Montana, 2002

Damaging Wind in Montana, July 4, 2002

July 4, 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 4, 2:00 PM MST, 4 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 4, 2:00 PM MST, 4 hours before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
300 PM MDT THU JUL 4 2002

.SHORT TERM...ANOTHER ROUND OF EVENING THUNDERSTORMS JUST GETTING
STARTED IN THE SOUTHERN ZONES AT PRESENT. PRONOUNCED MOISTURE
GRADIENT STRETCHING FROM DILLON T0 LEWISTOWN...AND STORMS WILL STAY
ALONG AND SOUTH OF THIS LINE. MONSTER RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD IN
TOMORROW WITH INCREASING TEMPERATURES...LIGHT WINDS...AND A LOT OF
SUNSHINE. STILL...THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS OVER THE
SOUTHWEST SATURDAY. MODEL SOUNDINGS SHOW A CAP OVER THE NORTHERN
ZONES...SO WILL GO WITH A DRY FORECAST THERE. SUNDAY WILL BE HOT AS
RIDGE STRENGTHENS. SOME INDICATIONS OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE BEING
ADVECTED IN FROM THE EAST ON SUNDAY. SO FOR NOW WILL BROADBRUSH
SLIGHT CHANCE POPS. POMEROY

.LONG TERM...OVERALL PICTURE IS FOR AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE TO BUILD
OVER THE AREA FOR THE ENTIRE PERIOD. HOT TEMPERATURES WITH VERY
LITTLE MOISTURE AVAILABLE. DIFFERENCE IN MODELS ON TIMING OF
SHIFTING OF RIDGE AXIS AT END OF PERIOD. WHAT DAY WILL BE THE
HOTTEST WILL DEPEND ON A SURFACE COOL FRONT BEING ABLE TO GO OVER
THE TOP OF THE RIDGE. WILL CONTINUE TO TREND FOR A GENERAL HOT AND
DRY FORECAST. CAMP

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF UU 048/080 050/085 052 19000
    UBBBB 092/054 094/058 095/058 095/058 090 00211111111
CTB UU 043/074 047/081 049 19000
    UBBBB 085/049 088/052 089/052 090/052 086 00211111111
HLN UU 054/083 052/085 057 19000
    UBBBB 090/056 095/058 095/058 095/058 093 11211111111
BZN UU 052/082 050/086 051 19311
    UBBBB 089/050 090/052 092/055 094/053 092 22211111111
WEY UU 046/076 044/081 047 19311
    UBBBB 084/048 085/048 087/048 085/045 083 22221111111
DLN UU 047/083 049/086 052 19211
    UBBBB 090/051 092/053 093/055 094/052 092 22211111111
HVR UU 050/081 052/084 056 19000
    UBBBB 093/055 095/058 095/060 095/059 094 00211111111
LWT UU 048/076 050/080 053 19600
    UBBBB 088/054 090/054 093/057 095/057 093 00211111111

.TFX...NONE.

The radar

The Great Falls radar (KTFX), 154 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Fergus

When
July 4, 6:00 PM MST
Where
Fergus County, Suffolk
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.467, -109.333

A severe thunderstorm produced hail and wind gusts to 60 mph at Suffolk 5E.

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: 5307279.