BILLINGS — In typical Montana fashion, we have a Winter Weather Advisory in the Beartooth Mountains west of Billings and severe thunderstorm possibilities to the east Monday evening. All in the middle of June.
Very chilly air in the mid-levels of the atmosphere is bringing snow across central and western Montana, and that includes Beartooth Pass. With the threat of hazardous travel, the roadways closed through sometime Wednesday.
While we expect some accumulation in the higher peaks, areas like Red Lodge and Cooke City could see a rain/snow mix. Snow accumulations are possible in elevations above 6,500 feet.
Meanwhile, strong to severe thunderstorms are popping across southeastern Montana through Monday evening. These could produce quarter-sized hail and 60-mile-per-hour wind gusts.
The thunderstorm threat will diminish throughout the evening, and the snow potential sticks around overnight through at least Tuesday morning. Some areas of heavy rain are possible, especially north of Billings.
The entire weather system will continue to wind up in northeastern Montana and then Canada by late Tuesday into Wednesday.
Expect chilly temperatures with lows in the 30s and 40s early Tuesday and most of the afternoon highs in the 50s. That will be 20 to 25 degrees below the seasonal average.
Temperatures will begin to quickly warm for the rest of the week, with the threat of thunderstorms over a widespread area on Friday. Temperatures will warm to the 80s to 90s over the weekend, with some areas hitting 90 degrees for the first time in 2024.
