A warm, likely white, Christmas forecast

The bitterly cold temperatures that hit Sunday night are expected to leave the area for the holidays, although the more-than a foot of snow that has fallen this month is likely to keep Christmas white.

National Weather Service reported the temperature dropping to minus 15 for Havre just before midnight, but the high it predicted for today was 51 degrees warmer, at 36 degrees.

Other forecasters also expected warmer weather, with The Weather Channel predicting a high of 40 and AccuWeather.com forecasting a top temperature of 34 degrees.

The weather is expected to bring a high Tuesday from 31 to 33, with the high for Christmas dropping back into the 20s, the forecasters predict.

The forecast includes a chance of rain or snow showers today and tonight, with mostly sunny skies predicted for Christmas Day.

The highs are expected to warm up into the 30s or even 40s through Friday, with the top temperatures dropping back into the 20s or low 30s for the weekend and a slight chance of precipitation.

The Weather Channel forecast calls for highs in the 20s and lows in the teens next week through New Year’s, with AccuWeather predicting the highs a little warmer, in the 30s.