Damaging Wind in Montana, July 8, 2005

Name: Damaging Wind in Montana, July 8, 2005
Start: 2005-07-08T19:00
End: 2005-07-08T19:00
Location: Montana

July 8, 2005 · NWS TFX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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: 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 severe thunderstorm produced a micro-burst over the East Helena area during the early evening hours of the 8th. The micro-burst produced a wind gust in excess of 60 mph which severely damaged a barn containing nine miniature horses. The micro-burst also downed nine power poles along Canyon Ferry Road, scattering debris for two miles. Power was knocked out to most of East Helena as well as the East Valley. No injuries to man or animals were reported.

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 Jul 8, 4:40 PM MST, 2 hours 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 8, 4:40 PM MST, 2 hours 20 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 8, 4:30 AM MST, 14 hours 30 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
530 AM MDT FRI JUL 8 2005

MTZ008>015-044>055-091130-
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-
530 AM MDT FRI JUL 8 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST
MONTANA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.

ISOLATED WEAK THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP OVER THE MOUNTAINS OF
SOUTHWEST MONTANA THIS AFTERNOON...THEN SPREAD NORTH INTO CENTRAL
AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA THIS EVENING. THE MAIN THREAT FROM THESE
STORMS WILL BE GUSTY WINDS. THE THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD DIMINISH
THROUGH MIDNIGHT.

NO WATCHES...WARNINGS...OR ADVISORIES CURRENTLY IN EFFECT

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY

WITH A COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH THE AREA SATURDAY INTO
SUNDAY...THERE WILL BE AT LEAST A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS NORTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA DURING THAT
TIME. PRECIPITATION WILL BE GREATEST IN THE MOUNTAIN AREAS OF
CENTRAL MONTANA DUE TO UPSLOPE ENHANCEMENT. THUNDERSTORMS MAY ALSO
PRODUCE HAIL AND STRONG GUSTY WINDS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

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

COULSTON

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 8, 4:08 PM MST, 2 hours 52 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT
508 PM MDT FRI JUL 08 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0420 PM     TSTM WND GST     8 SW GRANT              44.93N 113.18W
07/08/2005  70 MPH           BEAVERHEAD         MT   MESONET

            DRY THUNDERSTORM...WITH GUSTS TO 70 MPH.

0430 PM     TSTM WND GST     GRANT                   45.01N 113.07W
07/08/2005  55 MPH           BEAVERHEAD         MT   TRAINED SPOTTER

            MOSTLY DRY THUNDERSTORM...WITH WIND GUSTS ESTIMATED TO 55
            MPH.

0438 PM     TSTM WND GST     5 NE DILLON             45.27N 112.56W
07/08/2005  58 MPH           BEAVERHEAD         MT   OFFICIAL NWS OBS

            DRY THUNDERSTORM...DILLON ASOS...58 MPH PEAK GUST.

&&

BRUSDA

The radar

The Great Falls radar (KTFX), 105 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:58 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Lewis and Clark

When: July 8, 7:00 PM MST
Where: Lewis and Clark County, East Helena
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.583, -111.900

What these are

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Montana in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, July 2005

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5465208.