High Wind Warning Issued for Central and Southwest Montana with Gusts Up to 85 MPH
This alert is no longer in effect.
NOAA issued it on April 6, 2026, 4 months ago. Warnings of this kind stay in effect for hours to a few days, so this page is a historical record of what was issued, not a current warning. For conditions where you are right now, check weather.gov (US), weather.gc.ca (Canada), the Met Office (UK), or the Bureau of Meteorology (Australia).
Areazine synthesizes this NWS weather alert directly from NOAA's official public data feed. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
The National Weather Service has issued a High Wind Warning for central and southwest Montana, effective from midnight Wednesday night through Thursday evening.
Read this weather record in 30 seconds
- Record type
- High Wind Warning
- Affected area
- Central and Southwest Montana
- Issued
- April 6, 2026
- Issuing authority
- NWS Great Falls MT
Wind notices are issued against local thresholds and a defined time window. Confirm both in the original notice before making a current-condition decision.
Record status: historical. It was issued 4 months ago; use the issuing agency's live warning service for current conditions in Central and Southwest Montana.
Alert Details
The National Weather Service in Great Falls, MT, has issued a High Wind Warning for multiple regions across central, north central, and southwest Montana. This alert indicates that damaging wind conditions are likely, posing a significant threat to property and travel safety.
Affected Areas
The warning covers a broad geographic scope, including:
- North Central/Central Montana: Eastern Toole and Liberty, Eastern Pondera and Eastern Teton, Western and Central Chouteau County, Cascade County below 5000ft, Judith Basin County, and Judith Gap.
- Mountainous Regions: Upper Blackfoot and MacDonald Pass, Gates of the Mountains, Little Belt and Highwood Mountains, Big Belt, Bridger and Castle Mountains, Elkhorn and Boulder Mountains, and the Gallatin, Madison, and Centennial Mountains.
- Valleys and Basins: Helena Valley, Meagher County Valleys, Canyon Ferry Area, Missouri Headwaters, Madison River Valley, and Gallatin Valley.
- Southwest Montana: Northwest Beaverhead County, Beaverhead and Western Madison below 6000ft, and the Ruby Mountains and Southern Beaverhead Mountains.
Expected Conditions
Residents should prepare for sustained southwesterly winds ranging from 35 to 45 mph. Peak wind gusts are expected to reach:
- Southwest Montana: Up to 75 mph.
- The Plains: Up to 85 mph.
In addition to high winds, blowing dust or snow could significantly reduce visibility at times.
Timeline
The High Wind Warning is scheduled to go into effect at midnight Wednesday night (March 12) and will remain active until 6:00 PM MDT Thursday (March 12).
What You Should Do
The National Weather Service advises that damaging winds may blow down trees and power lines, and power outages are possible. Travel will be very difficult to dangerous, particularly for high-profile or lightweight vehicles. Those traveling with such vehicles should consider delaying travel or finding an alternate route until the warning expires.
Original source: NOAA Official Notice ↗
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