Tornado and Hail in Montana, July 3, 1988

Name: Tornado and Hail in Montana, July 3, 1988
Start: 1988-07-03T15:30
End: 1988-07-03T23:04
Location: Montana

July 3, 1988 · NWS GTF · 7 events in 7 counties and zones

5 hail, 1 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind, 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: $3,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 7

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

5 hail, 1 tornado, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Beaverhead

When: July 3, 3:30 PM MST
Where: Beaverhead County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.2 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 45.370, -113.420

Hail, Judith Basin

When: July 3, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Judith Basin County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 47.080, -110.020

Hail, Fergus

When: July 3, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Fergus County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 47.250, -109.350

Hail, Powell

When: July 3, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Powell County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 46.400, -112.720

Hail, Ravalli

When: July 3, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Ravalli County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 46.020, -114.180

Hail, Lewis and Clark

When: July 3, 11:03 PM CST
Where: Lewis and Clark County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 46.580, -112.030

Thunderstorm Wind, Cascade

When: July 3, 11:04 PM CST
Where: Cascade County
Measured: 64 kt (74 mph)
Coordinates: 47.520, -111.300

What these are

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.
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Montana in 1988 Every state in 1988 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Montana, 1988 Warnings in Montana, July 1988

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: 10072551, 10072552, 10072553, 10072554, 10072555, 10072556, 10072557.