Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 39, NWS Billings, MT

June 18, 2001Carter County, Montana

NWS Billings, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jun 18, 2001, 2:26 AM MDT for Carter County, Montana. It was in force for 64 min. 3 reports 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: Jun 18, 2001, 2:26 AM MDT (08:26 UTC)
Expired: Jun 18, 2001, 3:30 AM MDT
In force: 64 min
Issued by: NWS Billings, MT
Area: Whole counties

County Carter County, MT

What was reported inside it

Time	Report	Where
Jun 18, 2:55 AM MDT	Hail 0.75	Ekalaka, MT
Jun 18, 2:55 AM MDT	Hail 1	Ekalaka, MT
Jun 18, 3:20 AM MDT	Thunderstorm Wind 60 M	Ekalaka, 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 watch it was issued in

The SPC watch in force over the same counties when this warning went out.

Issued	Product	Office	Lasted
Jun 18, 1:00 AM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	SPC	5 hr

The nearest sounding before it

Rapid City, SD (KUNR), launched 00:00Z, 8.4 hours before the alert went out and 207 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-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.

Hodograph

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: 2757 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -78 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1014 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 52 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 33 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 62 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.8
Supercell composite: 4.7

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS55 KBYZ 180827
SVRBIL

MTC011-180930-

BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BILLINGS MT
226 AM MDT MON JUN 18 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BILLINGS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  CARTER COUNTY IN SOUTHEAST MONTANA

* UNTIL 330 AM MDT

* AT 226 AM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WITH LARGE HAIL 22 MILES WEST OF RIDGEWAY...OR
  ABOUT 21 MILES EAST OF BROADUS...MOVING EAST AT 60 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
   RIDGEWAY BY 235 AM MDT.

VERY LARGE HAIL IS POSSIBLE WITH THIS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM. A SEVERE 
THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 600 AM MDT.

$$

SCARLETT

LAT...LON 4557 10481 4539 10485 4512 10308 4539 10301

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 Billings, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Jun 18, 2:00 AM MDT, 26 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 18, 2:00 AM MDT, 26 minutes before

SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BILLINGS MT
200 AM MDT MON JUN 18 2001

.TDY AND TUE...

CONVECTION RACING ACROSS SOUTHEAST MONTANA EARLY THIS MORNING. SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM WATCH ISSUED BY STORM PREDICTION CENTER IS VALID UNTIL 6 AM
MDT OVER SOUTHEAST MONTANA AND PARTS OF SOUTH-CENTRAL MONTANA. A STRONG
VORTICITY CENTER AS SEEN ON WATER VAPOR IMAGERY WAS PUSHING ACROSS THE
COUNTY WARNING AREA...AND WILL BE ENTERING THE DAKOTAS BY NOON TODAY. A
PUSH OF COOLER AIR BEHIND THE WAVE WILL QUICKLY ENTER THE AREA FROM THE
WEST WITH INCREASED SUBSIDENCE TODAY. A 100KT JET AT 300MB IS FORECAST
TO BE OVER THE AREA TODAY WITH 25-30KT WINDS DOWN TO 700MB. WATER VAPOR
IMAGERY SHOWS A DRY SLOT EVOLVING ACROSS EASTERN WASHINGTON AND IDAHO.
THIS IS EVIDENT OF DEEP LAYER SUBSIDENCE AND FEEL THIS WILL BE SITUATED
OVER THE AREA AS THE DAY PROGRESSES...SO SURFACE WINDS WILL BE ON THE
INCREASE. ETA AND AVN SUPPORT STRONG +6 MILLIBARS PER 6 HOUR PRESSURE
RISES ON THE PLAINS AT LEAST THROUGH 18Z TODAY. ETA FORECASTS ANOTHER
SHORTWAVE TO CROSS EXTREME NORTHEASTERN MONTANA TONIGHT...AND THIS MAY
KEEP THE WINDS GOING OUT IN THE SOUTHEAST. BRIEFLY COORDINATED WITH
RAPID CITY OFFICE ABOUT POSSIBLE WIND HIGHLITES BORDERING OUR SOUTHEAST
ZONES TODAY. WILL ASSES THE SITUATION FURTHER THIS MORNING BEFORE
ISSUING ZONES AS HIGHLITES MAY BE NEEDED. CANEPA

.WED...THU...FRI...SAT...SUN...

WEAK UPPER LEVEL RIDGING IS FORECAST WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. THE
UPPER FLOW TURNS SOUTHWEST SATURDAY WITH A STRONG EAST PACIFIC SHORTWAVE
POISED TO MOVE INTO MONTANA LATE SUNDAY. TREND OF CURRENT FORECAST
LOOKS IN GOOD SHAPE. NO CHANGES. CANEPA

    TDY TUE     WED     THU     FRI     SAT     SUN
-------------------------------------------------------
BIL 066 047/070 049/078 055/086 059/092 060/090 060/088
    4/W 22/W    00/U    00/U    00/U    03/T    33/T
LVM 065 043/070 043/077 048/085 052/089 055/088 053/085
    3/W 02/W    00/U    00/U    00/U    03/T    33/T
HDN 070 045/071 045/082 051/089 055/095 057/094 057/092
    4/W 22/W    00/U    00/U    00/U    03/T    33/T
MLS 063 048/073 049/077 055/087 059/092 062/094 062/094
    6/T 30/B    22/B    00/U    00/U    02/B    23/T
4BQ 062 047/072 047/075 053/085 057/090 060/092 060/092
    6/T 30/B    22/B    00/U    00/U    02/B    23/T
BHK 062 046/071 045/075 050/085 055/090 058/092 058/092
    6/T 30/B    22/B    00/U    00/U    02/B    23/T
SHR 068 043/072 043/077 048/085 052/091 055/091 055/089
    3/W 00/B    00/U    00/U    00/U    03/T    33/T

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jun 17, 9:03 PM MDT, 5 hours 23 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BILLINGS, MT
903 PM MDT SUN JUN 17 2001

TIME(MDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0713 PM    ABSAROKEE                 MT   1.25 INCH HAIL
06/17/01   STILLWATER                     HAILSTORM LASTED FROM 705
                                          PM TO 713 PM.

0721 PM    7 S COLUMBUS              MT   1.00 INCH HAIL
06/17/01   STILLWATER

JRS

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jun 17, 6:43 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Stillwater, Sweet Grass	62 min
Jun 17, 7:36 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Carbon	24 min
Jun 18, 12:11 AM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Big Horn, Treasure	49 min
Jun 18, 12:44 AM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Rosebud	46 min
Jun 18, 1:30 AM MDT	Tornado Warning	BYZ	Custer, Rosebud	30 min
Jun 18, 1:49 AM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Powder River	41 min
Jun 18, 1:59 AM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BYZ	Custer	31 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 2001 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2001

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.