Flash Flood and Hail in North Dakota, September 6, 2001

Name: Flash Flood and Hail in North Dakota, September 6, 2001
Start: 2001-09-06T15:40
End: 2001-09-06T20:45
Location: North Dakota

September 6, 2001 · NWS FGF · 9 events in 6 counties and zones

5 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $16,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 9

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 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 Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Sep 6, 2:52 PM CST, 48 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 6, 2:52 PM CST, 48 minutes before

FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
352 PM CDT THU SEP 6 2001

.SHORT TERM...
UPR LVL WV OVR ERN ND TO MOV E TNGT. 88D SHOWING WIDELY SCT TSRA OVR
NW COUNTIES MOVG NE. 88D ALSO SHOWING BOUNDARY MOVG S ACRS GFK
COUNTY. NEW STORMS HAVE FIRED NE OF GFK ALONG BOUNDARY. SFC WNDS
HAVE BECM NRLY OVR THE NW HALF OF THE CWFA. MESOSCALE ANLYS HAS BEST
SFC MSTR FLUX CONVERGENCE ALONG FNTL BNDRY. LIS WERE -6 TO -7 AND
PRECIPITABLE WATERS ARND 1.5 INCHES. SECOND WV OVR BC TO DIG ACRS
THE PLNS FRI AND BRING ANOTHER CHC OF PRECIP FOR FRI NGT/SAT MORN
MAINLY IN THE NRN ZONES. WATER VAPOR LOOP SHOWING A WEAK WV OVR SRN
ND. LARGER CIRC OVR WY AND IS FCST TO MOV TO THE TX PANHANDLE BY FRI
AFTN. SPC COOR FOR WATCH FOR MOSTLY MN SIDE.

.EXTENDED...

BOTH AVN AND MRF SHOW 50H VORT MOVING PAST THE AREA ON
MONDAY. 500 MB TEMPS DROP TO AROUND -24C IN NORTHERN HALF OF CWA ON
MONDAY. MRF MORE PROGRESSIVE WITH VORT THAN AVN. WILL LEAVE MONDAY
DRY FOR NOW BUT WILL HAVE TO TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT NEXT MODEL RUNS.
MRF BRINGS ONLY WEAK 50H SHORT WAVE IN ON TUESDAY...WHICH IS
SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT FROM PREVIOUS RUN BUT WILL LEAVE TSTM
MENTION IN . WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY LOOK DRY FOR NOW BUT ECMWF AND
MRF DISAGREE ON BOUNDARY POSITION WEDNESDAY...WILL WAIT FOR LATER
RUNS BEFORE ADDING PRECIPITATION CHANCES. WILL KEEP HIGH TEMPS
AROUND 70 AND LOWS IN THE 45-55 DEGREE RANGE.

.FGF...WW 709 TIL 8 PM CDT.

HOPPES/BRIDENSTINE

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Sep 6, 12:15 PM CST, 3 hours 25 minutes before

MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024-
026>030-038-039-049-052>054-062000-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
115 PM CDT THU SEP 6 2001

...THERE IS A RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PORTIONS OF
SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA AND WESTERN MINNESOTA LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND
EVENING...

SYNOPSIS...A SLOW MOVING COLD FRONT WILL ENCOUNTER A MOIST AND
MODERATELY UNSTABLE AIRMASS AS IS ADVANCES INTO EASTERN NORTH THIS
AFTERNOON...AND INTO WESTERN MINNESOTA EARLY THIS EVENING.
TEMPERATURES WILL WARM INTO THE 80S THROUGH THE AFTERNOON...AND WHEN
COMBINED WITH DEWPOINTS IN THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 60S...INSTABILITY
WILL BE MAXIMIZED ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE RED RIVER VALLEY.

AREA OF CONCERN...A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS EAST
OF A HALLOCK TO COOPERSTOWN AND ELLENDALE LINE.

TIME...START AFTER 300 PM AND DIMINISH AFTER 900 PM.

TYPE OF HAZARD...MAINLY LARGE HAIL. DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE A
THREAT...AS WILL LOCALLY FLOODING RAINS FROM SLOW MOVING OR REPEAT
THUNDERSTORM EVENTS.

GUST

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 29 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:39 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Traill

When: September 6, 3:40 PM CST
Where: Traill County, 4 mi E of Hillsboro
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.400, -96.983

Hail, Barnes

When: September 6, 4:18 PM CST
Where: Barnes County, 8 mi N of Hastings
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.800, -98.100

Hail, Traill

When: September 6, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Traill County, 2 mi NW of Caledonia
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.483, -96.917

Flash Flood, Cass

When: September 6, 5:58 PM CST to 6:28 PM CST
Where: Cass County, 1 mi W of Casselton
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.933, -97.248 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Water was reported over a road.

Hail, Ransom

When: September 6, 6:45 PM CST
Where: Ransom County, 5 mi SW of Englevale
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.350, -97.967

Hail, Sargent

When: September 6, 6:50 PM CST
Where: Sargent County, 12 mi W of Gwinner
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.233, -97.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Sargent

When: September 6, 7:25 PM CST
Where: Sargent County, Milnor
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 46.250, -97.450

Several large trees were blown over in Milnor. One tree fell on top of 2 parked vehicles.

Thunderstorm Wind, Richland

When: September 6, 8:37 PM CST
Where: Richland County, Great Bend
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.150, -96.800

The strong wind overturned a truck into the ditch.

Thunderstorm Wind, Richland

When: September 6, 8:45 PM CST
Where: Richland County, 3 mi E of Great Bend
Property damage: $500
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.150, -96.733

Large branches were blown down.

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Flash Flood: Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
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 North Dakota in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in North Dakota, September 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: 5267815, 5267816, 5267817, 5267818, 5267819, 5267820, 5267823, 5267821, 5267822.