Snow possible for Christmas, cooler nights in the forecast

What looked like a brown Christmas for the area may have a splash of white, with National Weather Service predicting a 40 percent to 50 percent chance of snow in this part of The Golden Triangle, following dense fog advisories Monday morning and this morning.

Weather Service’s forecast said less than an inch of snow could accumulate in the region, and if it hits it is likely to stick through Christmas Day, with highs predicted to top out just below or just above freezing Christmas Day.

That follows unseasonably mild temperatures in the area, with Weather Service reporting a high last Friday of 50 at its recording station at the Havre City-County Airport followed by a near-record high of 59 Saturday.

The high for that day, Dec. 21, was just short of the record of 61 degrees set in 1888 and more than 100 degrees above the record low of minus 44 set in 1989. 

It also was far warmer than the normal temperature for that time of year, 29 degrees,

The winds also were rather extreme Friday and Saturday, with steady winds topping out at 35 mph Friday and gusts up to 46 mph and winds reaching 33 mph and 43 mph gusts Saturday.

The short-term forecast predicts continued warmer-than-normal temperatures through the weekend and into next week, although not as warm as last week.

Weather Service predicts highs in the northern part of this region to creep into the 30s by the weekend and into early next week, with low 40s possible near Big Sandy. Lows are expected to remain in the teens with lows possibly in the mid-20s near Big Sandy.

No snow is in the forecast for this region after tonight through Monday, although forecasters are saying a cold and snowy winter could be hitting the area next month.

Forecasts call for below-normal temperatures and above-normal precipitation for the area in January and February. Some predictions warn of a February as bitter or worse than February 2018, the second-coldest February on record for Havre.