Viral Dust Devil Interrupts Montana Track Meet

If you’ve been in Montana longer than five minutes, you already know the weather’s a little off its meds. Sunshine one minute, sideways snow the next, and now apparently dust devils in line to watch high school track meets.

In Whitewater, Montana (30 miles North of Malta) a track meet went full-on dust bowl championship when a mini tornado danced through the infield. Hailey Lytle caught the incident on camera and posted it on Facebook. It’s since gone viral, of course, because Montana weather never misses a chance to impress.

In the footage, runners stand at the starting line below a certain swirling wall of dirt that emerges with the personality of an emo kid at gym class. The crowd gasps, and there’s a roar of laughter and a few voices shouting as the dust devil comes right through the track meet and disappears. And to their credit, the athletes hardly move. Just another twisted weather moment in a state that has a habit of approaching four seasons like a buffet, you know? Get a taste of everything, all at the same time.

@foxweather A dust devil that spun up at a track meet in Montana on Thursday had people running for cover. #dustdevil #montana #foxweather ♬ original sound - FOX Weather

That is about as Montana as it gets. Wild westerly winds, sideways rain, freak snowstorms in June. It’s all just white noise here in Montana. Most people hardly even glance out the window unless the fence is doing its best Mary Poppins across the yard. A dust devil at a track meet? Not nearly enough to cancel lunch.

No one was hurt, and the storm’s fury fizzled as fast as it came, leaving little damage in its wake.  But not before staking its claim as Montana’s latest surprise guest star.