Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1996

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 30, NWS Missoula, MT

August 1, 1996Missoula County, Montana

NWS Missoula, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 1, 1996, 2:45 PM MDT for Missoula County, Montana. It was in force for 45 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Aug 1, 1996, 2:45 PM MDT (20:45 UTC)
Expired
Aug 1, 1996, 3:30 PM MDT
In force
45 min
Issued by
NWS Missoula, MT
Area
Whole counties

County Missoula County, MT

The radar

The Missoula radar (KMSX), 5 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 20:49 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.

Open the radar archive at this moment

The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.

The nearest sounding before it

Spokane, WA (KOTX), launched 12:00Z, 8.8 hours before the alert went out and 201 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Spokane, WA at 12:00Z on 1996-08-01Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 0 joules per kilogram.LCL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Spokane, WA at 12:00Z on 1996-08-01The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 11 square meters per square second.193958Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
0 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
No buoyant parcel
Mixed-layer LCL
3260 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
20 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
11 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
95 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KMSO 012042
SVRMSO
MTC063-012130-
 
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
245 PM MDT THU AUG 1 1996
 
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MISSOULA HAS ISSUED A
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING EFFECTIVE UNTIL  330 PM MDT
FOR PEOPLE IN THE FOLLOWING LOCATION...
 
IN WEST CENTRAL MONTANA
 
   ...MISSOULA COUNTY
 
AT 245 PM MDT...MISSOULA DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM
8 MILES WEST OF MISSOULA. THIS STORM IS MOVING TO THE EAST-NORTHEAST AT
30 MPH AND WILL MOVE OVER NORTHERN MISSOULA INTO THE RATTLESNAKE VALLEY
BY 3 PM MDT.
 
THIS IS A DANGEROUS STORM.  IF YOU ARE IN ITS PATH YOU SHOULD PREPARE
FOR DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...LARGE HAIL...AND DEADLY
LIGHTNING.  PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER...PREFERABLY INSIDE
A STRONG BUILDING BUT STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
 
BARKER

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 1, 1:41 PM MDT, 1 hour 4 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 1, 1:41 PM MDT, 1 hour 4 minutes before
A FEW THUNDERSTORMS POPPED LATE THIS MORNING OVER NORTH CENTRAL
IDAHO...NOW OVER WEST CENTRAL MONTANA. SPOTTER REPORT OF HALF INCH
HAIL SOUTH OF HAMILTON (CONNER). ADDITIONAL DEVELOPMENT BEHIND
CURRENT ACTIVITY. SO MENTIONING A FEW THUNDERSTORMS INTO EARLY
EVENING OVER SOUTH PORTION OF AREA. STORMS MOVING FAST SO NOT GOING
TO LAST TOO MUCH INTO EVENING HOURS. UPPER TROUGH DIGS AS IT MOVES
INTO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST ON FRIDAY. FRONTAL MOVEMENT ON MODELS
SEEMS FAST AND EXPECT FRONT TO MOVE THROUGH NORTHERN IDAHO FRIDAY
MORNING AND THROUGH REMAINDER OF WESTERN MONTANA BY EARLY AFTERNOON.
NEAR FRONT QUITE DRY WITH COOL SOMEWHAT STABILE ATMOSPHERE. BEST
MOISTURE/DYNAMICS COME WELL BEHIND FRONT WITH STRONG WAVE PUSHING
THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY. QUITE COLD AIR ASSOCIATED WITH SYSTEM AS
INDICATED BY ALL MODELS AND FREEZING LEVEL PLUMMET DOWN TO 8 KFT BY
SATURDAY MORNING. MENTION OF SNOW OVER HIGHER MOUNTAINS WILL BE
NECESSARY FRIDAY NIGHT. SINCE SUCH A BIT CHANGE COMING WILL ISSUE SPS
THIS AFTERNOON FOR WESTERN MONTANA /NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO.  BELTZ

FCA -245 047/076/050/065
LIB 1345 048/075/048/064
POL 1244 052/078/054/066
MSO 1244 052/080/050/068
HMM 1133 053/082/050/070
FN/02

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Aug 1, 11:30 AM MDT, 3 hours 15 minutes before
IDZ009-010-011-012030-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
1130 AM MDT (1030 AM PDT) THU AUG 1 1996

...ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED OVER NORTH AND EAST CENTRAL
   IDAHO...

AT 1130 AM MDT (1030 AM PDT)...MISSOULA DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED
ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS OVER SHOSHONE...CLEARWATER...IDAHO AND LEMHI
COUNTIES IN NORTH AND EAST CENTRAL IDAHO. THE STRONGEST STORMS WERE
OVER EASTERN IDAHO COUNTY IN THE SELWAY/BITTERROOT WILDERNESS. ALL OF
THE STORMS ARE MOVING TO THE EAST-NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH AND MAY PRODUCE
BRIEF GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL.

IF THREATENING WEATHER APPROACHES YOUR AREA MOVE INDOORS UNTIL THE
STORMS HAVE PASSED. STAY TUNED FOR FURTHER UPDATES AND ADDITIONAL
WEATHER INFORMATION.

BELTZ
Special weather statement, Aug 1, 1:57 PM MDT, 48 minutes before
MTZ004-012130-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
157 PM MDT THU AUG 1 1996

...STRONG THUNDERSTORMS MOVING INTO DEER LODGE COUNTY...

AT 157 PM MDT...MISSOULA DOPPLER WEATHER RADAR INDICATED A VERY
STRONG THUNDERSTORM MOVING INTO DEER LODGE COUNTY. THIS STORM WAS
MOVING TO THE EAST AT 35 MPH AND WILL MOVE THROUGH THE TOWNS OF
ANACONDA AND WARM SPRINGS BY 230 PM MDT. VERY HEAVY RAIN...HAIL
...FREQUENT DEADLY LIGHTING AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS CAN BE EXPECTED
WITH THIS STORM.

WHEN THUNDERSTORMS ARE OCCURRING...THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE IS INDOORS.
STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO OR YOUR LOCAL MEDIA FOR FURTHER
UPDATES AND ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION.

BELTZ/BARKER

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 1996Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1996

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.