Strong winds affected much of northeast Montana during the morning and afternoon hours of the 6th. The strong winds were associated with a cold front and upper level disturbance that crossed the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 13 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS GGW wrote it up.
Strong winds affected much of northeast Montana during the morning and afternoon hours of the 6th. The strong winds were associated with a cold front and upper level disturbance that crossed the area. Sustained wind speeds of 40 to 45 mph were common. A few locations had wind gusts in the 58 to 69 mph range. A few of the stronger wind gusts included:King Coulee Raws Site (Valley County): 69 mphBluff Creek Raws Site (Valley County): 58 mphPoplar Raws Site (Roosevelt County): 58 mph
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 Glasgow, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 6, 2:28 AM MST, 5 hours 37 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 228 AM MST SUN MAR 6 2005 .SHORT TERM...FOR NORTHEAST MONTANA TODAY THROUGH TUESDAY... A MORE ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN EXPECTED THE NEXT FEW DAYS AS THE PERSISTENT UPPER RIDGE REPOSITIONS FURTHER WEST ALONG THE WEST COAST. A STRONG SHORTWAVE AND ITS ACCOMPANYING JET TO WORK ACROSS THE AREA TODAY FOR A PERIOD OF STRONG AND POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WIND. ANOTHER SHORTWAVE TO WORK INTO THE AREA BY LATER MONDAY NIGHT TO BRING AT LEAST THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME MUCH NEEDED PRECIPITATION. WILL BE UPGRADING THE HIGH WIND WATCH TO A WARNING FOR ALL ZONES WITH THIS PACKAGE. TODAY...A STRONG SHORTWAVE VISIBLE THE LAST SEVERAL HOURS ON WATER VAPOR PUSHING THROUGH SOUTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA IS NOW BEGINNING TO WORK ITS WAY INTO ALBERTA AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA. THE SHORT WAVE IS QUICK MOVING BEING FUELED BY A 125KT JET. THE LEAD SHORTWAVE SHOULD WORK ACROSS NORTHEAST MONTANA THIS MORNING WITH ADDITIONAL SHORTWAVE ENERGY TO TRAVERSE THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON AS NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT STRENGTHENS ACROSS THE AREA. A DRY AIRMASS ACROSS THE AREA SHOULD MEAN LITTLE/NO CHANCE OF ANY PRECIPITATION...AND THE MAIN CONCERN WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL BE FOR A PERIOD OF STRONG AND POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WIND. STEEPENING LAPSE RATES AND INCREASING COLD AIR ADVECTION ARE EXPECTED IN THE WAKE OF THE SHORTWAVE. THE JET ALOFT INCREASES TO NEARLY 100KTS BY THIS AFTERNOON. 40-55KT WIND BETWEEN 850-700H SHOULD BE ABLE TO MIX DOWN TO THE SURFACE. PRESSURE RISES NOT PROGGED TO BE STELLAR...BUT WITH SOUNDINGS LOOKING VERY GOOD TO MIX DRY ADIABATICALLY FROM 700-750H SHOULD SEE THE WIND PICK UP INTO THE 35 TO 45 MPH RANGE WITH GUSTS OF 50 TO 60 MPH. POSSIBLE THAT A FEW SPOTS ACROSS THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS COULD SEE WIND GUSTS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH RANGE FOR A TIME. HARD TO SAY WITH COMPLETE CONFIDENCE THAT ALL OF OUR ZONES WILL REACH WARNING CRITERIA...BUT CONFIDENCE HIGH ENOUGH THAT MOST