Flood, Central and Se Phillips
- When
- March 26, 9:30 AM MST to April 3, 7:30 PM MST
- Where
- Central and Se Phillips forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 48.259, -107.913 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Flood in Montana, March 26 to April 3, 1997
Unusually high snow pack in northern Montana and southern Saskatchewan lead to an enormous volume of water draining into the Frenchman Creek Basin. The Frenchman Creek came out of its banks.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 GGW wrote it up.
Unusually high snow pack in northern Montana and southern Saskatchewan lead to an enormous volume of water draining into the Frenchman Creek Basin. The Frenchman Creek came out of its banks. One home was evacuated. The river began to flood in March but did not go back into its banks until early April.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
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
- Flooding in Minnesota, March 26 to 31, 1997
- High Wind and Strong Wind in Massachusetts, March 26, 1997
- Strong Wind in Rhode Island, March 26, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Montana, March 26 to 27, 1997
- Flooding in Montana, March 26 to 30, 1997
- Damaging Wind in South Carolina, March 26, 1997
- Heavy Snow in Montana, March 26, 1997
- Flood in South Dakota, March 26 to 29, 1997
- High Wind in Montana, March 26, 1997
- Flood in South Dakota, March 26 to 31, 1997
- High Wind in Montana, March 26, 1997
More
Every storm in Montana in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, March 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: 5614312.