Winter Storm in Montana, May 10 to 11, 2004

Name: Winter Storm in Montana, May 10 to 11, 2004
Start: 2004-05-10T23:00
End: 2004-05-11T22:30
Location: Montana

May 10 to 11, 2004 · NWS TFX · 6 events in 6 counties and zones

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 6

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 powerful spring storm brought winter conditions to the Rocky Mountain Front and northern adjacent plains on the 11th. Snow and gusty winds began shortly after midnight and continued until late evening. Reported snow fall amounts include: 17 inches at Blackleaf 8WNW, 15 inches at Summit 2SE, 10 inches at Babb and 7 inches at Havre, Havre 25S, Cut Bank, Sweetgrass 25E, Chester 15N, and Valier. Additionally, 24 inches of snow were estimated to have fallen at the SNOTEL site located at Badger Pass (Heart Butte 14SW). Damage from the heavy wet snow included downed tree limbs and several downed power lines in Glacier county. Slick roadways also accounted for numerous motor vehicle accidents.

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 May 10, 8:00 PM MST, 3 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 10, 8:00 PM MST, 3 hours before

SOUTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MONTANA
900 PM MDT MON MAY 10 2004

.DISCUSSION...NO FURTHER UPDATES. ZONES UPDATED EARLIER. SURFACE LOW
OVR ID/WY BORDER CONTINUES TO DEEPEN AND MOVE TOWARDS SRN MT. RAIN
HAS TURNED TO SNOW IN CUT BANK. GOING FORECAST LOOKS GOOD. ADDED
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TO CENTRAL ZONES FOR TUESDAY. NEW MODELS
BRING IN NEAR RECORD LOW TEMPERATURES FOR WEDNESDAY FOR SEVERAL
ZONES. CAMP

.PREVIOUS SHORT TERM DISCUSSION...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY...EXPECT
AN UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN DURING THE PERIOD. MODELS ARE IN PRETTY
GOOD AGREEMENT FOR TONIGHT INTO EARLY TUESDAY BUT THEN BEGIN TO
DIVERGE THEREAFTER. UPPER LOW/TROUGH IN THE GREAT BASIN IS STILL
FORECAST TO ROTATE NE INTO CENTRAL OR W CENTRAL MT BY TUE MORNING.
ASSOCIATED SURFACE LOW OVER SRN ID IS FORECAST TO MOVE INTO SE MT
TUE MORNING. TUE THE UPPER LOW/TROUGH  MENTIONED ABOVE MOVES SLOWLY
E WITH THE ETA FASTER THAN THE GFS. THIS TREND CONTINUES INTO WED SO
THAT BY WED AFTERNOON THE ETA HAS THE UPPER TROUGH IN THE WRN
DKTS/SE SASK WHILE THE GFS HAS THE UPPER TROUGH OVER ERN MT/SW SASK.
SINCE THE PERFORMANCE OF THE GFS HAS BEEN BETTER OF LATE THAN THE
ETA WILL LEAN TOWARDS ITS SOLUTION. ON WED ANOTHER SHORTWAVE MOVES
INTO NW MT WITH THE ETA AGAIN BEING FASTER THAN THE GFS. ETA/GFS ARE
IN GOOD AGREEMENT IN HAVING THE HIGHEST QPF WITH TONIGHTS/TUESDAYS
STORM OVER THE NW ZONES. WILL CONTINUE WITH WINTER STORM WARNINGS
FOR THAT AREA. BLANK

.LONG TERM...WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...MODELS REMAIN FAIRLY
WELL IN SYNC THROUGH THIS PERIOD KEEPING A BROAD TROF OVER THE CWA.
THIS TROF TO KEEP ISOLATED SHOWER ACTIVITY OVER THE MOUNTAINS...
ESPECIALLY THE SOUTHWEST THROUGH ABOUT THURSDAY NIGHT. THEN THE
MODELS DIVERGE A BIT BUT THE OVERALL PATTERN LOOKS RELIABLE IN THAT
MORE OF A ZONAL OR SLIGHT RIDGING PATTERN SETS UP FOR DRIER AND
WARMER WEATHER THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT. DITTMANN

SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY...RUN TO RUN CONSISTENCY OF THE GFS REMAINS
QUITE GOOD UNTIL PLACEMENT OF THE MAJOR FEATURES BEGIN TO VARY
SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE LATEST GFS MOVES THE LOW OVER THE EASTERN
PACIFIC TOWARDS THE WEST COAST MUCH FASTER THAN THE RUN 24 HRS
PREVIOUS OR THE LATEST ECMWF. WEAK HIGH PRESSURE ALOFT WILL KEEP THE
AIRMASS DRY OVER THE ZONES AND ALLOW THE TEMPS TO MOVE BACK TOWARDS
NORMALS.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
GTF SE 033/036 024/040 025 04+95
    EBUUB 049/029 054/033 061/034 064/041 066 32210000000
CTB SE 027/032 020/034 023 049+5
    BBUUB 047/027 051/031 058/032 061/039 061 3120---0000
HLN OE 036/042 028/044 029 04985
    BBUUB 052/033 058/037 062/038 065/045 066 3221-000000
BZN RE 038/046 027/045 027 04474
    EBUUB 051/029 053/033 062/033 065/040 069 32210000000
WEY SJ 035/042 024/038 028 04475
    EBBBU 044/028 050/031 059/031 062/039 061 64322000000
DLN RE 036/042 027/044 028 04785
    BBUUU 051/030 056/034 062/034 065/041 064 3221-000000
HVR OE 036/040 028/039 025 04995
    EBUUB 048/029 055/033 062/034 065/041 070 20200--0000
LWT OE 036/042 027/039 025 04577
    EBUUB 049/027 053/031 061/032 063/047 069 32210000000

&&

.TFX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
...WINTER STORM WARNING LATE TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY FOR THE ROCKY
   MOUNTAIN FRONT AND EASTERN GLACIER COUNTY (ZONES 9/10/48)
...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TUESDAY FOR TOOLE/LIBERTY/EASTERN
   PONDERA COUNTIES (ZONES 44/45/46).
...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW TUESDAY FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN
   LEWIS AND CLARK...CASCADE...CHOUTEAU AND HILL COUNTIES (ZONES
   11/12/13/14/49)

&&

Hazardous weather outlook, May 10, 9:30 AM MST, 13 hours 30 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
1030 AM MDT MON MAY 10 2004

MTZ008>015-044>055-111110-
BEAVERHEAD-NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT-EASTERN
GLACIER-HILL-CASCADE-CHOUTEAU-CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN LEWIS AND
CLARK-MADISON-TOOLE-LIBERTY-EASTERN PONDERA-BLAINE-SOUTHERN ROCKY
MOUNTAIN FRONT-EASTERN TETON-JUDITH
BASIN-FERGUS-JEFFERSON-BROADWATER-MEAGHER-GALLATIN-
1030 AM MDT MON MAY 10 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST
MONTANA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR LATE TONIGHT AND TUESDAY FOR THE ROCKY
MOUNTAIN FRONT AND EASTERN GLACIER COUNTY...
FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES: NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT-EASTERN
GLACIER -SOUTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT
REFER TO GTFWSWTFX FOR FURTHUR DETAILS

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR TUESDAY FOR TOOLE AND LIBERTY AND
EASTERN PONDERA COUNTIES...
FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES: TOOLE-LIBERTY-EASTERN PONDERA
REFER TO GTFWSWTFX FOR FURTHUR DETAILS

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

Event by event

6 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Storm, North Rocky Mountain Front

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: North Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Eastern Glacier

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: Eastern Glacier forecast zone
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

Winter Storm, Southern Rocky Mountain Front

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: Southern Rocky Mountain Front forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC

Winter Storm, Toole

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: Toole forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Liberty

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: Liberty forecast zone
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm, Eastern Pondera

When: May 10, 11:00 PM MST to May 11, 10:30 PM MST
Where: Eastern Pondera 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 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, May 2004

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: 5398113, 5398114, 5398115, 5398116, 5398117, 5398175.