Winter Storm in Montana, March 17 to 18, 2003

Name: Winter Storm in Montana, March 17 to 18, 2003
Start: 2003-03-17T19:00
End: 2003-03-18T13:00
Location: Montana

March 17 to 18, 2003 · NWS GGW · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Heavy snow fell over the Big Sheep Mountains with accumulations ranging from 6-8 inches. There was a report of 3/4 of an inch of ice 12 miles northwest of Carlyle.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 4 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: 4

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 happened

The episode as NWS GGW wrote it up.

Heavy snow fell over the Big Sheep Mountains with accumulations ranging from 6-8 inches. There was a report of 3/4 of an inch of ice 12 miles northwest of Carlyle.

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 Mar 17, 2:45 PM MST, 4 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 17, 2:45 PM MST, 4 hours 15 minutes before

NORTHEAST MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT
245 PM MST MON MAR 17 2003

UNUSUAL OVERALL PATTERN STILL COMING TOGETHER ASSOCIATED WITH VERY
LARGE AND MOIST LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM AT ALL LEVELS COVERING MUCH
ROCKIES AND PLAINS STATES. EXTENSIVE AND IMPRESSIVE MOISTURE STILL
ORGANIZING AS UPPER LOW CLOSES OFF. UPSIDE-DOWN N-S ORIENTED
STATIONARY FRONT ALONG MT-ND BORDER PRODUCING STEADY RAIN EASTERN
ZONES TODAY. TEMPERATURES 35-40 AND NO SNOW REPORTED YET. 1-1.5
INCHES ALREADY HAS FALLEN IN RICHLAND AND SHERIDAN COUNTIES. COLDER
CLOUD TOPS MOVING NORTH OUT OF AREA...AND RAIN NOT SPREADING WEST AT
TIME...BUT MODELS ALL BRING A LOT MORE MOISTURE THROUGHOUT CWA BY
MORNING. FRONT REMAINS STATIONARY WITH GOOD LIFT CONTINUING AND
EXPANDING. LONG FETCH FROM SE MAY ALSO ALLOW THIS SYSTEM TO TAP INTO
MORE MOISTURE OVER SOUTHERN STATES. MODELS INDICATED THIS A
SIGNIFICANT THREAT AND THIS RARE PATTERN MAY PROLONG AND INCREASE
SNOW MORE THAN 6 YO 12 INCHES ALREADY INDICATED IN WINTER STORM
WARNING.

EARLIER IDEA OF EASTERN COUNTIES RAIN TURNING TO SNOW BY EARLY
EVENING IN QUESTION. ETA FORECAST SOUNDINGS INDICATE THIS TO BE A
LOT OF FREEZING RAIN...AVN INDICATES ALL SNOW. BELIEVE THIS WILL
TAKE A MIDDLE GROUND BETWEEN THE TWO...ALSO KEEPING IN MIND NORMAL
BIASES. THIS MEANS FREEZING RAIN THREAT WILL NEED MENTION FOR
TONIGHT IN EAST...BUT SHOULD BE SNOW TUE AND TUE NIGHT. POWERFUL
FORCING OF SYSTEM PRODUCING THUNDERSTORMS INTO SW ND. DONT EXPECT
MUCH MORE WESTWARD PROGRESSION...WILL MENTION ONLY IN WIBAUX COUNTY
THIS EVENING. OTHERWISE NOT MANY CHANGES MADE TO ONGOING
FORECAST...BUT WILL ADD A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR WESTERN 3
ZONES. SIMONSEN

.LONG TERM...THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY
EXTENDED PERIOD BEGINS WITH SURFACE HIGH AND A WEAK UPPER LEVEL
RIDGE OVER CWA. UPPER LEVEL ENERGY ON FRIDAY GETS DIVERTED EITHER
NORTH OF CWA...OR TO THE SOUTH. UPPER LEVEL FLOW BECOMES ZONAL ON
SATURDAY AND REMAINS THAT WAY THROUGH THE EXTENDED. CONFIDENCE IN
CURRENT SYSTEM DROPPING MAJORITY OF SNOW OVER EASTERN ZONES HAS
BECOME RATHER HIGH. WITH LIMITED SNOWFALL AMOUNTS OVER WESTERN HALF
OF CWA...WILL ADJUST TEMPERATURES UP A BIT IN THE EARLY PART OF THE
EXTENDED. REST OF EXTENDED REMAINS THE SAME.   POHL

KGGW SSU 029/031 022/031 025/036 8299+720
     BBEE 020/041 024/045 025/051 027/045 8700000000

KGDV SSB 029/032 024/032 024/038 82+++940
     BBEE 019/038 023/043 024/048 026/045 8700000000

.KGGW...FLOOD WARNING TONIGHT FOR YELLOWSTONE RIVER IN DAWSON...
        PRAIRIE...AND RICHLAND COUNTIES.

        SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY TONIGHT FOR BIG MUDDY RIVER IN
        SHERIDAN COUNTY.

        WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT FOR
        ZONES 017>020-022>027-061-062.

        WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDSAY NIGHT FOR
        ZONES 016-021-059>060.

Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 17, 5:30 PM MST, 1 hour 30 minutes before

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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Wibaux

When: March 17, 7:00 PM MST to March 18, 1:00 PM MST
Where: Wibaux forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.965, -104.249 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Prairie

When: March 17, 7:00 PM MST to March 18, 1:00 PM MST
Where: Prairie forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 46.861, -105.378 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Daniels

When: March 17, 7:00 PM MST to March 18, 1:00 PM MST
Where: Daniels forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 48.784, -105.549 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Storm, Garfield

When: March 17, 7:00 PM MST to March 18, 1:00 PM MST
Where: Garfield forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 47.278, -106.993 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, March 2003

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: 5349278, 5349346, 5349347, 5349348.