Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2001

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 90, NWS Great Falls, MT

August 18, 2001Toole County, Montana

NWS Great Falls, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Aug 18, 2001, 8:10 PM MDT for Toole County, Montana. It was in force for 35 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline the Iowa Environmental Mesonet reconstructed for it; the warning itself named whole counties.

The facts

Issued
Aug 18, 2001, 8:10 PM MDT (02:10 UTC)
Expired
Aug 18, 2001, 8:45 PM MDT
In force
35 min
Issued by
NWS Great Falls, MT
Area
Whole counties; the outline is the Mesonet’s reconstruction

County Toole County, MT

The radar

The Great Falls radar (KTFX), 124 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:11 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

Great_falls, MT (KTFX), launched 00:00Z, 2.2 hours before the alert went out and 149 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, Great_falls, MT at 00:00Z on 2001-08-19Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 492 joules per kilogram.LCLEL10008507005003002001001 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, Great_falls, MT at 00:00Z on 2001-08-19The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 12 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
492 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-3 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
3918 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
21 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
12 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
37 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.

110 
WUUS55 KTFX 190212
SVRGTF
MTC101-190245-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
810 PM MDT SAT AUG 18 2001

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREAT FALLS HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  SOUTHERN TOOLE COUNTY IN NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITY OF SHELBY

* UNTIL 845 PM MDT

* AT 810 PM MDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
  SEVERE THUNDERSTORM OVER SHELBY...OR ABOUT 5 MILES SOUTH OF
  SHELBY...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
RURAL CENTRAL TOOLE COUNTY AT 820 PM MDT

THIS STORM MAY PRODUCE STRONG WINDS IN EXCESS OF 55 MPH AND HAIL UP 
TO AN INCH IN DIAMETER. 

REPORT SEVERE WEATHER TO THE NEAREST LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. THEY
WILL RELAY YOUR REPORT TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST
OFFICE IN GREAT FALLS.

LAT...LON 4845 11198 4836 11175 4868 11141 4880 11170

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 Great Falls, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at Aug 18, 3:15 PM MDT, 4 hours 55 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 18, 3:15 PM MDT, 4 hours 55 minutes before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
315 PM MDT SAT AUG 18 2001

HOT HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE TO MOVE INTO THE DAKOTAS THIS EVENING AS
ENERGY ASSOCIATED WITH PACIFIC TROUGH PUSHES INLAND. THUNDERSTORMS TO
DEVELOP AS EMBEDDED DISTURBANCES AND COLD FRONT ASSOCIATED WITH
PACIFIC LOW APPROACH. ONE DISTURBANCE CURRENTLY MOVING INTO SOUTHWEST
MT WITH SATELLITE IMAGES INDICATING CONVECTION STARTING. THIS
DISTURBANCE TO TRACK NORTHEAST THROUGH SOUTHWEST MT DURING THE
AFTERNOON...THEN BE STEERED EAST ACROSS CENTRAL MT BY THE APPROACHING
TROUGH. SEVERAL DYNAMIC FEATURES ACCOMPANY THE TROUGH...LEFT FRONT
JET QUAD...COUPLING OF UPPER DIVERGENCE AND SURFACE CONVERGENCE...
DIFFLUENT FLOW AND A POTENTIAL VORTICITY WAVE. TIME SECTIONS SHOW A
BRIEF COUPLING OF OMEGA AND RH DURING THE NIGHT. MOISTURE AVAILABLE
THOUGH NOT PLENTIFUL WITH FORECAST SOUNDINGS KEEPING PRECIPITABLE
WATER AROUND 0.75 INCHES. BELIEVE THERE IS A POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE
THUNDERSTORMS WITH STRONG GUSTY WIND PRIMARY CONCERN. RED FLAG
WARNING IN EFFECT LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUING THROUGH THE
NIGHT. FRONT TO MOVE EAST OF CWA SUNDAY MORNING AS THE FLOW ALOFT
BECOME MORE WESTERLY. TEMPERATURES WILL DROP BACK TOWARD OR SLIGHTLY
BELOW SEASONAL NORMALS SUNDAY AND MONDAY. BREEZY CONDITIONS EXPECTED
SUNDAY...ESPECIALLY ALONG THE NORTHERN FRONT RANGE.

EXTENDED...ECMWF DIFFERED FROM THE OTHER MEDIUM RANGE MODELS
YESTERDAY...BUT IT HAS FALLEN MORE INTO LINE WITH THE OTHERS TODAY.
NCEP ANALYSIS GIVES FAIRLY HIGH CONFIDENCE IN ADJUSTED MRF
SOLUTION...SO WILL BASE FORECAST PRIMARILY ON IT...DESPITE MINOR
DIVERGENCES IN NOGAPS/ECMWF SOLUTIONS LATER IN THE PERIOD. DRY AND
ANTICYCLONIC SOUTHWEST FLOW OVER STATE WITH UPPER RIDGE AXIS EAST
OF THE CWA WILL KEEP DRY CONDITIONS AROUND INTO TUESDAY. DURING THIS
TIME...A DEEP UPPER LOW OVER THE GULF OF ALASKA WILL MOVE SOUTH
INTO THE LINGERING UPPER TROUGH OFF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST.
THIS TROUGH/LOW COMBO WILL FURTHER DIG ON WEDNESDAY...BRINGING A
SLIGHT INCREASE IN MOISTURE...ALONG WITH PUSHING A WEAK COLD FRONT
THROUGH DURING THE DAY. WILL STAY WITH SLIGHT CHANCE WORDING WITH
SOME COMPRESSIONAL HEATING AHEAD OF THE FRONT AND WINDS DEVELOPING
BEHIND IT. THE WINDS ALOFT ARE NOT TOO IMPRESSIVE...BUT WILL
MENTION THROUGH THURSDAY. THE UPPER TROUGH WILL FILL IN A BIT AND
SHIFT EASTWARD...MOVING ONSHORE SATURDAY. THIS WILL BRING
INCREASING MOISTURE TO THE AREA THROUGH SATURDAY...BUT WILL
BROADBRUSH CHANCE WORDING THURSDAY THROUGH SATURDAY UNTIL BETTER
CONFIDENCE CAN BE GAINED. TEMPERATURES WILL ALSO COOL OFF A BIT
DURING THIS PERIOD TO MORE NORMAL LEVELS.  COULSTON

CCF NUMBERS
GTF UU 053 084 048 084 052 033000
CTB NU 053 080 046 078 048 032000
HLN UU 052 084 047 085 048 033000
BZN UU 048 083 043 083 045 033010
WEY UU 035 080 030 079 032 033010
DLN UU 047 081 041 081 043 033000
HVR UU 058 087 053 087 054 033000
LWT UU 055 083 050 084 052 033010

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 2001Every 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; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.