Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 1998

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 27, NWS Missoula, MT

July 4, 1998Flathead County, Sanders County, Montana

NWS Missoula, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 4, 1998, 9:19 PM MDT for Flathead County, Sanders County, Montana. It was in force for 46 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
Jul 4, 1998, 9:19 PM MDT (03:19 UTC)
Expired
Jul 4, 1998, 10:05 PM MDT
In force
46 min
Issued by
NWS Missoula, MT
Area
Whole counties

Counties Flathead County, MT, Sanders County, MT

The nearest sounding before it

Spokane, WA (KOTX), launched 00:00Z, 3.3 hours before the alert went out and 139 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.

926 
WUUS1 KMSO 050325 RRA
SVRMSO
MTC029-089-050405-

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

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN FLATHEAD COUNTY IN NORTHWESTERN MONTANA
  EASTERN SANDERS COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MONTANA

* UNTIL 1005 PM MDT

* AT 909 PM MDT...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM INDICATED 5 MILES SOUTHWEST
  OF NIARADA...BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR...MOVING
  NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  NIARADA AT 930 PM MDT


SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WIND IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH...
DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...DEADLY LIGHTNING...AND VERY HEAVY RAIN WITH
STREET FLOODING POSSIBLE. 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, 8:30 PM MDT, 49 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 4, 8:30 PM MDT, 49 minutes before
WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
830 PM MDT SAT JUL 4 1998

SEVERE WEATHER BEGINNING TO SHIFT INTO LAKE AND FLATHEAD COUNTIES
WHERE THESE AREAS HAVE HAD SUN MOST OF THE DAY...AND AS SHORT WAVE
CONTINUES TO LIFT NORTH. WEST CENTRAL MONTANA THUNDERSTORMS FROM
HAMILTON IN RAVALLI COUNTY TO NORTHERN POWELL COUNTY LIFTING
NORTHWARD WITH SHORT WAVE. ANOTHER SHORT WAVE IN CENTRAL IDAHO
WORKING NORTHEAST TO FIRE UP MORE ACTIVITY ACROSS PORTIONS OF LEMHI
AND IDAHO COUNTY...EXPECTING ISOLATE SEVERE UP THROUGH 0400Z IN
COUNTY WARNING AREA. INSTABILITY TO LAST WELL INTO THE NIGHT SO AM
EXPECTING SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS TO LAST UP THROUGH MIDNIGHT. LOW
TEMPS TONIGHT LOOK GOOD. WORK ZONES CONTAIN CHANGES.
TC
...FORECASTS BELOW ARE PRELIMINARY AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE...

LIB .. 054/074 052/075 ... 293333
FCA EE 052/073 050/075 051 293333
POL .. 052/072 050/073 ... 293332
MSO EE 052/077 051/078 052 295432
HMM .. 053/078 051/081 ... 295432
BTM .. 048/074 046/076 ... 293432
S80 .. 053/074 051/077 ... 294332
P69 .. 056/077 055/079 ... 294332
SMN .. 052/072 048/074 ... 295432

The office that day

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

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 4, 6:09 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOMissoula31 min
Jul 4, 8:20 PM MDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningMSOSanders60 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.