Hail and Damaging Wind in Montana, June 18, 2002

Name: Hail and Damaging Wind in Montana, June 18, 2002
Start: 2002-06-18T18:10
End: 2002-06-18T19:41
Location: Montana

June 18, 2002 · NWS BYZ · 7 events in 2 counties and zones

6 hail, 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: 7

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 Billings, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 18, 1:18 PM MST, 4 hours 52 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 18, 1:18 PM MST, 4 hours 52 minutes before

SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BILLINGS MT
218 PM MDT TUE JUN 18 2002

.SHORT TERM...VALID FOR WED...THU...FRI...

TONIGHT...COMPARING MODELS...IT SEEMS AS IF THE 400MB RH AND 500MB
VORTICITY OF THE AVN LINES UP BEST WITH WATER VAPOR. IN ADDITION...
PRECIP AMTS WITH AVN FOR THIS MORNING SEEM TO AGREE MORE WITH RADAR THAN
WITH WHAT THE ETA PLACES ACROSS THE AREA FOR THIS TIME. 114KT JET STREAK
IS MAKING ITS WAY OVER SW MONTANA LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND WILL MOVE
OVER THE EASTERN PART OF THE STATE DURING THE NIGHT ALONG WITH A COLD
FRONT. AS IT DOES...A SMALL WINDOW OF SFC CONVERGENCE AND UPPER LEVEL
DIVERGENCE WILL EXIST BETWEEN 00Z AND 12Z WED. BEST TIMING FOR FRONTAL
PASSAGE WILL BE AROUND 06Z. IN ADDITION...A STRONG AREA OF POSITIVE
VORTICITY ASSOCIATED WITH AN UPPER LEVEL WAVE CURRENTLY MOVING ACROSS
WASHINGTON WILL MOVE OVER THE FORECAST AREA THIS EVENING. THIS WILL
ENHANCE THE LIFT OVER THE AREA. ALL THIS WILL COMBINE TO BRING A
CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS EVENING...WITH GENERAL SHOWERS
AND AREAS OF RAIN POSSIBLE AFTER SUNSET. PARTS OF SOUTH CENTRAL AND
SOUTHEAST MT ARE UNDER SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE WEATHER LATE THIS
AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. HOWEVER...CAPES AND LIS ARE NOT IMPRESSIVE
BUT THERE COULD BE AN ISOLATED SEVERE STORM AROUND MAINLY FOR GUSTY
WINDS THIS EVENING.

WED THROUGH FRI...TROUGH MOVES EAST INTO NORTH DAKOTA BY DAYS END
USHERING IN A WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT FOR OUR AREA. A FEW SHOWERS WILL
LINGER IN THE MORNING IN THE WEST AND CENTRAL ZONES AND IN THE EAST
DURING THE AFTERNOON. FOR THURS AND FRI...ANOTHER TROUGH MOVES ON THE
OREGON COAST AND WILL DIG SOUTH INTO NORTHERN CA. THIS WILL AGAIN SET UP
A SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT. SEVERAL WAVES WITHIN THIS FLOW WILL
EJECT NORTHEAST ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA BRINGING THE CHANCE FOR
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS...MAINLY ACROSS THE SOUTHERN AND EASTERN
PORTIONS OF THE AREA.  HOOLEY

.LONG TERM...VALID FOR SAT...SUN...MON...TUE...
UNSETTLED WEATHER SHAPING UP FOR MONTANA THIS WEEKEND AS THE AVN/MRF
BRING AN UPPER LEVEL SYSTEM INTO THE NORTHERN ROCKIES. THE MODELS
DEVELOP SURFACE LOW PRESSURE OVER WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND NORTHERN
WYOMING ON SATURDAY...WHICH WOULD PROVIDE SOUTHERN MONTANA WITH A GOOD
CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. FOR SUNDAY...THE AVN/MRF BUILD
SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE INTO THE AREA BUT BOTH MODELS STILL HAVE AN UPPER
LEVEL TROF LINGERING OVER MONTANA AT 12Z...WITH THE MRF BUILDING A
SHORTWAVE RIDGE OVER THE AREA BY 00Z MON. THERE STILL MIGHT BE A CHANCE
OF SHOWERS IN THE AREA ON SUNDAY MORNING BUT THEY SHOULD BE SHORT LIVED
WITH THE UPPER FLOW BECOMING ANTICYCLONIC BY AFTERNOON. THEREFORE I WILL
KEEP DAY 5 PARTLY CLOUDY WITH THIS IN MIND. THE CURRENT EXTENDED
FORECAST IS CARRYING A CHANCE OF SHOWERS FOR DAY 6...MONDAY...WHICH
I WILL KEEP GOING AS THE MRF DROPS ANOTHER TROF OVER THE PACIFIC
NORTHWEST AND SHIFTS OUR WINDS ALOFT TO A MOIST SOUTHWEST FLOW. I WILL
ALSO MENTION A CHANCE OF SHOWERS OR THUNDERSTORMS FOR DAY 7 AS THE
MODELS DEVELOP WEAK LOW PRESSURE OVER SOUTHEAST MONTANA AND KEEP A
SOUTHWEST FLOW OF AIR ALOFT. KUHL

    WED     THU     FRI     SAT     SUN     MON     TUE
-----------------------------------------------------------
BIL 050/073 052/080 056/083 054/081 055/083 055/079 055/079
    40/B    00/B    32/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
LVM 043/069 046/074 049/079 047/078 048/080 048/076 048/076
    40/B    00/B    32/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
HDN 049/074 051/080 054/085 057/083 058/085 058/081 058/081
    40/B    00/B    42/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
MLS 053/075 054/080 055/085 059/082 060/084 059/080 059/080
    41/E    00/B    42/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
4BQ 051/074 052/079 054/084 061/081 062/083 061/079 061/079
    41/E    00/B    42/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
BHK 051/072 052/078 054/083 062/080 063/082 062/078 062/078
    41/E    00/B    42/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T
SHR 049/073 045/078 054/080 058/080 059/082 059/078 059/078
    40/E    00/B    42/T    33/T    30/B    03/T    33/T

.BYZ...
MT...NONE.
WY...NONE.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Powder River

When: June 18, 6:10 PM MST
Where: Powder River County, Biddle
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 45.100, -105.350

Thunderstorm Wind, Powder River

When: June 18, 6:15 PM MST
Where: Powder River County, 5 mi N of Biddle
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.167, -105.350

Hail, Carter

When: June 18, 7:10 PM MST
Where: Carter County, 9 mi NW of Alzada
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.117, -104.550

Hail, Carter

When: June 18, 7:10 PM MST
Where: Carter County, 9 mi NE of Alzada
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.117, -104.283

Hail, Carter

When: June 18, 7:25 PM MST
Where: Carter County, Alzada
Measured: 4.5 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.017, -104.417

Hail, Carter

When: June 18, 7:28 PM MST
Where: Carter County, Albion
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.183, -104.283

Hail, Carter

When: June 18, 7:41 PM MST
Where: Carter County, Alzada
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.017, -104.417

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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 Montana in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, June 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: 5302839, 5302840, 5302841, 5302842, 5302843, 5302844, 5302845.