Montana, 2002

Flash Flood in Montana, June 6 to 30, 2002

June 6 to 30, 2002 · NWS TFX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

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
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 Jun 6, 1:50 AM MST, 4 hours 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 6, 1:50 AM MST, 4 hours 10 minutes before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
250 AM MDT THU JUN 6 2002

.SHORT TERM...STRONG ZONAL FLOW ALOFT WILL BE THE MAIN INTEREST FOR
TODAY...AND WATER VAPOR INDICATES THE JET WAS OVER WESTERN MT BY 06Z.
TWO MAIN FEATURES AFFECTING THE FORECAST. FIRST IS A SHORTWAVE WITH A
TIGHT VORT MAX MOVING ALONG THE CANADIAN BORDER...OVER NW MT/SRN ALTA
BY 12Z...WHICH WILL ENHANCE HIGH WINDS ACROSS THE NORTHERN ZONES.
MID-LEVEL MOISTURE INCREASES LATE FRIDAY AHEAD OF A SECOND TROF AS IT
MOVES OVER THE PAC NW. THIS SYSTEM HAS A CLOSED UPPER LOW OVER
SRN BC AND ALTA WHICH DROPS SOUTH OVER ID/WRN MT. THIS IS QUITE A
BIT FARTHER WEST THAN INDICATED BY EARLIER MODEL RUNS. AIRMASS SHOULD
BE UNSETTLED AS BY LATE FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY AS THE UPPER LEVELS
BEGIN TO COOL. ZELZER

.EXTENDED...MODELS IN GENERAL AGREEMENT WITH MOVEMENT OF LOW ALONG
WESTERN MT AND LEAVING A SLOW MOVING TROF OVER CENTRAL MT THRU
MONDAY. THIS PATTERN WOULD DEVELOP A LARGE AREA OF VERTICAL MOTION
AND THE CHANCE FOR PRECIPITION ACROSS THE CWA THRU MONDAY LOOKS
GOOD. WILL LEAVE CURRENT EXTENDED FORECAST AS IT. ZELZER

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF NE 070/040 068/040 055 13001
    WWEBB 038/057 042/062 042/071 044/071 044 24553322211
CTB NB 066/038 065/036 053 13001
    WCEBB 037/054 038/060 040/068 044/068 044 25332222211
HLN NB 073/042 070/043 058 13-01
    WWEBB 040/058 042/064 044/072 046/072 046 34663322211
BZN BB 073/038 071/038 058 13001
    WWCBB 040/064 038/064 040/072 044/072 044 24664422211
WEY BB 065/033 058/032 051 13--1
    WWWBB 034/058 032/058 036/065 036/065 036 24665522211
DLN BB 072/038 069/038 056 13-01
    WWCBB 038/062 038/062 038/070 043/071 043 24663322211
HVR NB 072/042 068/042 056 13001
    WCEBB 042/062 044/066 045/074 048/074 048 33332211111
LWT NB 070/038 065/040 053 13001
    WCEBB 040/060 042/064 042/070 045/070 045 34443322211

.TFX...HIGH WIND WARNING THROUGH THIS AFTERNOON FOR
       THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT AND ADJACENT PLAINS

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flash flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Glacier

When
June 6, 6:00 AM MST to June 30, 6:00 AM MST
Where
Glacier County, West Portion
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
48.705, -112.995 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Badger Creek began to rise above flood stage on June 6th, due to snow melt over the Rockies. A strong storm then moved over the area on June 10th. This storm brought between 4 and 6 inches of rain to the plains, and 3 to 6 feet of snow in the mountains. Badger Creek remained out of its bank until June 30th. The river crested at 8.8 feet on June 18th.

What these are

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.

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, 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: 5300630.