ZONES REACH WARNING CRITERIA AT SOME POINT THAT PLAN TO UPGRADE THE HIGH WIND WATCH TO A WARNING FOR ALL OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. GIVEN THE EXPECTED STRONG WIND COMBINED WITH EXPECTED LOW RHS WILL CONTINUE THE RED FLAG WARNING ACROSS FIRE ZONES 119...121...AND 122. CONCERN NOT AS HIGH ACROSS ZONE 120 WHERE RHS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE QUITE AS LOW AND SNOWMELT THE LAST FEW WEEKS HAS KEPT THE GROUND MORE MOIST AND THE FIRE DANGER A LITTLE LOWER THAN THE OTHER ZONES. WILL ALSO BE MAKING SOME TWEAKS TO LOWER THE TD AND RH GRIDS SOME ACROSS OUR SOUTHWEST ZONES WHERE MOST OF THE RAWS SITES ARE INDICATING TDS IN THE TEENS AND RHS IN THE 30-40 PERCENT RANGE AT 09Z THIS MORNING. ONCE THE STRONG WIND KICKS IN THE DEW POINTS WILL LIKELY FALL SOME MORE...AND LATER SHIFTS MAY NEED TO LOWER THEM EVEN A BIT MORE. TONIGHT...THE MAIN CONCERN WILL CONTINUE TO BE THE WIND...MAINLY FOR THE FIRST FEW HOURS AFTER SUNSET. EXPECT THE WIND TO STAY UP THE LONGEST AFTER SUNSET ACROSS OUR EASTERN ZONES CLOSEST TO THE JET AND IN THE AREA OF GREATEST PRESSURE RISES. ACROSS OUR WESTERN MOST ZONES THE ATMOSPHERE SHOULD BEGIN TO DECOUPLE QUICKLY AROUND OR SHORTLY AFTER SUNSET. PLAN FOR NOW TO KEEP THE HIGH WIND WARNING GOING UNTIL MIDNIGHT ACROSS OUR EASTERN ZONES AND WILL DROP IT AT 7 PM ACROSS OUR WESTERN ZONES. LATER SHIFTS MAYBE ABLE TO REFINE THE TIMING SOME AND POSSIBLE THAT THE WIND WILL DROP OFF QUICKLY ENOUGH THAT THE WARNING CAN BE EXPIRED PRIOR TO MIDNIGHT IN THE EAST. MONDAY...THE UPPER RIDGE REBOUNDS ALONG THE WEST COAST WITH NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT INTO EASTERN MONTANA IN THE WAKE OF ANOTHER SHORTWAVE TROUGH THAT PUSHES INTO BRITISH COLUMBIA EARLY MONDAY MORNING AND INTO SOUTHERN ALBERTA BY MONDAY EVENING. A LEE SIDE TROUGH TO SET UP ACROSS ALBERTA SOUTH INTO CENTRAL MONTANA AS THE DAY WEARS ON. THE GFS LOOKS TOO WET SPREADING SOME QPF INTO OUR WESTERN ZONES DURING THE AFTERNOON AND LINGER SOME POPS ACROSS OUR EASTERN ZONES ASSOCIATED WITH SUNDAYS SHORTWAVE TROUGH. PLAN FOR NOW TO KEEP THINGS DRY...ESPECIALLY IN LIGHT OF THE DRY PATTERN OF RECENT WEEKS. MON NIGHT & TUESDAY...THE SHORTWAVE SLIDES SOUTHEAST OUT OF ALBERTA AND INTO NORTHEAST MONTANA LATER MONDAY NIGHT INTO TUESDAY MORNING. MODELS PAINTING THE HEAVIEST QPF IN A NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST BAND GENERALLY ACROSS OUR CENTRAL AND WESTERN ZONES. LOOKS LIKE THE MODELS MAYBE A BIT OVERDONE WITH THE QPF...BUT HARD TO IGNORE THAT BOTH THE GFS AND NAM ARE GENERATING A BAND OF A COUPLE OF TENTHS OF AN INCH OF PRECIPITATION. AS THERE DOES SEEM TO BE SOME AGREEMENT WITH THE POSITION OF THE BAND OF PRECIPITATION WILL MAKE SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO THE POP GRIDS IN COORDINATION WITH SURROUNDING OFFICES. CB .LONG TERM...TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY... FOR MOST OF THE WEEK...EASTERN MONTANA WILL BE IN NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT BETWEEN AN UPPER RIDGE ON THE WEST COAST AND A DEEP UPPER TROUGH TO THE EAST. THE FORECAST WILL CONTINUE TO HAVE ABOVE NORMAL TEMPERATURES BUT NOT AS WARM AS THEY ARE THIS WEEKEND. WEAK HIGH PRESSURE WILL KEEP THE AREA DRY