Montana, 2001

Damaging Winds in Montana, June 1, 2001

June 1, 2001 · NWS MSO · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

The most significant damage from strong thunderstorms occurred near the towns of Noxon, Troy, Libby and Trout Creek in northwest Montana, where several 12 to 18 inch diameter trees were blown over by winds gusting to 60 mph. In Noxon, two vehicles sustained damage from trees falling on them.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
4

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 MSO wrote it up.

The most significant damage from strong thunderstorms occurred near the towns of Noxon, Troy, Libby and Trout Creek in northwest Montana, where several 12 to 18 inch diameter trees were blown over by winds gusting to 60 mph. In Noxon, two vehicles sustained damage from trees falling on them. A tree fell on a trailer in Libby and a metal roof was blown off a building. Similar wind speeds were reported in Hamilton, MT, which downed a number of tree branches in the area. Numerous tree limbs were also reported down in the towns of Whitefish, Columbia Falls and Kalispell in northwest Montana. Many of the tree limbs fell on to power lines, resulting in a number of power outages and small fires. In Lake County, a thunderstorm just north of the Ronan Airport snapped and toppled numerous trees, crushed a home roof and destroyed a shed and corrals in its wake.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 1, 1:09 PM MST, 4 hours 21 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 1, 1:09 PM MST, 4 hours 21 minutes before
WESTERN MONTANA AND NORTH CENTRAL IDAHO FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MISSOULA MT
209 PM MDT FRI JUN 1 2001

STRONG COLD FRONT IN WESTERN WASHINGTON MOVING SLOWLY EAST WILL
APPROACH THE CWA THIS EVENING FIRST IN THE NW MT ZONES. SOUTHWEST
FLOW WITH MARGINAL DYNAMICS WILL PRODUCE WDLY SCTD TSTMS ACROSS
CENTRAL ID AND PARTS OF NW MT. THICKNESSES DROP SIGNIFICANTLY AS
FRONT MOVES THROUGH OVERNIGHT TONIGHT....FROM 570 TO 544 AT ITS
LOWEST BY SUNDAY STRONG NW WINDS EXPECTED SAT AND EVEN STRONGER ON
SUNDAY...HENCE SIGNIFICANTLY UNDERCUT MOS ON SUNDAY AFTN HIGHS.
BEST CHC OF PCPN WILL BE IN THE TONIGHT PERIOD...BUT ONLY EXPECT A
QUICK RAIN AS THE FRONT WILL EXIT QUICKLY TO THE EAST AND THEN LOW
CHC POPS THROUGH SUNDAY FROM COLD AIR ALOFT INSTABILITY SHOWERS. RPN

EXTENDED...RIDGE BUILDING INTO THE WESTERN STATES FOR WARM AND DRY
CONDITIONS. SIGLER

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Lincoln

When
June 1, 5:30 PM MST to 6:00 PM MST
Where
Lincoln County, Central Portion
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
48.417, -115.367

Thunderstorm Wind, Sanders

When
June 1, 5:30 PM MST to 6:00 PM MST
Where
Sanders County, Thompson Falls
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.600, -115.350

Thunderstorm Wind, Lake

When
June 1, 6:50 PM MST to 7:00 PM MST
Where
Lake County, Ronan Arpt
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
47.567, -114.100

Thunderstorm Wind, Ravalli

When
June 1, 9:40 PM MST to 9:45 PM MST
Where
Ravalli County, Hamilton
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.250, -114.150

What these are

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

More

Every storm in Montana in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, June 2001

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: 5257106, 5257107, 5257181, 5257180.