An early season winter storm affected a portion of northeast Montana from late in the afternoon of October 4th through early afternoon on the 5th. An area of low pressure tracked from Colorado on the morning of the 4th to the eastern Dakotas by the morning of the 5th. The storm produced between 6 and 18 inches of heavy wet snow. The heavy snowfall covered an area from extreme eastern Sheridan County and eastern Roosevelt County through eastern McCone, southeast Garfield, and Southern Petroleum Counties and points east to the north Dakota Border. The heaviest snow fell in Wibaux and Dawson Counties where more than a foot of snow was observed. The snow occurred at a time when the leaves where still on the trees, and combined with winds of 25 to 35 mph to cause many trees and tree branches to be downed, and knocked out power to many areas. Although most areas had power restored within a few to several hours, a few spots did not have the power restored for a day or two. The strong wind also combined with the snow to produce blizzard conditions at times and created snowdrifts that were several feet deep in spots. Interstate 94 from Terry to the North Dakota State Line was closed early on the morning of the 5th and did not reopen until evening. Many secondary roads where either closed or open to emergency travel only. The heavy snow caused many schools and businesses to close across the area. A few of the more impressive snowfall totals included:12 NW Carlyle (Wibaux County): 18 inches5 E Carlyle (Wibaux County): 16 inchesGlendive (Dawson County): 12 inchesSidney (Richland County): 10 inches 15 E Crow Rock (Prairie County): 10 inchesFlattwillow (Petroleum County): 6 inches

A major winter storm hit eastern Montana leaving over 1500 residents without power as nearly 2000 power poles snapped in half. The storm started as rain and produced several hours of sleet before changing to snow. After the ice turned to all snow, strong winds from 30 to 45 mph with gusts to 60 mph developed creating blizzard conditions with 6 to 12 inches of snow. Drifts up to 5 and 6 feet were reported in Sheridan County.

A line of severe thunderstorms moving through northeast Montana brought damaging winds and large hail. Wind gusts over 80 mph were reported and numerous power lines were blown down. Brief tornado touchdowns were reported in southern Valley County along Fort Peck Lake.