Alert archive / Montana / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2004

Severe Thunderstorm Warning 18, NWS Missoula, MT

July 19, 2004Mineral County, Montana

NWS Missoula, MT issued this severe thunderstorm warning at Jul 19, 2004, 1:53 PM MDT for Mineral County, Montana. It was in force for 52 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The outline as issued.

The facts

Issued: Jul 19, 2004, 1:53 PM MDT (19:53 UTC)
Expired: Jul 19, 2004, 2:45 PM MDT
In force: 52 min
Issued by: NWS Missoula, MT
Area: Counties, with a storm outline in the text

County Mineral County, MT

The radar

The Missoula radar (KMSX), 78 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 19:55 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.

Did it verify

Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.

Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.

The nearest sounding before it

Spokane, WA (KOTX), launched 12:00Z, 7.9 hours before the alert went out and 121 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: 291 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -134 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 1292 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 28 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 68 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 83 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 0.1

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

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

000 
WUUS55 KMSO 191953
SVRMSO
MTC061-192045-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
152 PM MDT MON JUL 19 2004

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MISSOULA HAS ISSUED A

* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
  MINERAL COUNTY IN WEST CENTRAL MONTANA
  THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF...SUPERIOR...ST. REGIS

* UNTIL 245 PM MDT

* AT 145 PM MDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM NEAR
  ST. REGIS...OR ABOUT OVER ST. REGIS...MOVING EAST AT 25 MPH.

* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
  ST. REGIS BY 155 PM MDT

SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS PRODUCE DAMAGING WINDS AND HAIL...ALONG WITH
FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND HEAVY RAIN. FOR YOUR PROTECTION...GO INDOORS
AND STAY AWAY FROM WINDOWS. IF YOU ARE CAUGHT OUTSIDE...MOVE TO A
WELL PROTECTED AREA.

LAT...LON 4745 11547 4747 11525 4739 11499 4730 11495
      4722 11472 4707 11458 4702 11444 4695 11458
      4676 11456 4672 11475 4685 11491 4691 11489
      4701 11507 4721 11525 4744 11570 4749 11551

$$

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 19, 1:37 PM MDT, 16 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 19, 1:37 PM MDT, 16 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
137 PM MDT MON JUL 19 2004

.SHORT TERM...ACTIVE NIGHT ON TAP WITH THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING THIS
HOUR. DIFFERENCE FROM YESTERDAY IS MORE HEATING...THE ATMOSPHERE
IS MORE UNSTABLE FOR MORE WIDESPREAD THUNDERSTORMS THE REMAINDER
OF THIS AFTERNOON/EVENING. WITH VERY MOIST AIRMASS OVER THE REGION...
HEAVY RAIN IS THE MAIN THREAT ALONG WITH SMALL HAIL. GIVEN
TRAJECTORY OF STORMS...HAVE REISSUED THE THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH FOR
NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO AND MUCH OF WESTERN MONTANA THROUGH MIDNIGHT.
TUESDAY WILL SEE A MARINE PUSH GO OVER THE AREA AS THE UPPER LEVEL
FLOW TURNS FROM SOUTHWEST TO MORE WESTERLY AS PACIFIC TROUGH
FINALLY MAKES ITS WAY ON SHORE AND FLATTENS THE RIDGE. THE AREA WILL
SEE AN INCREASE IN WINDS WITH CONTINUED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...
MAINLY CENTRAL AND SOUTH. THE AIRMASS BEHIND THE FRONT WILL BE
COOLER AND DRIER SO HEAVY RAIN IS NOT LIKELY FOR TUESDAY STORMS.
TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY WILL REMAIN UNDER A GENERAL WESTERLY
FLOW WITH LITTLE MOISTURE OF UPPER LEVEL WAVES. EXPECTED TO HAVE
DRY BUT COOLER TEMPERATURES WITH READINGS NEAR NORMAL.

.LONG TERM...WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY...DRY WEATHER PATTERN
WITH WARMING TREND. PERSISTENT RIDGE OF HIGH PRESSURE TO BEGIN
REBUILDING STRONGLY INTO BRITISH COLUMBIA WEDNESDAY NIGHT RESULTING
IN NORTHERLY FLOW WITH WEATHER DISTURBANCE SLIDING SOUTHWARD THROUGH
MONTANA. NOT EXPECTING ANY RAIN FROM THIS...BUT HIGH TEMPERATURES
WILL BE MODERATED SOMEWHAT THROUGH THE END OF THIS WEEK WITH CHANGE
TO EASTERLY SURFACE WIND. HEAT BRIEFLY RETURNS FOR THE WEEKEND.
&&

.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH MIDNIGHT MDT...SEE GTFFFAMSO.
ID...FLASH FLOOD WATCH THROUGH MIDNIGHT MDT...SEE GTFFFAMSO.
&&

SHORT TERM/MEAD
LONG TERM/SIGLER

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 18, 8:24 PM MDT, 17 hours 29 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
815 PM MDT (715 PM PDT) SUN JUL 18 2004

IDZ005>010-MTZ001>007-043-190315-
NORTHERN CLEARWATER MOUNTAINS-SOUTHERN CLEARWATER MOUNTAINS-
OROFINO/GRANGEVILLE REGION-LOWER HELLS CANYON/SALMON RIVER-
WESTERN LEMHI COUNTY-EASTERN LEMHI COUNTY-KOOTENAI/CABINET REGION-
WEST GLACIER REGION-FLATHEAD/MISSION VALLEYS-LOWER CLARK FORK REGION-
MISSOULA/BITTERROOT VALLEYS-BITTERROOT/SAPPHIRE MOUNTAINS-
BUTTE/PINTLAR REGION-BLACKFOOT REGION-
815 PM MDT (715 PM PDT) SUN JUL 18 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO AND WESTERN
MONTANA

.DAY ONE... TONIGHT

THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH HAS BEEN CANCELED FOR WEST CENTRAL MONTANA
AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS
TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 19, 8:35 AM MDT, 5 hours 18 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
835 AM MDT MON JUL 19 2004

..TIME...   ...EVENT...     ...CITY LOCATION...      ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....     ..COUNTY LOCATION...ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0415 AM     FLASH FLOOD      KALISPELL               48.20N 114.31W
07/19/2004                   FLATHEAD           MT   LAW ENFORCEMENT

            HEAVY RAIN BASEMENT AND STREET FLOODING

0415 AM     FLASH FLOOD      KALISPELL               48.20N 114.31W
07/19/2004                   FLATHEAD           MT   PUBLIC

            HEAVY RAIN ALL MAIN STREETS AND UNDERPSSSES FLOODED

0415 AM     FLASH FLOOD      KALISPELL               48.20N 114.31W
07/19/2004                   FLATHEAD           MT   PUBLIC

            HEAVY RAIN UNDERPASS HAS 4 FEET OF WATER. THREE CARS
            TRAPPED.

&&

HH

The office that day

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

Issued	Product	Office	Counties	Lasted
Jul 19, 2:09 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MSO	Sanders	66 min
Jul 19, 2:37 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MSO	Flathead, Lincoln	38 min
Jul 19, 3:23 PM MDT	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	MSO	Flathead	52 min

Nearby

Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Montana, 2004 Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2004

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.