A strong cold front brought very strong winds to the region.

High Wind in DAWSON, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 23:22:00 to 12-JAN-09 03:15:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 52.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

The Glendive AWOS had a peak wind gust of 60 mph at 0035 MST with several hours of winds from 35 to 45 mph sustained.  The Montana Department of Transportation site at the Lindsay Divide had a peak gust of 58 mph at 2322 MST with sustained winds of 35 to 40 mph for several hours.  Weather spotters near Bloomfield reported a peak gust of 58 mph at 0210 MST.

High Wind in WIBAUX, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 23:45:00 to 12-JAN-09 03:00:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 56.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Trained spotters reported 56 mph peak wind gusts around 0100 MST 18 miles south of Wibaux.  Four miles north of that spotter, another one had a gust to 64 mph measured at 0100 MST. Some drifting snow was also reported in the northern portion of the county causing reduced visibilities.

High Wind in CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 21:53:00 to 12-JAN-09 02:00:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 65.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Official NWS Observations

Sustained winds of 35 to 45 mph were reported for several hours on the Glasgow ASOS site.  The peak wind was 72 mph at 2158 MST.  Glasgow 4 miles north had a 75 mph peak gust at 2152 MST, and a site north of Frazer had a 63 mph peak gust at 2201 MST.  The King Coulee RAWS observation had a peak gust of 63 mph on the 2344 MST observation.  While the main impact was the very high winds, the extreme eastern portion of the area had reduced visibilities due to drifting snow as well.

High Wind in GARFIELD, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 23:00:00 to 12-JAN-09 01:00:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 52.00 EG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Strong winds of 30 to 40 mph for several hours reported along with gusts estimated at 60 mph around 2300 MST in extreme northeast Garfield County south of Haxby Point. The Montana Department of Transportation Lufbourough Hill site had a peak wind of 49 mph at 2354 MST.

High Wind in RICHLAND, MONTANA
From 12-JAN-09 00:42:00 to 12-JAN-09 02:27:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 39.00 MS
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Department of Highways

The Montana Department of Transportation site at Sioux Pass recorded sustained winds of 40 to 45 mph for several hours.  The peak wind gust was 53 mph at 0053 MST.  The Sidney AWOS observation was unavailable through part of the event, but it did record a 48 mph gust at 0135 MST.

High Wind in LITTLE ROCKY MOUNTAINS, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 20:17:00 to 12-JAN-09 23:10:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 53.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: RAWS

The wind at the Hays RAWS site gusted to 61 mph at 2117 MST.  Winds were sustained in the 40 to 55 mph range for several hours during the evening as well.

High Wind in NORTHERN PHILLIPS, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 20:50:00 to 11-JAN-09 23:40:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 52.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

The Whitewater School observation had a 60 mph gust at 2110 MST with winds 35 to 43 mph sustained for several hours in the evening.

High Wind in CENTRAL AND SE PHILLIPS, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 21:42:00 to 12-JAN-09 00:27:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 39.00 MS
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Department of Highways

The Montana Department of Transportation observation site at Saco had sustained winds of 35 to 45 mph for several hours.  The peak wind gust at that site was 52 mph at 2243 MST.

High Wind in PRAIRIE, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 23:44:00 to 12-JAN-09 03:15:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 50.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

The Buffalo Rapids site had a peak gust of 58 mph at 0015 MST and sustained winds of 40 to 50 mph for several hours.  The Big Sheep Mountain RAWS site had a peak gust of 55 mph at 0044 MST, with sustained winds of 35 to 40 mph for several hours.  Some drifting snow was observed, but the main impact was the high winds.

High Wind in MCCONE, MONTANA
From 11-JAN-09 21:30:00 to 12-JAN-09 00:35:00 (MST-7)
Magnitude: 55.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Department of Highways

The Montana Department of Transportation Cow Creek observation site had a peak gust of 63 mph at 2257 MST.  The site had 40 to 50 mph sustained winds for several hours as well.   The Weldon area had a peak gust of 54 mph at 2256 MST.