Montana, 2003

Winter Storm in Montana, March 26 to 27, 2003

March 26 to 27, 2003 · NWS TFX · 4 events in 4 counties and zones

Areas of heavy snow began to fall over the mountains of Southwest Montana during the afternoon hours on the 26th, and ended by early afternoon on the 27th. The heaviest snow fell in the mountains above 6000 feet.

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 TFX wrote it up.

Areas of heavy snow began to fall over the mountains of Southwest Montana during the afternoon hours on the 26th, and ended by early afternoon on the 27th. The heaviest snow fell in the mountains above 6000 feet. Total snow amounts ranged from 6 to 12 inches, but an isolated area in Gallatin county did receive up to 17 inches.Here is a list of some of the snowfalls for the total storm recorded by SNOTEL data:7 inches at Alder 20S; 6 inches at Boulder 3N; 6 inches at White Sulphur Springs 15SE; and 17 inches at Bozeman 15S.

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 26, 1:15 PM MST, 4 hours 45 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 26, 1:15 PM MST, 4 hours 45 minutes before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
115 PM MST WED MAR 26 2003

.SHORT TERM...A QUICK SNOWSTORM WILL SWEEP THROUGH SOUTHWEST MONTANA
TONIGHT...WITH THE REMAINDER OF THE AREA REMAINING FAIRLY QUIET. AS
AN UPPER TROUGH SWINGS THROUGH SOUTHWEST MONTANA...INSTABILITY AND
UPSLOPE WILL COMBINE TO PRODUCE SNOW IN THE MOUNTAINS AND A MIX
CHANGING TO ALL SNOW IN THE VALLEYS LATE. I DONT THINK SNOW
ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE AS IMPRESSIVE AS PREVIOUSLY THOUGHT...BUT WILL
GO AHEAD AND LET THE CURRENT HIGHLIGHTS RIDE. LINGERING MOISTURE AND
INSTABILITY IN A NORTHWEST FLOW BEHIND THE EXITING SYSTEM WILL RESULT
IN A FEW CONVECTIVE SHOWERS...OTHERWISE CONDITIONS WILL BE GENERALLY
DRY. WEAK UPPER RIDGE BEGINS TO BUILD ON FRIDAY WITH WARMING
TEMPERATURES AND STRONGER WINDS BY THE WEEKEND. JCA

.EXTENDED...A FLAT UPPER LEVEL RIDGE WILL BE OVER THE ZONES ON
SUNDAY. A SURFACE LOW PRESSURE CENTER WILL BE OVER ALBERTA WITH
STRONG DOWNSLOPE WINDS ALONG THE EASTERN SLOPES OF THE ROCKIES. A
SHORT WAVE MOVES INTO THE RIDGE LATE SUNDAY AND EARLY MONDAY. THIS
WILL CAUSE A CHANCE OF PRECIP...MAINLY OVER THE SOUTHERN ZONES. A
HIGH PRESSURE RIDGE BUILDS IN BEHIND THIS SHORT WAVE ON TUESDAY.
CONDITIONS WILL REMAIN DRY AND THE TEMPERATURES WILL TREND UPWARDS
INTO WEDNESDAY. ZELZER

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF  EE 022/040 018/042 032 05322
    NNEEB 052/035 058/032 046/023 051/027 058 20000000000
CTB  CE 020/038 016/040 030 05222
    NNEEE 047/034 056/028 042/022 047/021 050 00000000000
HLN  RE 026/042 022/044 028 05763
    EEEEB 051/035 058/030 049/026 053/028 057 20000000001
BZN  RE 024/040 020/042 027 05+73
    EEEEB 053/030 056/027 050/025 053/025 057 20000000000
WEY  SC 012/030 008/032 021 05+84
    ECEEB 044/021 048/020 044/019 046/019 046 30000330000
DLN  CC 024/040 018/041 026 05632
    ENEEB 052/032 057/027 051/026 053/026 056 20000000000
HVR  EB 024/044 018/045 028 05022
    ENEEE 048/033 061/030 048/024 051/023 059 00000000000
LWT  EB 022/041 020/042 025 05224
    ENEEE 049/032 056/030 045/023 046/025 055 20000000000

.TFX...WINTER STORM WARNING TONIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING FOR
       ELEVATIONS ABOVE 6000 FEET FOR GALLATIN AND MADISON COUNTIES.
       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW BELOW 6000 FEET TONIGHT
       THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING FOR GALLATIN AND MADISON COUNTIES.
Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 26, 6:35 AM MST, 11 hours 25 minutes before
MTZ008>015-044>055-270110-
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
635 AM MST WED MAR 26 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT TODAY AND TONIGHT ABOVE 6000
FEET FOR GALLATIN AND MADISON COUNTIES. ADDITIONALLY...A WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW BELOW 6000 FEET FOR MADISON AND GALLATIN
COUNTIES HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR TONIGHT. PLEASE REFER TO GTFWSWTFX FOR
FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

A WINTER STORM WARNING ABOVE 6000 FEET FOR MADISON AND GALLATIN
COUNTIES REMAINS IN EFFECT THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING. A WINTER
WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW BELOW 6000 FEET ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR
MADISON AND GALLATIN COUNTIES THROUGH THURSDAY MORNING. PLEASE REFER
TO GTFWSWTFX FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

Event by event

4 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, Madison

When
March 26, 6:00 PM MST to March 27, 2:00 PM MST
Where
Madison forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Gallatin

When
March 26, 6:00 PM MST to March 27, 2:00 PM MST
Where
Gallatin forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Meagher

When
March 26, 6:00 PM MST to March 27, 2:00 PM MST
Where
Meagher forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Broadwater

When
March 26, 6:00 PM MST to March 27, 2:00 PM MST
Where
Broadwater forecast zone
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

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 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings 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: 5345149, 5345150, 5345151, 5345152.