Wildfire, Gallatin
- When
- September 1, 12:00 AM MST to September 15, 12:00 PM MST
- Where
- Gallatin County, 11 mi N of West Yellowstone
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 45.541, -111.170 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Wildfire in Montana, September 1 to 15, 2003
A lightning caused wildfire started north of West Yellowstone on the 20th of August. This wildfire was named the Rathbone Fire.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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.
A lightning caused wildfire started north of West Yellowstone on the 20th of August. This wildfire was named the Rathbone Fire. 2000 acres burned by the end of August, and an additional 1000 acres burned in September. No structural losses or injuries were reported. Traffic was limited to the day time hours only on Highway 191 near the fire due to the thick smoke.
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 Aug 31, 8:00 PM MST, 4 hours earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Aug 31, 8:00 PM MST, 4 hours before
SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
900 PM MDT SUN AUG 31 2003
.SHORT TERM...NO UPDATE REQUIRED THIS EVENING. MAIN FEATURE OF
INTEREST TONIGHT IS APPROACHING FRONT CLEARLY DEPICTED ON SATELLITE
IMAGERY. WINDS SHIFTING TO THE WEST BEHIND THIS FRONT BUT SPEEDS
NOT VERY IMPRESSIVE. MAIN EFFECT OF FRONT HAS BEEN A REDUCTION IN
VISIBILITIES AS SMOKE IS BEING DRAGGED BACK IN. CURRENT FORECAST
LOOKS ON TRACK. WILL CONTINUE FIRE WEATHER WATCH FOR MONDAY
AFTERNOON AND EVENING AS ETA CONTINUES WITH TIGHTENING SURFACE
GRADIENT AND GUSTY WINDS. EMANUEL
.LONG TERM...THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...UPPER HIGH CENTERED
OVER THE FOUR CORNERS WILL MAINTAIN ITS STRENGTH AND POSITION THROUGH
THE PERIOD. SPORADIC PACIFIC MOISTURE WILL ROTATE AROUND THE HIGH AND
THROUGH CENTRAL MONTANA AT VARIOUS TIMES. IT APPEARS NOW THAT BEST
CHANCE OF RAIN WILL BE THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING WHEN SOUTHERLY
SURFACE FLOW BRINGS IN WARMER AIR TO DESTABILIZE THE AIR MASS.
POMEROY
.CCF NUMBERS
GTF UU 048/083 047/081 047 14000
UBBBB 088/051 088/050 083/050 083/048 082 00003300000
CTB UU 048/078 043/081 045 14000
UUBBB 084/049 082/047 080/048 079/046 077 00002200000
HLN UU 050/086 049/084 050 14000
UBBUU 090/057 088/058 086/052 086/048 085 00003300000
BZN UU 041/084 044/082 043 14000
UBBBB 085/045 085/044 082/043 083/044 083 000-3311331
WEY UU 038/070 043/070 038 14000
UBBBB 076/041 076/039 074/039 074/037 074 00023322332
DLN UU 046/084 046/082 047 14000
UBBBB 084/049 083/047 079/047 079/047 080 00023322222
HVR UU 048/084 045/080 044 14000
UUBBB 088/049 088/048 085/050 085/048 085 00002200000
LWT UU 047/084 046/079 044 14000
UBBBB 084/049 082/048 081/048 080/047 080 00003300000
.TFX...FIRE WEATHER WATCH MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH EARLY EVENING
FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONE 113 AND NORTHEAST PORTION OF 115.Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 31, 6:55 PM MST, 5 hours 5 minutes before
MTZ008>015-044>055-011210- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT 755 PM MDT SUN AUG 31 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA .DAY ONE...TODAY THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. NO WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES CURRENTLY IN EFFECT .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY A FIRE WEATHER WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH EVENING FOR EASTERN PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA. PLEASE REFER TO GTFRFWTFX FOR FURTHER DETAILS. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Wildfire
- A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Rip Current in Florida, September 1, 2003
- Flash Flooding and Flooding in Indiana, September 1 to 3, 2003
- Flooding in Indiana, September 1 to 11, 2003
- Flooding in Indiana, September 1 to 4, 2003
- Rip Current in Florida, September 1, 2003
- Flooding in Indiana, September 1 to 2, 2003
- Damaging Wind in Indiana, September 1, 2003
- Wildfire in Montana, September 1 to 30, 2003
- Flooding and Damaging Winds in Ohio, September 1, 2003
- Lightning Strike in Pennsylvania, September 1, 2003
- Flash Flood in Pennsylvania, September 1 to 2, 2003
- Tropical Storm in Texas, September 1 to 2, 2003
More
Every storm in Montana in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, September 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: 5337107.