Winter Storm in Montana, May 7 to 8, 2002

Name: Winter Storm in Montana, May 7 to 8, 2002
Start: 2002-05-07T00:00
End: 2002-05-08T04:00
Location: Montana

May 7 to 8, 2002 · NWS TFX · 14 events in 14 counties and zones

14 winter storm, as filed by the National Weather Service.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 14

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 May 6, 7:50 PM MST, 4 hours 10 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 6, 7:50 PM MST, 4 hours 10 minutes before

SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
850 PM MDT MON MAY 6 2002

.SHORT TERM...UPDATE PLANNED TO ZONES BY 930...NO UPDATE TO SFP.
OVERALL FORECAST LOOKS TO BE ON TRACK...WILL ONLY BE MAKING MINOR
WORDING ADJUSTMENTS. WE HAVE A BIT OF A SQUEEZE PLAY GOING ON ACROSS
CENTRAL MONTANA THIS EVENING...WITH TWO MOISTURE SOURCES COMING
TOGETHER. MOISTURE IN SOUTHERN CANADA IS SLIPPING SOUTH IN CTB FOR
-SN...WHILE A SLUG OF MOISTURE MOVING NORTH OUT AHEAD OF UPPER LOW IS
PRODUCING WIDESPREAD RA/SN IN SW MONTANA...WHICH WILL TURN TO ALL
SNOW A LITTLE LATER. 00Z RUN OF THE MESOETA INITIALIZED WELL WITH THE
QPF FIELD...AND THUS I TEND TO BELIEVE ITS THINKING FOR THE NEAR
TERM. CURRENT FORECAST HAS SNOW LIKELY MOST AREAS...AND WHILE THE
ACTUAL TIMING OF THE ONSET OF PRECIP IN CERTAIN AREAS IS IFFY...WILL
LEAVE WORDING AS IS. WILL ALSO LET THE WARNINGS/ADVISORIES CONTINUE
FOR NOW. TEMPS LOOK TO BE ON TRACK. JCA

.EXTENDED...LONG RANGE MODELS IN GENERAL AGREEMENT WITH OVERALL
PATTERN THROUGH THE PERIOD. THE MRF SEEMS TO HAVE HAD THE
BEST CONSISTENCY AS OF LATE...AND THUS WILL RUN WITH IT FOR THIS
PACKAGE. THE PERIOD BEGINS WITH A RIDGE IN THE EASTERN PACIFIC AND
NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT OVER MONTANA. SEVERAL WEAK SHORTWAVES MOVE
THROUGH THE FLOW EARLY IN THE PERIOD FOR A CHANCE OF SHOWERS
ACTIVITY EARLY IN THE WEEKEND. AS WE GET INTO SUNDAY...ZONAL FLOW
INCREASES...AND ALONG WITH A TIGHTENING SURFACE GRADIENT...EXPECT
A BRIEF WARM UP WITH MAINLY DRY CONDITIONS ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL
MONTANA SUNDAY AND MONDAY. THE FLOW BEGINS TO TURN SOUTHWEST IN
RESPONSE TO AN UPPER LOW MOVING TOWARD THE CALIFORNIA COAST ON
MONDAY...AND THUS WILL KEEP CHANCE POPS IN THE FORECAST FOR THE
SOUTHWEST. JCA

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF SJ 025/035 022/041 026 086+8
   BWWEE 054/030 056/032 058/034 060/034 060 41113333311
CTB SE 022/032 018/040 024 087+7
   BWWEE 052/030 054/033 056/034 059/034 059 21113333311
HLN SJ 032/043 027/045 028 086+6
   BWWEE 055/033 059/035 058/038 062/038 062 31114444411
BZN SJ 028/041 025/044 024 088+8
   BWWEE 054/030 057/033 058/034 056/034 056 31114444411
WEY SJ 025/033 016/036 017 08898
   BWWEE 042/023 044/026 043/024 044/024 044 41125555511
DLN SE 030/042 022/044 024 08453
   BWWEE 052/029 053/032 052/033 053/033 053 21124444411
HVR SJ 027/035 020/042 025 088+8
   BWWEE 054/032 058/035 060/036 062/036 062 42213333311
LWT SJ 028/035 022/040 025 088+8
   BWWEE 052/031 055/035 057/036 058/036 058 41113333311

.TFX...WINTER STORM WARNING TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT FOR MUCH OF
       NORTH-CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MONTANA.
       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW TUESDAY AND TUESDAY NIGHT
       FOR SOUTHWEST MONTANA.

Event by event

14 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, North Rocky Mountain Front

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to May 8, 4:00 AM MST
Where: North Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Eastern Glacier

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Eastern Glacier forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Hill

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Hill forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Cascade

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Cascade forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Chouteau

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Chouteau forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Southern Lewis and Clark

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Southern Lewis and Clark forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Toole

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Toole forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Liberty

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Liberty forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Eastern Pondera

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Eastern Pondera forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Southern Rocky Mountain Front

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Southern Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Eastern Teton

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Eastern Teton forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Judith Basin

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Judith Basin forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Fergus

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Fergus forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Meagher

When: May 7, 12:00 AM MST to 4:00 AM MST
Where: Meagher forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

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

Every storm in Montana in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, May 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: 5291639, 5291640, 5291641, 5291642, 5291643, 5291644, 5291645, 5291646, 5291647, 5291648, 5291649, 5291650, 5291651, 5291652.