Tornado Warning 1, NWS Great Falls, MT

Issued

Jun 2, 1999, 5:30 PM MDT (23:30 UTC)

Expired

Jun 2, 1999, 6:00 PM MDT

In force

30 min

Issued by

NWS Great Falls, MT

Area

Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

Counties Chouteau County, MT, Liberty County, MT

The Great Falls radar (KTFX), 91 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 23:33 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.

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.

077 
WFUS1 KGTF 022333 RRA
TORGTF
MTC015-051-030000-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
TORNADO WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
530 PM MDT WED JUN 2 1999

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREAT FALLS HAS ISSUED A

* TORNADO WARNING FOR...
  NORTHWESTERN CHOUTEAU COUNTY IN MONTANA
  SOUTHERN LIBERTY COUNTY IN MONTANA

* UNTIL 600 PM MDT

* AT 523 PM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  THUNDERSTORM WITH A POSSIBLE TORNADO OVER EXTREME SOUTH CENTRAL
  LIBERTY COUNTY...OR ABOUT 24 MILES SOUTH OF CHESTER...MOVING NORTH
  AT 20 MPH.

IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...SEEK SHELTER IN A NEARBY REINFORCED
BUILDING. AS A LAST RESORT...SEEK SHELTER IN A CULVERT...DITCH OR LOW
SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

THE SAFEST PLACE TO BE DURING A TORNADO IS IN A BASEMENT. GET UNDER A
WORKBENCH OR OTHER PIECE OF STURDY FURNITURE. IF NO BASEMENT IS
AVAILABLE...SEEK SHELTER ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING IN AN
INTERIOR HALLWAY OR ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET. USE BLANKETS OR PILLOWS TO
COVER YOUR BODY AND ALWAYS STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

IF IN MOBILE HOMES OR VEHICLES...EVACUATE THEM AND GET INSIDE A
SUBSTANTIAL SHELTER. IF NO SHELTER IS AVAILABLE...LIE FLAT IN THE
NEAREST DITCH OR OTHER LOW SPOT AND COVER YOUR HEAD WITH YOUR HANDS.

LAT...LON 4810 11119 4810 11088 4846 11085 4847 11119

NWS Great Falls, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this tornado warning went out at Jun 2, 3:00 PM MDT, 2 hours 30 minutes earlier.

SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
300 PM MDT WED JUN 2 1999

MOIST PERIOD IN STORE FOR THE FORECAST AREA. VORTICITY LOBES ARE
FORECAST TO MOVE INTO MT TONIGHT THROUGH THU NIGHT. LIKE TUE MODELS ARE
QUITE DIFFERENT ON SHORTWAVE DETAILS. ALSO MODELS ACTUALLY DO OR HINT AT
UPPER LOW DEVELOPMENT OVER MT THU. BY LATE THU AFTERNOON ETA HAS UPPER
LOW OVER NE MT WHILE NGM HAS UPPER LOW OVER SW MT. AVN NEVER DEVELOPS
UPPER LOW AND WAS PRETTY MUCH IGNORED FOR THIS FORECAST PACKAGE. MODELS
IN BETTER AGREEMENT IN TREATMENT OF SURFACE LOW WHICH MOVES SLOWLY N
THROUGH ERN MT TONIGHT THROUGH THU NIGHT. ETA/NGM IN GENERAL AGREEMENT
IN BAND OF HEAVY QPF FROM SW MT TO CENTRAL MT LATER TONIGHT THROUGH THU
NIGHT. RESPONSIBLE FACTORS ARE A GOOD AMOUNT OF DYNAMICS INCLUDING AT
TIMES...WARM AIR ADVECTION...JET DYNAMICS...LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE...AND
LOW LEVEL UPSLOPE. QPF VALUES FROM SW TO CENTRAL MT ABOVE .75 INCH
ALMOST CERTAIN AND COULD LOCALLY APPROACH 2 INCHES. SNOW LEVELS WILL BE
HIGH...I.E. 8500 TO 9500 FEET. DUE TO RECENT RAINFALL THESE FORECAST QPF
VALUES HAVE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE MORE FLOODING OVER PORTIONS OF SW MT.
FOR THIS REASON A FLOOD WATCH WAS ISSUED EARLIER TODAY. AS FAR AS
THUNDERSTORM SITUATION GOES...BETTER INSTABILITIES ARE OVER ERN PORTION
OF FORECAST AREA THIS AFTERNOON SO WILL INDICATE POSSIBILITY OF
THUNDERSTORMS THERE. CAPES ARE NOT THAT IMPRESSIVE SO LITTLE THREAT OF
SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. FOR THU...AS MSO MENTIONS IN COORD CALL...SHOULD
BE A STRATIFORM RAIN EVENT OVER MUCH OF AREA. LONE EXCEPTION COULD BE SE
PORTION OF AREA WHERE POSSIBILITY OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MENTIONED.
LOOKING AHEAD TO FRI...UPPER LOW SHOULD MOVE INTO CANADA SO LOOK FOR
IMPROVING CONDITIONS. WAS NOT SURE OF TIMING OF THE END OF PRECIP EVENT
SO HAVE STUCK CLOSE TO NGMS HIGH SCATTERED POPS. LATER SHIFTS CAN TAKE A
CLOSER LOOK AT THIS.
EXTENDED...LATEST MRF HAS CHANGED TUNE AND NOW INDICATES BETTER THREAT
OF PRECIPITATION OVER THE WEEKEND. ANOTHER PIECE OF ENERGY THAT WAS
EARLIER FORECAST TO STAY S OF MT NOW ROTATES INTO MT FROM SW U.S.
MEANWHILE PACIFIC UPPER TROUGH IS FASTER MOVING INTO AREA. BLANK
GTF 7984 HLN 7984 HVR 6874

Tornado Warnings in Montana, 1999Every tornado warning in 1999Tornadoes in 1999

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; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.