Thousands without power, 'essential travel only' requested after severe thunderstorm in Missoula

A severe thunderstorm rocked parts of western Montana Wednesday evening. Extreme wind gusts toppled trees and power lines across the region, leaving thousands without electricity through the night.

The city of Missoula Thursday morning requested essential travel only due to hazards after the storm.

“We urge everyone to exercise caution while driving, biking, and walking. We request essential travel only due to multiple safety hazards,” Missoula Police Department Information Office Whitney Bennett said. “Reducing traffic volume on the roadways will allow power crews to address these issues more efficiently and clear the roadways.”

The Missoula National Weather Service began issuing warnings of a line of severe storms moving into Montana around 9 p.m. Wednesday. The storm produced 80 mile-per-hour winds at the Missoula Montana Airport, with a reading of 109 miles-per-hour reported by the local weather service office on top of Mount Sentinel.

Lightning also lit up the sky through the storm, sparking reports of multiple new fires. The Ravalli County Sheriff’s Office on Facebook said it had dispatched “all fire departments” to reports of several fires on the Bitterroot National Forest.

Local dispatch centers were inundated with calls through the evening, at times sending callers a busy tone. The City of Missoula Fire Department on Facebook said its first responders were responding to “many” calls of downed power lines and trees.

In Mineral County, the county Disaster and Emergency Services Facebook page said Wednesday night that phone lines were down for the Sheriff's office and residents should text 911 in an emergency.

Electric utility NorthWestern Energy reported outages ranging from St. Regis as far south as Hamilton as of early Thursday morning, with the bulk of outages reported within Missoula. The utility posted on Facebook around midnight that it was working to restore power to customers “as quickly as possible.”

Missoula Electric Cooperative in a Facebook post warned of the “possibility of extended, multi-day outages due to the severity of the storm and the damages left behind.” The utility did not give a timeline for power restoration.

The City of Missoula Public Works and Mobility office on Facebook urged residents to conserve water through the power outage.

Missoula County offices will be closed or providing services remotely Thursday, July 25, due to the power outages. The county says that residents looking to access a county service should call ahead to see if the department will be available. A county department phone directory is available at this link.

Missoula County Public Schools canceled all classes and programs for Thursday, including the summer food service.

Power is out on the University of Montana campus. Campus is open, but university officials are encouraging UM Employees to talk with their managers about working remotely until the cleanup from the storm is complete.

According to the Electrical Safety Foundation, downed power lines can cause serious injury or death. The safety foundation says:

• Stay 35 away from downed power lines, they may be energized.
• Never attempt to move a downed power line or anything else in contact with it.
• If you see someone who is in direct or indirect contact with a downed line, do not touch the person. Call 911.
• Do not drive over downed power lines.
• If your car comes in contact with a downed power line while you’re inside, stay in the car. Honk your horn to get help, but direct others way from your car. 

If you must leave your car because it is on fire, jump out of the vehicle with both feet together to avoid contact with both the car and ground at the same time. Shuffle away from the car

This post will be updated

Copyright 2024 Montana Public Radio