Just a few days after the start of fall (September 28-30), portions of north central Montana are expected to receive as much as three to five feets of snow in the mountains and about 30 inches in the lower elevations, according to the National Weather Service and as widely reported by the national media such as the New York Times and the Washington Post. The  snowstorm is caused by unusual cold snaps and moisture from the Pacific Ocean  and is likely going to lead to power failures for thousands of Montanans and damage to trees which still have a lot of leaves.