Montana

Looking More Like February

Published

4 weeks ago

February 10, 2026

It’s looking more like February and winter with more snow on the ground in parts of Montana than there has been in a while. That was a pretty good storm and several Montana cities including Helena, Lewistown, Baker and Miles City received more precipitation from this one storm than typically occurs in the entire month of February. However, the rest of the week will be dry and mild. There will be lots of sunshine over the through the rest of the workweek. Wednesday a little snow will fall in southern Montana along I-90, but most of the rest of the state will be dry with comfortable temperatures and decent sunshine. Thursday and Friday will be partly to mostly sunny with highs in the 40s to near 50. Saturday is Valentine’s Day and the weather looks mostly cloudy with highs in the 40s and low 50s with dry conditions. Sunday will be mostly cloudy with an outside chance at a few flakes or drops. Overall most of the state will be dry with highs in the 40s to around 50. Monday is looking mild and dry but starting Tuesday there is a chance of snow and colder temperatures. The pattern next week will be colder with snow moving through the West. Winter is not over yet, but time is winding down.

Have a great day,
Curtis Grevenitz
Chief Meteorologist

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Montana

Missoula and Western Montana neighbors: Obituaries for March 12

Published

2 hours ago

March 12, 2026

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Missoula and Western Montana neighbors: Obituaries for March 12

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Montana

Wind damage highlights insurance challenges for Montana homeowners

Published

14 hours ago

March 11, 2026

Press Room

Wind damage highlights insurance challenges for Montana homeowners

It’s the talk of the town this week — powerful winds ripped the roof off Lincoln Elementary School on Sunday, leaving students, teachers, and residents in shock.

The incident has sparked concern among homeowners who are now worried about how such weather damage could impact their own homes—and what their insurance would cover.

According to Tauna Locatelli, owner of Advantage Insurance, most insurance policies have a set deductible for things like fire or theft, but wind and hail damage deductibles are often much higher, or even based on a percentage of a property’s value.

Quentin Shores reports – watch the video here:

Wind damage highlights insurance challenges for Montana homeowners

“Right now our industry is going through a really challenging time, especially when it comes to wind and hail in Montana. Several carriers are going to a standard ‘all peril’ deductible for everything other than wind and hail. So, it could be $1,000 for all but wind and hail, $2,500 wind and hail,” Locatelli explained.

A deductible is the amount homeowners must pay before insurance covers the rest. For wind and hail, that deductible can be steep.

“Some companies are going 1 or 2% of a coverage value, so that’s the building value. If it’s insured for $500,000 and you have a 1% deductible, you’re looking at a $5,000 deductible for wind and hail, which is what we get in Montana,” Locatelli said.

It’s important for homeowners to know their deductible—if repairs cost less than the deductible, insurance won’t pay anything.

Filing small claims can also impact your rates; Locatelli said, “Because if you have a $3,000 patch job claim and you have a $5,000 deductible, you really don’t want to file that because you’re not going to get anything in. That claim is going to follow your insurance record for five years.”

Age of property factors in as well. If you have an older roof, insurance may not fully cover its replacement.

“You’ve now lived half the roof life. Well, insurance is about indemnity and putting you back in the same condition you were in before the loss. You can’t put a 16-year-old roof on a home, so at 16 years, they’ll now pay 50% of that roof instead of 100% because it’s already lived half of its life. And then it drops each year as it goes by,” Locatelli added.

The bottom line: Keep your property maintained, review your insurance policy, and think carefully before filing a claim—especially as Montana faces more intense weather.

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