Idaho, 1997

Flooding in Idaho, May 1 to 31, 1997

May 1 to 31, 1997 · NWS BOI · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

During the month of May, unusually heavy snow pack at the higher elevations of Idaho began to melt. Runoff swelled many rivers statewide to flood stage.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$4.0 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
8

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS BOI wrote it up.

During the month of May, unusually heavy snow pack at the higher elevations of Idaho began to melt. Runoff swelled many rivers statewide to flood stage. Hardest hit by damaging floods were the counties in the Idaho Panhandle. where seven counties were declared state disaster areas. An estimated 4 Million dollars in property damages were suffered and miles of road were flooded throughout the region disrupting transportation. The major rivers of the region...the Pend Oreille, St. Joe and Coeur d'Alene...remained above flood stage for most of the second half of May. Elsewhere in Idaho less serious flooding occurred on the Portneuf, Teton,Henry's Fork and Snake Rivers. Flooding along these rivers inundated mostly agricultural land. The Big Wood River flooded near the town of Hailey where a few houses were flooded.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Lower Snake River Plain

When
May 1, 12:00 AM MST to May 29, 12:00 AM MST
Where
Lower Snake River Plain forecast zone

Flood, Upper Snake River Plain

When
May 7, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Upper Snake River Plain forecast zone

Flood, Northern Panhandle

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Northern Panhandle forecast zone
Property damage
$4.0 million
Coordinates
48.247, -116.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Lewiston and the Palouse

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Lewiston and the Palouse forecast zone
Coordinates
47.017, -116.685 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Northern Clearwater Mountains

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Northern Clearwater Mountains forecast zone
Coordinates
46.674, -115.657 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Coeur D'Alene Area

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Coeur D'Alene Area forecast zone
Coordinates
47.675, -116.700 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Shoshone

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 31, 11:59 PM MST
Where
Shoshone forecast zone
Coordinates
47.265, -116.491 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Salmon/Sawtooth Mountains

When
May 15, 12:00 AM MST to May 18, 12:00 PM MST
Where
Salmon/Sawtooth Mountains forecast zone

What these are

Flood
Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Idaho in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Idaho, May 1997

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: 5604361, 5604360, 5604355, 5604356, 5604357, 5604358, 5604359, 5604362.