BILLINGS — A wave of winter weather is bringing very different skies to different cities across Montana.
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In Billings, residents are seeing constant rain, flooding gutters, and gray skies. But just an hour away, communities including Red Lodge, Lewistown, and Cooke City are covered in snow.
The storm has had severe impacts in some areas. In Lewistown, falling tree branches caused widespread damage and knocked out power to whole neighborhoods. The area saw upwards of a foot of snow, and emergency services are asking people to stay home.
Dumps of snow started in the early morning, captured on camera by professional photographer and Lewistown native Mary Peters.
"I don't think I drove a block that I didn't see tree branches broke off all over town, everywhere. We've been out of power off and on all day," Peters said.
In Great Falls, flights were delayed 3 hours as emergency crews worked to clear the runways.
And in Red Lodge, temperatures dropped drastically, falling from the mid-70s a few days ago to freezing, hitting 32 degrees by Sunday morning.
"It started snowing really heavily and fast within the last hour. Everyone is wearing their beanies and their winter gear," said photographer and Red Lodge resident Traci Mark.
Back in Billings, the early wave of winter weather is changing what people are buying, as dumps of rain send last-minute shoppers fleeing to stores like Tractor Supply.
"I see a lot of winter boots go, and shovels. Tons of shovels," said Tractor Supply sales associate Devin Hauter.
Southwest in Cooke City, the winter weather is ushering in the end of tourist season. An employee of Yellowstone County Trading Post says the store will be closing for the winter tomorrow due to the early onset of snow. This comes just a few days after the cold front caused the early closure of Beartooth Pass.
Despite the disruption and some power outages, the energy across Big Sky Country stays positive. At Sylvan Peak in Red Lodge, the snow was welcomed.
"We're excited to see the snow fly. It's so good to have Red Lodge white," an employee named Marcy said.
Temperatures could bounce back into the 70s by next week, according to the National Weather Service. Despite this, Montanans aren't fazed.
"What I love about people in Montana, in general, is they don't let the weather get them down," Mark said. "They get out in it, and they put the gear on."
