Winter weather advisory marks first day of summer
Russell Johnson looks over a large cottonwood tree that fell onto his property along Helena Flats Road after a brief storm blew through the area Wednesday afternoon. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
On this first day of summer, it’s beginning to feel a lot like — winter?
There’s a winter weather advisory in effect until 2 p.m. today for the West Glacier region that includes Glacier National Park, according to the National Weather Service. Wet snow is expected above 6,000 feet, with total snow accumulations of 1 to 3 inches and 3 to 6 inches above 7,000 feet expected.
“Plan on cold and snowy backcountry conditions,” the Weather Service advised.
The National Weather Service forecasts a high of 59 degrees today in the Kalispell area, with an 80 percent chance of rain and possible thunderstorms.
On Wednesday the Flathead Valley dealt with high winds and thunderstorms that rolled through, causing power outages and some downed trees largely in the Whitefish and Columbia Falls area. Flathead Electric Cooperative’s outage map showed 16 outages with about 3,200 customers without power for a while Wednesday afternoon.
Unseasonably cool temperatures will linger through the weekend, along with pretty good chances of rain. By Monday the Flathead Valley should see some sunshine.