TUE NIGHT AND WED. THERE IS DISAGREEMENT WITH A SURFACE LOW MOVE SE OUT OF CANADA WED NIGHT AND THURSDAY. ECMWF AND GFS ENSEMBLE MEAN HAVE THIS LOW AFFECTING THE WESTERN GREAT LAKES WHILE THE OPERATIONAL GFS AND DGEX TAKE THIS LOW ACROSS EASTERN MONTANA. WILL FAVOR THE ECMWF AND ENSEMBLE MEAN AT THIS TIME AND KEEP THURSDAY DRY AND MILD. THE MODELS AGREE ON A STRONG COLD FRONT SOMETIME NEXT WEEKEND WITH A SURFACE LOW TRACKING ACROSS MONTANA. THERE ARE TIMING DIFFERENCES WITH GFS AND DGEX FASTER THAN THE ECMWF AND GFS ENSEMBLE MEAN WITH THIS SYSTEM. WILL TREND TOWARDS THE SLOWER MODELS FOR NOW AND USE THE GFS ENSEMBLE FOR TEMPERATURES. WILL ADD A SLIGHT CHANCE OF RAIN AND SNOW FOR THIS SYSTEM. FORRESTER && CLIMO...MARCH OFF TO THE WARMEST START AT GLASGOW SINCE 2000. THE TEMPERATURE HAS AVERAGED 13.7 DEGREES ABOVE AVERAGE SINCE OUR COLD START TO THE YEAR REVERED COURSE ON JANUARY 17TH. LITTLE CHANGE TO START THE MONTH OF MARCH AS THE TEMPERATURE HAS AVERAGED 14.4 DEGREES ABOVE AVERAGE SINCE THE START OF THE MONTH. CB && FIRE WEATHER...A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR FIRE ZONES 119...121...AND 122. STRONG WIND OF 35 TO 45 MPH WITH HIGH GUSTS COMBINED WITH LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITIES BELOW 30 PERCENT FROM LATE THIS MORNING THROUGH AROUND SUNSET WOULD LIKELY CAUSE ANY FIRES TO GET OUT OF CONTROL IN A HURRY. CB && .HYDRO...THE ICE ON THE YELLOWSTONE RIVER IS STARTING TO BREAK UP IN DAWSON AND RICHLAND COUNTIES. A FLOOD STATEMENT HAS BEEN ISSUED TO HIGHLIGHT THE POSSIBILITY OF ICE JAMS AND MINOR FLOODING OVER THE WEEKEND. && .WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...HIGH WIND WARNING TODAY ALL ZONES. HIGH WIND WARNING CONTINUES TONIGHT UNTIL MIDNIGHT FOR MTZ019-024>027-062. RED FLAG WARNING 11AM-6PM MST TODAY FOR FIRE WEATHER ZONES 119-121-122. WEATHER.GOV/GLASGOW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 548 AM MST SUN MAR 6 2005 MTZ016>027-059>062-071300- NORTHERN VALLEY-SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS-GARFIELD-EASTERN ROOSEVELT- NORTHERN PHILLIPS-DANIELS-SHERIDAN-MCCONE-DAWSON-RICHLAND-WIBAUX- PRAIRIE-PETROLEUM-WESTERN ROOSEVELT- CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS-CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY- 548 AM MST SUN MAR 6 2005 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A HIGH WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT TODAY AND TONIGHT FOR ALL OF NORTHEAST MONTANA FOR STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS. REFER TO GTFNPWGGW OR WWUS75 KGGW FOR MORE INFORMATION. A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT THIS AFTERNOON FOR PARTS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. REFER TO GTFRFWGGW OR WWUS75 KGGW FOR MORE INFORMATION. THE ICE IS BREAKING UP ON THE YELLOWSTONE RIVER IN DAWSON AND RICHLAND COUNTIES WHICH MAY RESULT IN ICE JAMS. REFER TO GTFFLSGGW OR WGUS85 KGGW FOR MORE INFORMATION. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
13 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, March 2005
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: 5443381, 5443387, 5443393, 5443390, 5443389, 5443392, 5443385, 5443383, 5443388, 5443382, 5443386, 5443384, 5443391.