Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 30, 1981

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 30, 1981
Start: 1981-07-30T13:30
End: 1981-07-30T22:22
Location: North Dakota

July 30, 1981 · NWS ATA · 22 events in 13 counties and zones

14 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind, 4 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $503,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 22

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

14 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind, 4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Divide

When: July 30, 1:30 PM CST
Where: Divide County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.680, -103.000

Hail, Renville

When: July 30, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Renville County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.800, -102.250

Hail, Renville

When: July 30, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Renville County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.770, -101.630

Hail, Burke

When: July 30, 2:15 PM CST
Where: Burke County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.800, -102.250

Hail, Bottineau

When: July 30, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.920, -101.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Bottineau

When: July 30, 3:30 PM CST
Where: Bottineau County
Coordinates: 48.920, -101.020

Tornado, Morton

When: July 30, 4:03 PM CST
Where: Morton County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 90 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 46.850, -101.650

Hail, Morton

When: July 30, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Morton County
Measured: 2 in hail
Coordinates: 46.720, -101.030

Hail, McLean

When: July 30, 5:00 PM CST
Where: McLean County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 47.550, -101.300

Hail, Benson

When: July 30, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Benson County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 48.030, -99.770

Tornado, Morton

When: July 30, 5:20 PM CST
Where: Morton County
Rating: F3
Path length: 20.9 mi
Path width: 500 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 46.730, -101.130

Hail, Morton

When: July 30, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Morton County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 46.770, -100.900

Tornado, Wells

When: July 30, 5:47 PM CST
Where: Wells County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.4 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Coordinates: 47.850, -99.620

Hail, Burleigh

When: July 30, 5:50 PM CST
Where: Burleigh County
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Coordinates: 46.730, -100.750

Hail, Benson

When: July 30, 5:51 PM CST
Where: Benson County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 47.970, -99.530

Hail, McLean

When: July 30, 5:56 PM CST
Where: McLean County
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Coordinates: 47.450, -101.130

Tornado, Burleigh

When: July 30, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Burleigh County
Rating: F3
Path length: 3 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 46.670, -100.700

Hail, Burleigh

When: July 30, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Burleigh County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 46.780, -100.750

Thunderstorm Wind, Ramsey

When: July 30, 6:08 PM CST
Where: Ramsey County
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Coordinates: 48.120, -98.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Nelson

When: July 30, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Nelson County
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 48.020, -98.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Traill

When: July 30, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Traill County
Coordinates: 47.650, -97.470

Hail, Barnes

When: July 30, 10:22 PM CST
Where: Barnes County
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Coordinates: 46.980, -97.770

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in North Dakota in 1981 Every state in 1981 This day in weather history The tornado archive for North Dakota, 1981

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10083746, 10083747, 10083748, 10083749, 10083750, 10083751, 10083752, 10083753, 10083754, 10083755, 10083756, 10083757, 10083758, 10083759, 10083760, 10083761, 10083762, 10083763, 10083764, 10083765, 10083766, 10083767.