Winter warnings issued for Flathead County

The National Weather Service in Missoula is predicting heavy rains during the second half of the week that could cause snow loading issues on roofs and minor flooding, according to NWS meteorologist Peter Felsch.

The weather service issued a winter storm warning for Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday for Flathead County because of the potential for large snowfalls at high elevations and freezing rain and icy conditions in the Valley. The county was also put under a flood watch.

"It's a very messy situation we're getting into," Felsch said on a conference call with reporters and emergency personnel Tuesday afternoon.

A warm front was expected to move through Northwest Montana late Tuesday and bring with it a lot of rain for lower and medium elevations and lots of snow above 4,500 feet, with that level rising to 5,000 or 6,000 feet as it warms up on Wednesday.

Though the temperatures in the Flathead are expected to stay in the 30s, Felsch said areas further south could see daytime highs well into the 40s.

Felsch said predictions for rainfall in the area were for "easily an inch, if not more," and that raises floding concerns.

"Certainly on buildings with lots of snow on roofs and areas with snowpack and lots of ice plugging culverts there is nowhere for rain and snowmelt to go," he said.

NWS hydrologist Ray Nickless said any flooding would likely be limited to streets and roads where water can pond on top of ice.

"There could be some very icy, very hazardous conditions," Felsch said.

After the warm front moves through on Wednesday and Thursday, the weather service is calling for temperatures to drop back down below freezing through the weekend.

"The temperatures are going up and down like a yo-yo," Felsch said.

Check the weather service Web site at http://www.weather.gov/missoula for the latest updates.