Montana, 2002

Flash Flood and Hail in Montana, June 8, 2002

June 8, 2002 · NWS GGW · 20 events in 6 counties and zones

13 hail, 6 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
$175,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
20

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 Glasgow, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 8, 2:00 PM MST, 1 hour 57 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 8, 2:00 PM MST, 1 hour 57 minutes before
NORTHEAST MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT
300 PM MDT SAT JUN 8 2002

.SHORT TERM...
COMPLEX STORM SYSTEM AFFECTING E MT WELL WITH SEVERE STORMS POISED TO
MOVE INTO MY SE ZONES IN THE NEXT SEVERAL HOURS. HAVE SIDED WITH THE
ETA MODEL MORE THROUGH THIS PERIOD WHICH MOVES SYSTEM OUT AND DRIES OUT
CWA A BIT QUICKER THAN SLOWER/WETTER AVN. QUITE A BIG DIFFERCE BETWEEN
THE MODELS...BUT ETA HAS HAD A GOOD TRACK RECORD.

THEREFORE HAVE TRIMMED POPS DOWN THROUGH MONDAY ACROSS ALL ZONES WITH
CATEGORICAL TONIGHT...LIKELIES SUNDAY...TO SCATTERED/S SUNDAY NIGHT
AND MONDAY. WRAP-AROUND LATER MONDAY MAY BRING RAIN LIKELY.

WINDS TODAY HAVE BEEN LOCALLY HIGHER (IN THE GLASGOW AND FORT PECK
AREAS) COMPARED TO MAV AND FWC NUMBERS...SO HAVE KEPT THE LAKE WIND
ADVISORY GOING FOR TONIGHT.

HAVE WEAKENED THE WORDING FOR TONIGHT/S SEVERE WEATHER ACROSS THE S AND
S ZONES OUTSIDE OF WATCH A BIT (ISOLATED STORMS MAY BE SEVERE).
GOING WATCH LOOKS GOOD.SEE LATEST SWOMCD FOR MORE INFO.

.LONG TERM...
LITTLE TIME TO LOOK AT MEDIUM RANGE MODELS...BUT HAVE DELAYED THE
CHANCE OF PRECIPITATION TO SATURDAY. UPPER RIDGE OVER THE WESTERN
STATES SHOULD ALLOW FOR DRY CONDITIONS WITH A WARMING TREND. NEGATIVELY
TILTED TROF HEADING TOWARD MT FROM CALIFORNIA WILL DECREASE STABILITY
FRIDAY...BUT LOW LEVELS HAVE TO MOISTEN UP FIRST. JAMBA

KGGW RWW 046/058 044/053 045/066 76975564
     BBBB 045/072 045/077 050/077 050/077 761010223
KGDV RWW 048/062 044/055 046/070 76975564
     BBBB 045/073 045/075 054/075 054/075 7610101223

.GGW...TORNADO WATCH FOR PRAIRIE AND WIBAUX COUNTIES UNTIL 7PM.
...LAKE WIND ADVISORY FOR FORT PECK LAKE TONIGHT.

The radar

The Glasgow radar (KGGW), 106 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:55 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

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

Hail, McCone

When
June 8, 3:57 PM MST
Where
McCone County, 11 mi W of Circle
Measured
1.25 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.417, -105.833

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 4:00 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, Mildred
Measured
2.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.683, -104.950

Hail, Dawson

When
June 8, 4:35 PM MST
Where
Dawson County, 10 mi S of Lindsay
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.067, -105.150

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 4:40 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, Terry
Measured
2 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.783, -105.300

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 4:40 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, Terry
Measured
0.88 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.783, -105.300

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 4:45 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, 6 mi N of Mildred
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.767, -104.950

Thunderstorm Wind, Roosevelt

When
June 8, 4:45 PM MST to 4:50 PM MST
Where
Roosevelt County, Wolf Pt
Measured
66 kt (76 mph)
Property damage
$20,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
48.100, -105.650

Wind gust to 78 mph downed 6 inch diameter trees in Wolf Point and blew down power lines. The wind also destroyed a shed in Wolf Point.

Thunderstorm Wind, Roosevelt

When
June 8, 4:46 PM MST
Where
Roosevelt County, (Olf)wolf Pt Int Arpt
Measured
66 kt (76 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
48.283, -104.983

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 4:55 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, 6 mi N of Mildred
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.767, -104.950

Hail, Wibaux

When
June 8, 5:00 PM MST
Where
Wibaux County, 7 mi S of Wibaux
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.883, -104.183

Thunderstorm Wind, Roosevelt

When
June 8, 5:15 PM MST
Where
Roosevelt County, 6 mi E of Poplar
Measured
51 kt (59 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
48.100, -105.067

Wind gust to 59 mph at Poplar RAWS.

Hail, Prairie

When
June 8, 5:38 PM MST
Where
Prairie County, 27 mi SSE of Terry
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.417, -105.083

Hail, Wibaux

When
June 8, 6:00 PM MST
Where
Wibaux County, Wibaux
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.983, -104.183

Flash Flood, Wibaux

When
June 8, 6:00 PM MST to 7:30 PM MST
Where
Wibaux County, Wibaux
Property damage
$30,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
46.965, -104.249 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy rainfall associated with a severe thunderstorms dropped 2 to 3 inches of rainfall over the area. The bridge over Little Beaver Creek just northeast of Wibaux was damaged as rain washed away gravel near the bridge and left a gaping hole. Several area roads had water that ran across them, with one area over 100 feet wide and 8 to 12 inches deep.

Hail, Wibaux

When
June 8, 6:25 PM MST
Where
Wibaux County, Wibaux
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$100,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
46.983, -104.183

Hail damaged several vehicles in Wibaux.

Hail, Wibaux

When
June 8, 6:25 PM MST
Where
Wibaux County, 6 mi NW of Wibaux
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.050, -104.267

Hail, Richland

When
June 8, 6:30 PM MST
Where
Richland County, Fairview
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.850, -104.050

Thunderstorm Wind, Richland

When
June 8, 6:30 PM MST
Where
Richland County, Fairview
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.850, -104.050

Estimated 70 mph wind gust at Fairview.

Thunderstorm Wind, Richland

When
June 8, 7:15 PM MST
Where
Richland County, Fairview
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
47.850, -104.050

12 inch diameter trees downed at Fairview.

Thunderstorm Wind, Richland

When
June 8, 7:15 PM MST
Where
Richland County, 3 mi S of Fairview
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
47.800, -104.050

Severe thunderstorm winds hit south of Fairview and blew apart grain bins and structurally damaged several farm implement buildings.

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.
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: 5305792, 5305793, 5305804, 5305794, 5305795, 5305796, 5305799, 5305797, 5305798, 5305802, 5305800, 5305808, 5305801, 5305810, 5305803, 5305809, 5305805, 5305806, 5305807, 5305811.