Temps Soar… Will February Bring 70 in Montana?

Punxsutawney Phil may have seen his shadow in Pennsylvania on Monday, but in Montana, he'd already been convinced winter is long gone, with soaring temperatures making the start of February.

And while the weekend highs were impressive, there's still warmth to come this week.

Kalispell led the way Saturday, with 50 degrees tying the previous time that had stood alone since 1971. Missoula's 53 degrees fell just short of the 56-degree record, which dates to 1953.

Saturday's 57 degrees seemed warm, but was actually 10 degrees off the record in Great Falls, which was 67 degrees in 1992. Billings' 59 degrees was also short of the 1992 record, also at 67.

It was cooler Sunday, but still mild west of the Divide, with Kalispell hitting 48 degrees, and 53 in Missoula. However, it was warmer in the east, with Great Falls reaching temperatures of 60 and 62 in Billings.

70s this week?

Perhaps. The National Weather Service in Great Falls is forecasting 70-degrees in Cut Bank by Thursday, which is close to the all-time high for February. Great Falls may top 72, which a couple of degrees above the all-time high.

Many other Montana towns will be in the mid-to-upper 60s east of the Divide. That's raising warnings of possible wildfires, especially in Southeast Montana.

     🌡️ Temperatures in the west will peak in the 50s.

RELATED: No Snow Cancels Montana's Premier Sled Dog Race

DNA key in Great Falls murder investigation

Cascade County Sheriff Jesse Slaughter says DNA evidence and surveillance video were key factors in the arrest of the suspect, who's now charged with the murder of a Harlem man on January 9th.

Officers initially arrested suspect Lane Gibson on Wednesday on charges of "tampering with a witness" in the slaying of 25-year-old Terrill Johnson. Investigators say Johnson's body was found in his car, dead from multiple stab wounds.

Slaughter says detectives used video and a water bottle outside the car with DNA evidence to break the case.

"A water bottle was collected near the passenger side of our victim's vehicle," Slaughter explained at a press conference on Friday. "The water bottle had both our suspects' and the victim's DNA on it. We also recovered a blood swipe on the door of the Grandview apartments that entered a storage unit where the camera DVR system was."

     Slaughter says that the system was disabled, with Gibson taking the camera.

The sheriff says detectives received a large number of tips, but in the end, it was the DNA evidence and connecting the dots that led to the arrest, and helped work out a wrinkle in the case, the fact that Gibson has a twin brother.

"Obviously, the tip where they identify his twin, they thought it was his twin. I think that's kind of one. So not very much. I give full credit to like good old-fashioned detective work." -Cascade Co Sheriff Jesse Slaughter

It's expected that Gibson will be arraigned on the new charges of deliberate homicide sometime in the next couple of weeks.

     Bail has been set at $750,000.

Aftershock rattles Great Falls again

Another significant aftershock in Great Falls caught most people's attention over the weekend, as a smaller earthquake occurred just before 6:30 pm Saturday.

That follows Wednesday's quake, which measured 4.2 magnitude and was the largest in Montana in just short of three years.

Seismology reports show this quake hit 3.2, which is right at the edge where most people will notice something, with an epicenter about 2 miles northwest of Malmstrom Air Force Base.

Park sign controversy continues

Conservation groups are attacking the Trump Administration's decision to remove some signage at National Park sites, saying it should alarm every single American.

Reaction is continuing to roll into news that broke in mid-January that the Interior Department had ordered signage to be removed at Glacier and other National Park sites, following up on an Executive Order by President Trump from last spring, ordering "inappropriate" signs to be removed. It should be noted that Glacier had previously removed some signs with an out-of-state prediction that climate change was going to bring about the disappearance of the park's glaciers "by 2020."

The Sierra Club already filed suit last month. Reaction continues to roll across social media, with the National Park Conservation Association saying the Administration is, quote, "suppressing truth, facts, and science."

One group, "Save Our Signs", is encouraging park visitors to document signs being removed and contribute those images to an online database.

Montana delegation asks for help with Little Big Horn Anniversary

Montana's Congressional delegation is asking for the Trump Administration to take steps to help commemorate the 150th anniversary of the "Battle of the Little Bighorn", which is coming up quickly.

Special programs and activities are already being planned for the anniversary of the confrontation between U.S. troops under General George Custer and the Lakota, Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes.

In a letter to Interior Secretary Doug Burgham, Senators Daines, Sheehy, and Representatives Troy Downing and Ryan Zinke say the event is expected to draw "thousands of visitors and substantial press". They're asking for "adequate law enforcement" and additional funding for the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument, as well as completing changes to the visitor's center.