More than 3,800 Flathead Electric Cooperative Members without Power as Storm Continues
Downed powerlines have prompted outages along U.S. Highway 2 from Libby to Essex as National Weather Service officials describe a “highly complex series of events” that include widespread wind, snow and fluctuating temperatures forecast through Saturday night
By Maggie Dresser
Amid a storm that has brought sustained wind speeds hovering around 20 mph through northwest Montana, roughly 3,800 Flathead Electric Cooperative (FEC) members are without power as of Thursday morning, primarily near Lincoln County where travel has been restricted due to downed power lines.
The weather forecast and its prediction of widespread power outages prompted school closures across the Flathead Valley Thursday, including at Kalispell Public Schools. All after-school activities and athletic practices are also canceled.
School officials said they would notify families and staff by 6 a.m. Friday, March 13 if school schedules are again impacted.
Even if the storm hasn’t yet materialized to the degree forecasters anticipated, weather experts describe a “highly complex series of events” unfolding through the weekend as windy conditions and snow levels fluctuate.
As of Thursday morning, FEC crews have been dispatched across Lincoln and Flathead counties, with the highest concentration of outages near Libby and along U.S. Highway 2 from the west near Marion to the east extending from Bad Rock Canyon through Essex. Other areas include the east and west shores of Flathead Lake and Swan Lake.
According to FEC, there are multiple poles down across the system that need to be replaced, which can take longer due to additional work involved.
Multiple road closures exist in Lincoln County due to flooding and downed trees, including a portion of Granite Creek Road, Farm to Market Road and Montana Highway 56 near Noxon.
On the east side of the Continental Divide, the Blackfeet Tribal Council has declared a state of emergency due to severe cold and wind events.
In the backcountry, widespread snow and wind gusts hovering around 60 mph on ridge tops have prompted the Flathead Avalanche Center to issue an avalanche warning for areas above 5,000 feet in the Whitefish, Swan and Flathead Ranges along with Lake McDonald, Marias Pass and areas of Glacier National Park.
According to Thursday’s avalanche advisory, forecasters describe “very dangerous avalanche conditions” as strong to extreme southwest winds and snowfall further stress buried weak layers in the snowpack while backcountry travel is not recommended.
Due to gusty conditions up to 70 mph at high elevations, forecasters say snowfall totals are difficult to tally.
According to the National Weather Service (NWS), a cold front will move through the region as snow levels drop to valley floors and the atmospheric river stalls while winds will pick back up this afternoon, gusting 40 mph to 60 mph on mountain ridges.
On Saturday night, a snow squall and freeze risk is possible due to daytime melting that could rapidly freeze followed by another round of “wintery travel” on Sunday night as an Arctic airmass plunges south out of Alberta, which could produce heavy snow between Kalispell and Missoula.
Shower activity will wane by midnight on Saturday before active weather picks back up on Sunday night.
A “dirty ridge” will start to build next week, with temperatures reaching the 50s and 60s by Tuesday, according to NWS.