Winter Storm in Montana, March 3, 2003

Name: Winter Storm in Montana, March 3, 2003
Start: 2003-03-03T08:00
End: 2003-03-03T16:00
Location: Montana

March 3, 2003 · NWS TFX · 8 events in 8 counties and zones

Areas of heavy snow fell in the mountain areas across much of Central and Southwest Montana on the 3rd. The heaviest snow occurred over locations above 5000 feet.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 8

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 fell in the mountain areas across much of Central and Southwest Montana on the 3rd. The heaviest snow occurred over locations above 5000 feet. Blowing and drifting of the snow was widespread, as winds were sustained near 30 mph, with gusts to 40 mph.Here is a list of some of the snowfalls reported:10 inches at Neihart 10S, Shonkin 7S, and White Sulphur Springs 40N; 9 inches at Lewistown 22S, and Clancy 10SE; and 3 to 5 inches throughout the Rocky Mountain Front.

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 3, 3:00 AM MST, 5 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Mar 3, 3:00 AM MST, 5 hours before

SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
300 AM MST MON MAR 3 2003

.SHORT TERM...UPPER TROF AXIS SWING ACROSS THE AREA EARLY THIS
MORNING. HIGH SURFACE PRESSURE PUSHING SOUTH ACROSS CANADIAN BORDER
WITH A SURGE OF COLD AIR. FRONT HAS MOVED SOUTH OF CUT BANK AT THIS
TIME. GUSTY NORTH WINDS BEHIND FRONTAL PASSAGE WITH BANDS OF HEAVY
SNOW. WILL LEAVE CURRENT ADVISORIES AND WARNINGS IN PLACE THROUGH
THE MORNING. RADAR INDICATES HEAVY BAND OF SNOW JUST NORTH OF GREAT
FALLS. SURGE OF COLD AIR AND ASSOCIATED SNOW WILL MOVE RAPIDLY
SOUTH THIS MORNING WITH SNOW ENDING QUICKLY FROM THE NORTH. HIGH
POPS OUT THIS MORNING HAVE BEEN LOWERED SIGNIFICANTLY ON THE
AFTERNOON GRIDS. HEAVY SNOW SHOULD BE THROUGH GREAT FALLS NOT LONG
AFTER 12Z. TEMPERATURES A BIG PROBLEM AND ARE DEPENDENT UPON
FRONTAL PASSAGE. READINGS SHOULD FALL THROUGHOUT THE DAY. MODELS
BRING ANOTHER SHOT OF SNOW ACROSS THE AREA TONIGHT AND INTO TUESDAY
MORNING. DOWNSLOPE SURFACE GRADIENTS DEVELOP TUESDAY NIGHT BUT FLOW
ALOFT REMAINS NORTHWEST AND WILL CONTINUE WITH SLIGHT CHANCE POPS.
TEMPERATURES SHOULD REACH SUB-ZERO NUMBERS TONIGHT AND THEN WARM
SLOWLY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. EMANUEL

.EXTENDED...MODELS BRING ANOTHER ARCTIC SURGE FOR MORE COLD AND A
CHANCE OF SNOW...ESPECIALLY FOR THE FAVORED UPSLOPE AREAS THROUGH THE
EXTENDED PERIOD. MODELS BRING A COLD UPPER LOW INTO SOUTHERN CANADA
WITH AN UPPER RIDGE OVER ALASKA. THIS WILL BRING A COLD AND MOIST
NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT ACROSS OUR CWA. BY SATURDAY...A WEAK UPPER RIDGE
DEVELOPS OVER MONTANA...BUT THE ARCTIC AIRMASS REMAINS ENTRENCHED
ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA THROUGH SUNDAY. TEMPERATURES SHOULD
MODERATE BY SUNDAY...BUT STILL REMAIN BELOW SEASONAL AVERAGE.
WILLIAMSON DC

.CCF NUMBERS
GTF SS 022/908 020/018 032 08+76
    CCCEE 010/022 009/025 005/022 012/022 017 22333122222
CTB SS 020/912 018/015 028 08865
    NCCEE 006/017 005/021 000/017 007/017 017 22443122222
HLN SS 028/005 022/018 034 08+66
    CCCEE 013/025 014/031 014/031 017/031 017 334431-----
BZN SS 027/002 020/012 032 08+66
    CCCEE 022/030 015/029 006/032 017/033 015 33443100000
WEY SS 021/910 015/905 025 08+77
    SCCEE 014/024 009/028 004/031 015/032 010 76443433333
DLN SE 028/005 018/014 031 08754
    CCCEE 017/032 019/033 020/035 023/036 025 33443200000
HVR SE 024/910 018/010 030 08864
    CCCEE 007/020 003/021 001/022 008/015 015 22333000000
LWT SS 025/908 018/012 031 08+66
    CCCEE 010/026 010/022 008/022 015/026 014 22443011111

.TFX...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW ABOVE 6000
       FEET NORTHERN ROCKIES...CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA
       THIS MORNING
       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW BELOW 6000
       FEET NORTHERN ROCKIES...CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA
       THIS MORNING
       WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR BLOWING SNOW NORTH CENTRAL
       MONTANA THIS MORNING.

Hazardous weather outlook, Mar 3, 6:35 AM MST, 1 hour 25 minutes before

MTZ008>015-044>055-040110-
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
635 AM MST MON MAR 3 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

WINTER STORM WARNINGS FOR ELEVATIONS ABOVE 6000 FEET ALONG WITH
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW BELOW 6000 FEET
CONTINUE IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA
THIS MORNING. PLEASE REFER TO GTFWSWTFX FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

Event by event

8 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, North Rocky Mountain Front

When: March 3, 8:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: North Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Fergus

When: March 3, 8:00 AM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Fergus forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Jefferson

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Jefferson forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Cascade

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Cascade forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Chouteau

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Chouteau forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Southern Lewis and Clark

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Southern Lewis and Clark forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Judith Basin

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM MST
Where: Judith Basin forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Meagher

When: March 3, 12:00 PM MST to 4:00 PM 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 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: 5345020, 5345026, 5345021, 5345022, 5345023, 5345024, 5345025, 5345027.