High Wind, North Rocky Mountain Front
- When
- January 30, 7:00 AM MST to 1:00 PM MST
- Where
- North Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
- Measured
- 116 kt (133 mph)
High Wind in Montana, January 30, 1997
Widespread high winds occurred across north central Montana. Many locations reported wind gusts of 60 to 80 mph with a few spots reporting gust over 90 mph.
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 5
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 TFX wrote it up.
Widespread high winds occurred across north central Montana. Many locations reported wind gusts of 60 to 80 mph with a few spots reporting gust over 90 mph. A spotter at Heart Butte, along the front range of the rockies, reported a wind gust of 133 mph. Also in Heart Butte, a 5 year old boy fractured his skull when winds blew him down. In additon, there were numerous reports of damage along the front range of the rockies. Sections of roofs were blown off in Heart Butte and Dupuyer. In the Choteau area, windows were broken, farm equipment was damaged, an empty grain bin was blown off it's foundation, and seven power poles were snapped.
Event by event
5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
High Wind, Eastern Glacier
- When
- January 30, 7:00 AM MST to 1:00 PM MST
- Where
- Eastern Glacier forecast zone
- Measured
- 63 kt (72 mph)
High Wind, Hill
- When
- January 30, 7:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
- Where
- Hill forecast zone
- Measured
- 69 kt (79 mph)
High Wind, Cascade
- When
- January 30, 7:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
- Where
- Cascade forecast zone
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
High Wind, Chouteau
- When
- January 30, 9:00 AM MST to 6:00 PM MST
- Where
- Chouteau forecast zone
- Measured
- 84 kt (97 mph)
What these are
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Surf in Hawaii, January 30 to 31, 1997
- Ice Storm in North Dakota, January 30, 1997
- Ice Storm in Minnesota, January 30, 1997
- High Wind in Wyoming, January 30 to 31, 1997
- Flooding in Illinois, January 30 to 31, 1997
- High Wind in Washington, January 30, 1997
- High Wind in Arizona, January 30, 1997
- Winter Weather in Ohio, January 30, 1997
- High Wind in Montana, January 30, 1997
More
Every storm in Montana in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, January 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: 5588259, 5588260, 5588261, 5588262, 5588263.