Tornado and Hail in North Dakota, July 19, 2003

Name: Tornado and Hail in North Dakota, July 19, 2003
Start: 2003-07-19T17:10
End: 2003-07-19T21:35
Location: North Dakota

July 19, 2003 · NWS FGF · 31 events in 8 counties and zones

27 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado, 1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $5,000
Crop damage: $4.0 million
Events: 31

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 Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 19, 2:20 PM CST, 2 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 19, 2:20 PM CST, 2 hours 50 minutes before

FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
320 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

THE ELEVATED CONVECTION THAT HAS KEEP US BUSY THE LAST FEW HOURS
AROUND PARK RAPIDS SEEMS TO NOW BE SHIFTING SOUTHEAST AND NO NEW
DEVELOPMENT SEEN UPSTREAM YET.  FOCUS BEYOND THIS ACTION WILL FOCUS
ON TSTM CHANCES WITH MAIN FRONT NOW ENTERING WRN MANITOBA INTO SE
SASK.

.SHORT TERM...
THE AFOREMENTIONED CANADIAN FRONT IS ASSOC WITH 80KT 250 MB JET THAT
IS NOW MOVING THRU SRN SASK INTO MANITOBA ON THE UNDERSIDE OF UPPER
LEVEL LOW ACROSS THE NRN PRAIRIE PROVINCES.  ATMOS AHEAD OF THIS
FRONT OVER ERN ND IS WELL CAPPED BUT HIGH DEW PTS REMAIN WITH 65 TO
70+ AND TEMPS IN THE LOWER TO UPPER 80S.  TEMPS NEARING CONVECTIVE
TEMPS PER ETA SOUNDINGS AT 21Z..BUT SINCE TROUGH IS NOW IN MN NO
REAL FOCUS FOR DEVELOPMENT.  CANNOT RULE OUT ISOLD STORM NEXT FEW
HOURS BUT AFTER COORD WITH SPC FEEL BEST CHC FOR STORMS WILL AWAIT
ARRIVAL OF CANADIAN FRONT DUE TO ARRIVE OVERNIGHT AND EXIT
SOUTHEASTERN COUNTIES BY 12Z SUN.  DUE TO UNCERTAINITY OF
COVERAGE...KEPT ISOLD TSRA MENTION ALL ZONES.

.LONGER TERM...
WILL HAVE EARLY POP IN SE ND SUNDAY...THEN DRY IN ERN ND.  WILL
MAINTAIN CHC TSRA IN NW/WCNTRL MN COUNTIES EAST OF THE RED RIVER
VALLEY AS COOLER 500MB TEMPS DROP DOWN IN THE AFTN AND EVE IN
ASSOCIATED WITH UPPER LOW AND VORT THAT WILL MOVING TOWARD THE MN
ARROWHEAD SUN EVENING.  HIGH PRESSURE WILL BRING IN DRY WEATHER
MON-WED AND LITTLE CHANCE WAS NEEDED FROM PREV FCSTS.

.EXTENDED...
LONGWAVE RIDGE OVER THE WESTERN US AND LONGWAVE TROUGH IN THE
EASTERN US DEAMPLIFIES A BIT THROUGH THE PERIOD. ENSEMBLE MEAN
SUGGESTS THE PATTERN WILL BECOME ZONAL THAN IMPLIED BY THE LONGWAVE
FORECAST ESPECIALLY AFTER THURSDAY. NEW 120 HOURS 12Z GFS IS FASTER
AND MORE ZONAL THAN THE OLD 00Z RUN. 12Z GFS HAD THE SAME SPEED AS
THE ECMWF BUT WITH LOWER AMPLITUDE WITH THE TROUGH IN THE EASTERN US.
CANADIAN ENSEMBLE WAS DOING THE SAME TREND. WILL ADD A CHANCE OF
THUNDER FOR THURSDAY WITH THE FASTER SOLUTION.

FGF...NONE.

RIDDLE/HOPPES

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 19, 10:10 AM CST, 7 hours before

MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024-
026>030-038-039-049-052>054-191815-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS
1110 AM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...WEST
CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

ISOLATED SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER EASTER
NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWESTERN MINNESOTA BETWEEN 4 PM TODAY AND 3 AM
TONIGHT.

A WEAK TROUGH OF LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE EAST INTO NORTHWESTERN
MINNESOTA THIS AFTERNOON. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG
THIS TROUGH THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING EAST OF THE RED
RIVER...WITH A FEW OF THESE POSSIBLY SEVERE WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND
LARGE HAIL.  THERE IS ALSO A SMALL CHANCE FOR AN ISOLATED
THUNDERSTORM OVER EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA LATE THIS AFTERNOON OR
EVENING.

THERE IS A GREATER CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS TONIGHT ACROSS THE
REGION..A FEW OF THESE MAY BECOME SEVERE AS WELL WITH DAMAGING WINDS
AND LARGE HAIL.  A STRONGER FRONT WILL DROP SOUTHEAST OUT OF CANADA
AND INTO NORTHWEST NORTH DAKOTA THIS AFTERNOON AND ACROSS EASTERN
NORTH DAKOTA AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA OVERNIGHT.  THIS FRONT WILL
HAVE BETTER UPPER LEVEL SUPPORT AND IS EXPECTED TO GIVE A BETTER
CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

A FEW THUNDERSTORMS MAY LINGER INTO SUNDAY MORNING ACROSS SOUTHEAST
NORTH DAKOTA AND WEST CENTRAL MINNESOTA.  A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS
EXISTS AGAIN LATE THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED AFTER 4 PM TODAY AND THROUGH THE
EVENING.

FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT
HTTP://WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/FGF/INDEX.HTML (ALL LOWER CASE)

RIDDLE

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 19, 11:48 AM CST, 5 hours 22 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
1248 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1240 PM    10 NE PARK RAPIDS         MN   1.75 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD

1240 PM    11 NE PARK RAPIDS         MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD

WJB

Local storm report, Jul 19, 11:51 AM CST, 5 hours 19 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
1251 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

1240 PM    11 NE PARK RAPIDS         MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD

WJB

Local storm report, Jul 19, 12:23 PM CST, 4 hours 47 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
123 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0105 PM    5 ENE NEVIS               MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD                        REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                          SPOTTER.

WJB

Local storm report, Jul 19, 1:14 PM CST, 3 hours 56 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
214 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0150 PM    6 NW NEVIS                MN   .75 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD                        REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                          SPOTTER.

WJB

Local storm report, Jul 19, 1:21 PM CST, 3 hours 49 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
221 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0215 PM    5 S PARK RAPIDS           MN   1.00 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   HUBBARD                        REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                          SPOTTER.

WJB

Local storm report, Jul 19, 2:30 PM CST, 2 hours 40 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS, ND
330 PM CDT SAT JUL 19 2003

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION.....STATE   ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0300 PM    3 N OYLEN                 MN   .75 INCH HAIL
07/19/03   WADENA                         REPORTED BY TRAINED
                                          SPOTTER.

WJB

The radar

The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 176 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:07 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

27 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:10 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 2 mi S of Wales
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.867, -98.583

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:20 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 4 mi W of Dresden
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.817, -98.567

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:25 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 4 mi WSW of Dresden
Measured: 2.5 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.800, -98.567

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 1 mi W of Langdon
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 48.750, -98.383

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:35 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 3 mi WSW of Langdon
Measured: 2.25 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.733, -98.433

Thunderstorm Wind, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:35 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 3 mi WSW of Langdon
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.733, -98.433

Tornado, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:35 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 11 mi W of Langdon
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 25 yd
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 48.750, -98.600

The tornado touched down in an open field north of Highway 5.

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:40 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 2 mi S of Langdon
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.717, -98.367

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 4 mi S of Langdon
Measured: 4.5 in hail
Crop damage: $4.0 million
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.700, -98.367

Hail, Cavalier

When: July 19, 5:50 PM CST
Where: Cavalier County, 4 mi N of Nekoma
Measured: 2 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.633, -98.367

Hail, Walsh

When: July 19, 6:10 PM CST
Where: Walsh County, Fairdale
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.483, -98.233

Hail, Ramsey

When: July 19, 6:26 PM CST
Where: Ramsey County, Edmore
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.417, -98.450

Hail, Ramsey

When: July 19, 6:32 PM CST
Where: Ramsey County, 2 mi N of Lawton
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.333, -98.367

Hail, Walsh

When: July 19, 6:38 PM CST
Where: Walsh County, 8 mi S of Adams
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.300, -98.067

Hail, Walsh

When: July 19, 6:40 PM CST
Where: Walsh County, 9 mi SW of Lankin
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.217, -98.050

Hail, Ramsey

When: July 19, 6:50 PM CST
Where: Ramsey County, 4 mi N of Brocket
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.267, -98.350

Hail, Walsh

When: July 19, 6:50 PM CST
Where: Walsh County, 15 mi S of Adams
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.200, -98.067

Hail, Nelson

When: July 19, 6:55 PM CST
Where: Nelson County, 3 mi SE of Whitman
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.117, -98.067

Hail, Nelson

When: July 19, 7:05 PM CST
Where: Nelson County, 3 mi NE of Petersburg
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.050, -97.950

Hail, Nelson

When: July 19, 7:05 PM CST
Where: Nelson County, Petersburg
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 48.017, -98.000

Hail, Grand Forks

When: July 19, 7:25 PM CST
Where: Grand Forks County, 3 mi S of Niagara
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.950, -97.867

Hail, Grand Forks

When: July 19, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Grand Forks County, 4 mi NW of Logan Center
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.833, -97.867

Hail, Grand Forks

When: July 19, 7:45 PM CST
Where: Grand Forks County, 6 mi W of Northwood
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.733, -97.700

Lightning, Grand Forks

When: July 19, 7:45 PM CST
Where: Grand Forks County, Northwood
Property damage: $5,000
Reported by: NEWSPAPER
Coordinates: 47.922, -97.457 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Lightning struck a telephone pole and knocked the transformer to the ground. Cable and telephone service were knocked out in town.

Thunderstorm Wind, Steele

When: July 19, 7:50 PM CST
Where: Steele County, 9 mi ENE of Sharon
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.650, -97.717

Hail, Steele

When: July 19, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Steele County, 14 mi NE of Finley
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.667, -97.633

Hail, Traill

When: July 19, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Traill County, 4 mi E of Clifford
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.350, -97.350

Hail, Traill

When: July 19, 8:45 PM CST
Where: Traill County, 4 mi E of Galesburg
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.267, -97.333

Hail, Cass

When: July 19, 8:55 PM CST
Where: Cass County, 2 mi S of Hunter
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 47.150, -97.217

Hail, Ramsey

When: July 19, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Ramsey County, 5 mi N of Bartlett
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.117, -98.433

Hail, Nelson

When: July 19, 9:35 PM CST
Where: Nelson County, 4 mi NNW of Lakota
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 48.083, -98.383

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado: A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in North Dakota in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history The tornado archive for North Dakota, 2003 Warnings in North Dakota, July 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: 5369127, 5369128, 5369129, 5369130, 5369131, 5369132, 5369201, 5369133, 5369134, 5369135, 5369136, 5369137, 5369138, 5369139, 5369140, 5369141, 5369142, 5369143, 5369144, 5369202, 5369145, 5369146, 5369147, 5369463, 5369148, 5369149, 5369196, 5369197, 5369198, 5369199, 5369200.