Power Outage in Stanford, MT

The Woods Creek Fire began on June 13th when a fallen tree caused a downed power line. Over the course of the fire, three single-family homes were destroyed, along with four other structures. In addition, a Montana DNRC helicopter fighting the fire crash-landed, causing it to catch on fire. All five people on board survived the crash with minor injuries. Total cost of fighting the fire was estimated to be $5.8 million USD as of January 2022. An estimated 4,648 acres burned.

Power outages were reported near Geyser and Judith Gap due to heavy wet snow weighing transmission lines down. Report was relayed by Fergus Electric Cooperative via facebook.

Eight inches of snow fell at Stanford 3S. Heavy wet snow was reported on numerous roadways and scattered power outages were reported across Judith Basin county. The heavy wet snow required chains be used on towing units on Montana Highway 3 at Garneill to the junction of U.S.-87.

Multiple vehicles blown off area roads. (3 Pickup trucks and 2 tractor-trailers). Multiple power poles down in Moccasin, MT and Stanford, MT.

A gust to 58 mph was reported at Moccasin. The strong winds contributed to four separate accidents involving semi-trailer trucks on Highway 87 between Mile Markers 29 and 40. Two of the semi-trailers were confirmed to have been blown over by the high winds. A third semi-trailer was blown into a ditch. Additionally, power was knocked out in parts of Geyser, Hobson and Windham.

A strong Canadian cold front pushed through North Central MT during the late morning and early afternoon hours on the 16th. Strong sustained winds of 40 to 45 mph, with gusts over 70 mph accompanied the front. Enough cold air filtered in behind this cold front to produce light snow along the Rocky Mountain Front and the adjacent plains. There was widespread wind damage with this event. Over 50 power lines were knocked down in the Great Falls area. Major tree damage was reported in Cascade, Teton and Lewis and Clark counties. Here is a list of some of the top wind speeds recorded during the event:Augusta 10W 80 mph at 1135 MST; Choteau 73 mph at 0920 MST; Vaughn 70 mph at 0955 MST; Fort Shaw 70 mph at 1020 MST; Great Falls 70 mph at 1020 MST; Hobson 66 mph at 0930 MST; Helena 15S 66 mph at 1030 MST; Cascade 5W 65 mph at 1030 MST; Lewistown 10N 60 mph at 1035 MST; Lewistown 20S 59 mph at 1100 MST; Inverness 45-50 mph sustained winds from 1000-1100 MST; Hays 42 mph sustained winds at 1224; Sweetgrass 42 mph sustained winds at 0945 MST.

A late season winter storm moved through much of North Central and Southwest Montana on the 23rd. The snow began to fall over the Rocky Mountain Front late on the 22nd, and over much of the rest of the Northern Plains by day break on the 23rd. The snow moved into Southwest Montana during the morning hours on the 23rd. The snow came to an end across the area early on the 24th. At the peak of the storm, blizzard warnings where issued for several hours for the Rocky Mountain Front and all of the adjacent Plains. Sustained winds of 40 mph, with gusts to 60 mph occurred throughout the morning hours in the blizzard area. Numerous roads were closed across North Central Montana due to zero visibility, and power was temporary knocked out in many locations. Snow drifts ranged from 4 to 8 feet in Glacier and Judith Basin counties. The heaviest snowfall occurred in the western and southern mountains.Some total snow accumulations from this event include: 17 inches at Saint Mary's, 12 inches at Cut Bank and Sweetgrass 25 SE, 10 inches at Shonkin, 8 inches at Ethridge, Showdown Ski Resort, Chester, Boulder Hill, and Shelby, and 4 to 7 inches across the remainder of the plains and valleys in North Central and Southwest Montana.

A high wind event occurred over all of North Central Montana and a portion of Southwest Montana, which began on the afternoon of the 21st and ended on the afternoon of the 22nd. Some of the strongest winds of the winter season were recorded during this event. Sustained winds of 45 to 65 mph were common across much of North Central Montana, with gusts between 60 and 80 mph. However, locations near the Rocky Mountain Front had wind gusts in excess of 100 mph.This high wind event caused scattered power outages throughout much of North Central Montana. One power line that was blown down 15 miles Southwest of Choteau sparked a grass fire. This fire was fanned by the wind, and burned 6000 acres. One farm and homestead were lost in the blaze. A few vehicles were blown off Interstate 15, while other vehicles had windshields cracked as stones were blown into them while driving. Many locations reported visibilities near zero at times, due to blowing dust over the plains and blowing snow over the mountains. Here is a list of some of the top wind speeds recorded during this event.On February 21st:Cut Bank 70 mph at 2046 MST; 4 W Augusta 75 mph at 2225 MST; Fort Shaw 80 mph at 2230 MST; Browning 81 mph at 2255 MST; 18 W Pendroy estimated 100 mph at 2310 MST.On February 22nd27 W Choteau 115 mph at 0040 MST; Silver City 73 mph at 0606 MST; 6 N Big Sandy estimated 85 mph at 0900 MST; 4 E Hobson estimated 70 mph at 1230 MST.

A high wind event occurred over all of North Central Montana on the 10th and 11th of February. The winds began to pick up in intensity over the Rocky Mountain Front late in the afternoon on February 10th. By late evening, high winds were reported across much of the region. The winds began to diminish in intensity during the morning hours on the 11th.During the peak of the wind event, visibilities were less than one mile in many locations due to blowing dust over the plains, and blowing snow in the mountain passes. Several power outages also occurred in Cascade and Lewis and Clark counties from the wind having knocked down power lines. Here is a list of some of the peak wind speeds recorded.On February 10th:Cut Bank 60 mph at 2233 MSTOn February 11th:13 West of Helena 58 mph at 0024 MST; Great Falls 72 mph at 0210 MST; 25 SE of Sweetgrass 65 mph at 0300 MST; Choteau 58 mph at 0330 MST; 68 to 78 mph gusts recorded across much of Fergus county between 0400 MST and 0700 MST; and Silver City 65 mph at 0625 MST.

A high wind event moved across north central Montana on the 12th. Sustained wind speeds of 40 to 50 mph were very common throughout the afternoon, and into the evening hours. Wind gusts were near 70 mph during the peak of the event. These winds started to increase in strength around 1100 MST and then they did not diminish until 2000 MST. The peak wind speeds occurred between 1300 MST and 1600 MST. Due to the very strong winds, blowing dust became a real hazard. The blowing dust reduced visibilities to near zero in many locations for a period of time. As a result of the near zero visibilities, a 12 vehicle accident occurred about 13 miles Southeast of Great Falls near 1330 MST, resulting in 2 fatalities and 4 injuries.Power was knocked out to over 1500 customer in the Great Falls metro area. A few trees were uprooted and several roofs were blown off as well. Near 1745 MST a train was blown off the tracks, just west of East Glacier, at the Midvale trestle. A total of 20 cars and 24 box containers were blown off the track. Wind speeds were estimated to be near 80 mph at the time of the accident.Some of the peak wind speeds recorded during the day were; Great Falls 68 mph at 1330 MST: Conrad 20 SE 68 mph at 1330 MST; Browning 62 mph at 1555 MST; Havre 50 mph at 1756 MST; Boulder 64 mph at 1951 MST, and Lewistown 51 mph at 1954 MST.

The Deep Creek Fire began on June 13, 2021, likely due to a tree falling on a power line. While occasional critical fire weather conditions helped the blaze to grow and spread, the fire was 95% contained on June 24th.