Caught the Flu in Montana? It’s More Likely Now

It will be a few days before we see the full impacts of holiday gatherings, but even going into the holidays, Montana's flu rates had started to climb, ahead of both the 5-year average and last year's flu season.

The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services reported 52 weekly cases in late December, with 67% of the hospitalizations being Montanans over 65. Bighorn County has the highest weekly flu rate, at 105 total, with Deer Lodge the second highest, followed by Yellowstone, Musselshell, Wheatland, Sweet Grass, Cascade, and Toole counties among the highest in the state.

      Last year, there were just over 1,000 hospitalizations and 68 deaths from the flu, with fewer than 20% of those people vaccinated.

'Cats create magic to win first FCS trophy since MTV was cool

It better be "Taco Tuesday" at every restaurant in Bozeman today, after Montana State wide receiver Taco Dowler nailed an incredible catch to give the Bobcats a thrilling 35-34 victory in overtime, securing MSU's first championship since 1984.

Illinois State, which made the title game after a Cinderella post-season of upsets, nearly did the same to MSU with determined drives in the second half, forcing the extra frame.

     🏈 That's when QB Justin Lamson stepped in on the 14-yard line, with the 'Cats trailing 34-28, to nail Dowler on a last-gasp 4th and 10 play for the win. 

Arrest made in school threat case

Kalispell Police say they've arrested the teen wanted for making threats against a Flathead County high school over the weekend. Authorities aren't saying how old the teen is, but announced Sunday he'd been apprehended and the investigation was continuing.

Yellowstone has a plan for twisty road replacement

Yellowstone National Park is ready to launch into one of the largest repair projects left from the 2022 floods, rebuilding the park's North Entrance Road south of Gardiner.

The previous road between Gardiner and Mammoth was completely destroyed by the flooding, forcing the park to construct a temporary entrance road, which is steep and twisting, climbing up and over the hill between the two destinations.

The park says that the road was never meant to be permanent, and now engineers have come up with three different alignments for a long-term fix. An in-person presentation is set for next Tuesday from 4 to 5:30 at the Yellowstone Forever Institute in Gardiner. A virtual meeting will happen on Wednesday.

     Here's the link to join the virtual meeting.

Montana gas price is finally close to the national average

Montana's gas prices are still not QUITE at the national average, but are getting closer.

GasBuddy's latest survey has Montana prices dropping another 3.4 cents a gallon this past week. That pushes the average for a gallon of regular down to $2.75 a gallon, which is just a penny higher than the national average. That's the closest in months. And the survey shows gas finally being a little bit cheaper, just 2 cents a gallon less than last January.

Montana stress high; money big thing as '26 starts

If you're feeling stressed in Montana, and those anxieties are tied to the economy, you're apparently right there with the majority.

A new report from the insurance comparison service iSelect shows Montanans are being impacted the most by financial and "educational" stress, ranking 10th and 8th out of all 50-states. However, apparently those money worries aren't tied specifically to healthcare, where Montana ranks 46th of the 50-states.

     The state's overall "stress rate" is "middle of the pack" at 23rd of all 50-states.