Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 24, NWS Missoula, MT

July 4, 1998Missoula County, Montana

NWS Missoula, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 4, 1998, 6:09 PM MDT for Missoula County, Montana. It was in force for 31 min. 1 report came from inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named, with what was reported inside it.

The facts

Issued
Jul 4, 1998, 6:09 PM MDT (00:09 UTC)
Expired
Jul 4, 1998, 6:40 PM MDT
In force
31 min
Issued by
NWS Missoula, MT
Area
Whole counties

County Missoula County, MT

What was reported inside it

TimeReportWhereRemark
Jul 4, 6:10 PM MDTHail 0.75Lolo, MT

NCEI Storm Data entries that began inside the alert's area while it was in force. Before 2003 the local storm report archive is thin, so this is the record of what happened rather than what was phoned in.

The nearest sounding before it

Spokane, WA (KOTX), launched 00:00Z, 0.2 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 00:00Z on 1998-07-05Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 528 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 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 00:00Z on 1998-07-05The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 0 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
528 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-13 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
1422 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
0 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.

875 
WUUS1 KMSO 050014 RRA
SVRMSO
MTC063-050040-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
609 PM MDT SAT JUL 4 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN MISSOULA COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MONTANA

* UNTIL 640 PM MDT

* AT 608 PM MDT...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INDICATED 2 MILES WEST OF
  LOLO...BY SPOTTERS...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH.

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  LOLO AT 615 PM MDT
  MISSOULA AT 645 PM MDT


SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...
DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. FOR YOUR
PROTECTION MOVE TO AN INTERIOR ROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF YOUR
HOME OR BUSINESS. HEAVY RAINS FLOOD ROADS QUICKLY SO DO NOT DRIVE
INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD.

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 Jul 4, 2:45 PM MDT, 3 hours 24 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 4, 2:45 PM MDT, 3 hours 24 minutes before
WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
245 PM MDT SAT JUL 4 1998

UPPER LEVEL TROF BEGINS TO WEAKEN AND KICK OUT...BUT MODELS DIFFER ON
TIMING. BELIEVE NGM TOO FAST. TODAY MAY SEE SEVERE TSTMS LEMHI COUNTY
AND IN SOUTHWEST MONTANA. SATELLITE SHOWING BLOW UPS AND LIGHTNING
ALREADY IN THOSE AREAS. SHOULD BE ENOUGH INSTABILITY AND WITH HIGH
DEWPOINTS WILL PROBABLY SEE LATE AFTN AND EVENING TSTMS OVER WESTERN
MONTANA AND IDAHO...EXPECT SEVERE TSTMS EAST OF DIVIDE IN LOCATION OF
THE THERMAL TROF ON SUNDAY...BUT NONE IN CWA. TSTM ACTIVITY DECREASES
MONTANA AS UPPER FLOW BECOMES MORE WESTERLY BY MONDAY. HARMER

...FORECASTS BELOW ARE PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE...

LIB .. 054/074 052/075 ... 323333
FCA EE 052/073 050/075 051 323333
POL .. 052/072 050/073 ... 323332
MSO EE 052/077 051/078 052 324432
HMM .. 053/078 051/081 ... 325432
BTM .. 048/074 046/076 ... 327432
S80 .. 053/074 051/077 ... 324332
P69 .. 056/077 055/079 ... 324332
SMN .. 052/072 048/074 ... 325432

The office that day

Everything else NWS Missoula, MT issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 4, 8:20 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOSanders60 min
Jul 4, 9:19 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOFlathead, Sanders46 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 1998Every severe thunderstorm warning in 1998

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; verification from NCEI's Storm Data; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.