Name: Winter Storm in Montana, March 7, 2002
Start: 2002-03-07T14:00
End: 2002-03-07T22:00
Location: Montana

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 6

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 Mar 7, 9:15 AM MST, 4 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 7, 9:15 AM MST, 4 hours 45 minutes before

SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
915 AM MST THU MAR 7 2002

...UPDATES PLANNED FOR ZONES AND STATE...

.SHORT TERM...12Z MODEL DATA SLOW TO COME IN THIS MORNING. DO HAVE
THE 12Z NGM RUN. BASED ON THIS RUN AND 06Z AVN/MESOETA RUNS FROM
LAST NIGHT HEAVY SNOW WARNING FOR FAR SW MT LOOKS OK.
MOISTURE AHEAD OF A SHORTWAVE FROM N CENTRAL WA THROUGH FAR NW
OREGON WILL MOVE INTO SW MT TODAY AND OVERUN THE COLD AIRMASS.
MEANWHILE SURFACE LOW IS PROGGED TO MOVE INTO OR NEAR FAR SW MT TO
PROVIDE INCREASED LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE THIS AFTERNOON. SHORTWAVE AND
MOISTURE DOES NOT MOVE OUT OF BEAVERHEAD COUNTY UNTIL AFTER MIDNIGHT
SO HAVE DECIDED TO KEEP THAT COUNTY IN THE WARNING INTO THE EVENING
LIKE MADISON AND GALLATIN COUNTIES. FARTHER N AFOREMENTIONED MOISTURE
WILL ALSO OVERUN THE ARCTIC TODAY FOR MORE LIGHT SNOW OR FLURRIES.
DO NOT EXPECT MUCH ACCUMULATION SO WILL LET WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY
EXPIRE. BASED ON LATEST TFX SOUNDING AND NGM MOS WILL DROP LOWS AT
GTF AND LWT FOR TODAY A FEW DEGREES. BLANK

.EXTENDED...UPPER RIDGE IS OVER THE AREA EARLY IN THE 4-7 DAY
PERIOD. PATTERN REMAINS PROGRESSIVE WITH A SPLIT UPPER LEVEL TROUGH
PUSHING INTO THE WRN CONUS EARLY IN THE WEEK. ECMWF AND MRF DIVERGE
BY TUESDAY...WITH THE MRF FORMING A TROUGH OVER THE CNTRL CONUS...
WHILE THE ECMWF KEEPS ZONAL FLOW OVER THE COUNTRY. ECWMF DEVELOPS A
POSITIVE TILT TROUGH OVER WRN CANADA...SIMILAR TO UPPER AIR PATTERN
IN PLACE FOR THE LAST FEW DAYS. IT APPEARS THAT MRF HAS THE BEST RUN
TO RUN CONSISTENCY...AND CURRENT FORECAST IS IN LINE WITH THIS. NO
CHANGES. MPJ

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF JJ 004/908 009/002 031 14643
   NBEEE 018/043 022/041 020/040 021/040 021 21112222222
CTB JJ 902/915 004/907 025 14533
   NBEEE 015/041 018/038 019/037 020/040 020 21112222222
HLN SJ 011/902 014/006 032 14753
   BBEEE 015/044 022/042 023/040 023/040 023 21112222222
BZN SJ 013/005 016/008 030 14863
   BBEEE 010/035 015/034 018/030 017/029 017 21112222222
WEY SJ 026/906 016/904 022 14984
   BBJJJ 910/025 905/030 000/026 001/024 001 22114444444
DLN SJ 016/005 018/010 030 14853
   BBEEE 010/036 015/035 018/030 017/031 017 21112222222
HVR JJ 002/910 008/906 022 14632
   BBEEE 014/042 018/042 019/040 020/039 020 11112222222
LWT JJ 005/905 012/002 031 14752
   BBEEE 016/039 018/037 019/037 020/038 020 21112222222

.TFX...HEAVY SNOW WARNING TODAY INTO THIS EVENING FOR FAR
       SOUTHWESTERN MONTANA ZONES        (MTZ008-015-055).
       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TODAY FOR REMAINDER OF SW MT AND
       ALSO CENTRAL MT (MTZ014 AND 050 THROUGH 054).

In the hours before

Local storm report, Mar 7, 1:28 PM MST, 32 minutes before

LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
128 PM MST THU MAR 7 2002

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

0100 PM    3 NW WISE RIVER           MT   HEAVY SNOW
03/07/02   BEAVERHEAD                     6 INCHES

0100 PM    9 SE MAUDLOW              MT   HEAVY SNOW
03/07/02   GALLATIN                       8 INCHES

0100 PM    SILVER STAR               MT   HEAVY SNOW
03/07/02   MADISON                        7 INCHES

NNNN

Event by event

6 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Southern Lewis and Clark

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Southern Lewis and Clark forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

Winter Storm, Judith Basin

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Judith Basin forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

Winter Storm, Fergus

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Fergus forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

Winter Storm, Jefferson

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

Winter Storm, Broadwater

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Broadwater forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

Winter Storm, Meagher

When: March 7, 2:00 PM MST to 10:00 PM MST
Where: Meagher forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

A band of heavy snow moved through Southwest and Central Montana during the afternoon and evening hours of the 7th. Snowfall rates were near 2 inches per hour for several hours, as a band a of snow moved northeast from Helena to Lewistown. Snow accumulations generally ranged from 6 to 8 inches over the plains, and up to 10 inches in the mountains. Emergency travel only was advised on Highway 12 in the Helena Vicinity.

What these are

Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Montana in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, March 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: 5287117, 5287118, 5287218, 5287219, 5287220, 5287221.