Ranger-Review Staff Report
Batten down the hatches, crank up the thermostat and break out the long johns, because a frigid mass of arctic air is barreling down on the region to begin this week, possibly foreshadowing the abnormally cold winter forecasters are predicting will befall the area.
The National Weather Service’s Glasgow reporting station released an alert Friday morning highlighting another major winter storm system with Eastern Montana in its sights. The system is expected to arrive on Sunday, bringing another 3-4 inches of snow on Sunday night and Monday.
The snow is the least of forecasters’ concerns, however. The system is a shivering mass of extremely cold air from the polar region and will bring with it subzero temperatures and dangerously cold wind chills.
According to weather service senior forecaster Greg Forrester, temperatures will begin to fall significantly beginning on Monday. Highs that day are expected to be in the teens to low 20s, with high temperatures on Tuesday likely only reaching the single digits. Low temperatures will reach around zero degrees by Monday night, dipping to minus 10 to minus 25 degrees by Tuesday night.
Northwest winds of 15 to 25 mph will accompany the system, creating the possibility of blowing snow which could impact travel. Adding to the danger, those winds will create wind chill factors of minus 10 to minus 20 on Monday night and minus 20 to minus 35 on Tuesday night.
The weather service highly recommends that pets be brought indoors and that people limit their outdoor exposure during those times, as “hypothermia and frostbite will be a risk for anyone outdoors.”
Reach Jason Stuart at rrreporter@rangerreview.com.