Storm closes Highway 35, kills one

Bigfork Eagle

A winter storm that slapped the Flathead Valley on Friday night has closed Highway 35, knocked out power along the East Shore of Flathead Lake and killed one person, according to a spokesman with the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

The fatality was a result of a tree toppling on the individual's vehicle along the East Shore of Flathead Lake. No additional information was available from the sheriff's office early Saturday afternoon.

Downed trees knocked out power lines and made portions of the highway impassable from south of Woods Bay to Polson.

Bill Walsh, with the Montana Department of Transportation's Kalispell office said crews were working to clear the road, but the closure was indefinite as of about 1 p.m. Saturday.

"They're trying to get it open, but every time they turn around another tree is down," he said. "It's an ongoing situation, they're doing the best they can."

Crews from Flathead Electric were also moving up and down the highway working on downed lines to restore power to residents along the lower stretches of the Highway. Power as far south as Woods Bay seemed to be unaffected.

High winds and frigid temperatures were hampering the efforts, as well as keeping road conditions all over the Valley dangerous.

The National Weather Service is predicting continued high winds and temperatures dropping below zero for the remainder of the weekend into the beginning of the week.

Updated information on road conditions can be found on the Department of Transportation's Web site at http://www.mdt.mt.gov/travinfo/.

For more on this story, please see next week's Bigfork Eagle.