Montana, 2002

Damaging Wind in Montana, July 14, 2002

July 14, 2002 · NWS TFX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

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 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 Great Falls, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 14, 7:55 PM MST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 14, 7:55 PM MST, 15 minutes before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
855 PM MDT SUN JUL 14 2002

.SHORT TERM...WILL UPDATE TO FRESHEN WORDING. WILL KEEP THIS SHORT
DUE TO ACTIVE CONVECTIVE NIGHT. UNSTABLE AIRMASS AND WEAK FRONTAL
PASSAGE COMBINING TO PRODUCE WIDE OUTBREAK OF THUNDERSTORMS. VERY
STRONG SURFACE WINDS WITH SOME HAIL BEING PRODUCED BY THESE STORMS.
EMANUEL

.EXTENDED...MEDIUM RANGE MODELS AGAIN SHOWING A LITTLE CONSISTENCY
BUT NOT ENOUGH TO WARRANT HIGH CONFIDENCE. WILL NOT MAKE ANY
SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE CURRENT EXTENDED FORECAST. WEAK RIDGING
THURSDAY OVER THE CWA WITH ENOUGH SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT FOR ISOLATED
CONVECTION. ZONAL FLOW ALOFT PERSISTS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY WITH
ISOLATED CONVECTION STILL A POSSIBILITY. AN UPPER TROF MOVES
ONSHORE OF THE WEST COAST SUNDAY WITH AN INCREASING BACKING FLOW
OVER THE CWA. TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN SLIGHTLY ABOVE SEASONAL
NORMS.

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF BB 060/092 055/092 053 03411
    BBBBB 088/053 087/053 088/053 090/053 090 23332222222
CTB BB 055/088 052/088 050 03211
    BBBBB 084/050 084/050 086/050 088/050 088 13322111122
HLN BB 062/094 057/092 056 03411
    BBBBB 090/054 087/054 088/054 090/054 090 33332222222
BZN BB 057/092 054/090 053 03422
    BBBBB 088/050 086/050 087/050 090/050 090 33332222222
WEY BB 047/086 043/085 042 03422
    BBBBB 083/042 083/042 084/042 086/042 086 33333333333
DLN BB 058/090 055/088 054 03422
    BBBBB 086/051 085/051 086/051 090/051 090 33332222222
HVR BB 062/094 058/092 056 03411
    BBBBB 089/055 086/055 088/055 091/055 091 13332211122
LWT BB 063/090 055/090 055 03421
    BBBBB 087/055 086/055 087/055 090/055 090 13332222222=

.TFX...RED FLAG WARNING FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING FOR FIRE
       ZONES 112...114...115...116...117...118.
       SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH FOR WESTERN...SOUTHWEST...AND
       CENTRAL MONTANA.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 14, 7:47 PM MST, 23 minutes before
LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
847 PM MDT SUN JUL 14 2002

TIME(MDT)  .....EVENT  LOCATION..... ST   ...EVENT/REMARKS...........
           .....COUNTY LOCATION.....

0540 PM    HELENA                    MT   1.75 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK              SOME CAR WINDOWS BROKEN,
                                          TREES DOWN, ELECTRIC
                                          SERVICE DOWN

0540 PM    HELENA                    MT   60 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0540 PM    HELENA                    MT   WIND DAMAGE
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0545 PM    HELENA                    MT   0.50 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK              TREES, POWER LINES DOWN,
                                          STREET

0545 PM    HELENA                    MT   70 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0555 PM    EAST HELENA               MT   1 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0555 PM    2 W SILVER CITY           MT   0.75 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0555 PM    2 W SILVER CITY           MT   60 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   LEWIS  AND  CLARK

0606 PM    TOWNSEND                  MT   0.25 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   BROADWATER

0606 PM    TOWNSEND                  MT   61 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   BROADWATER

0620 PM    3 SW GREAT FALLS          MT   0.25 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   CASCADE                        WIND GUST AT WEATHER
                                          STATION

0620 PM    3 SW GREAT FALLS          MT   66 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   CASCADE

0623 PM    5 S GREAT FALLS           MT   0.75 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   CASCADE                        REPORTED NATL WX EMPLOYEE

0623 PM    5 S GREAT FALLS           MT   60 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   CASCADE

0635 PM    TOWNSEND                  MT   60 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   BROADWATER                     TWO 100 YEAR OLD TREES
                                          DOWN, POWER LINES DOWN

0635 PM    WHITE SULPHUR SPGS        MT   0.25 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   MEAGHER                        TREE BRANCHES DOWN

0635 PM    WHITE SULPHUR SPGS        MT   75 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   MEAGHER

0700 PM    7 NE HIGHWOOD             MT   0.75 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   CHOUTEAU

0700 PM    7 NE HIGHWOOD             MT   45 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   CHOUTEAU

0710 PM    GREAT FALLS               MT   59 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   CASCADE                        DRY MICROBURST TEMP JUMPD
                                          TO

0725 PM    POWER                     MT   1 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   TETON                          0.50 INCH OF RAIN IN 30
                                          MINUTES

0725 PM    POWER                     MT   40 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   TETON

0758 PM    HOBSON                    MT   70 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   JUDITH  BASIN                  WIND SPEED ESTIMATD. VSBY
                                          NEAR

0801 PM    MOORE                     MT   70 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   FERGUS                         VSBY 1/4 DUST, TREE LIMBS
                                          DOWN

0801 PM    MOORE                     MT   WIND DAMAGE
07/15/02   FERGUS

0815 PM    WISDOM                    MT   1 INCH HAIL
07/15/02   BEAVERHEAD                     AT LEAST 1 INCH DIA HAIL
                                          SIZE

0835 PM    3 W HILGER                MT   60 MPH TSTM GUST
07/15/02   FERGUS                         WILLOW TREE DOWN, BLOWING
                                          DUST REDUCG VSBY TO ZERO

0835 PM    3 W HILGER                MT   WIND DAMAGE
07/15/02   FERGUS

NNNN

The radar

The Billings radar (KBLX), 163 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 03:11 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Fergus

When
July 14, 8:10 PM MST
Where
Fergus County, Valentine
Measured
56 kt (64 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.317, -108.417

A severe thunderstorm produced a 64 mph wind gust near Valentine.

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 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, July 2002

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: 5307515.