Several wildfires were reported in the Minot area on Saturday, April 19th, with flare-ups continuing into Sunday, April 20th when the wildfire was reported contained. 500 to 800 acres were burned.
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 BIS wrote it up.
Several wildfires were reported in the Minot area on Saturday, April 19th, with flare-ups continuing into Sunday, April 20th when the wildfire was reported contained. 500 to 800 acres were burned. The fires started late Saturday morning with the cause unknown. Gusty south winds of 20 to 35 miles per hour, afternoon relative humidity values around 15 percent, and dormant grass and drought conditions contributed greatly to the wildfire behavior. North Dakota National Guard Blackhawk helicopters assisted the firefighting efforts by dropping water on the fires. Several structures were destroyed, and there were two minor direct injuries.
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 Bismarck, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 19, 9:26 AM CST, 1 hour 34 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND 1026 AM CDT SAT APR 19 2008 .UPDATE... .SHORT TERM... GRIDS LOOK TO BE IN PRETTY GOOD SHAPE...SO ONLY VERY SMALL CHANGES WERE MADE TO BOTH CLOUD COVER BASED ON CURRENT SATELLITE IMAGERY AND SATURDAY HIGH TEMPERATURES BASED ON LATEST MODEL GUIDANCE. .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 400 AM CDT SAT APR 19 2008/ SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT FIRE WEATHER CONCERNS FOR TODAY AND PERHAPS SUNDAY. SEE FIRE WEATHER SECTION FOR DETAILS. ATTENTION THEN TURNS TO THUNDERSTORMS AND A RAIN/SNOW MIX SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY. CURRENTLY LOW PRESSURE EXTENDS FROM WYOMING TO THE MONTANA/NORTH DAKOTA BORDER TO SOUTHEASTERN SASKATCHEWAN. THIS SURFACE FEATURE IS FORECAST TO CONTINUE TO DEEPEN AND STRENGTHEN THE PRESSURE GRADIENTS AROUND IT...RESULTING IN INCREASING WINDS TODAY OF 15 TO 30 MPH. THESE WINDS EXPECTED TO PERSIST TONIGHT AND BECOME STRONGER ON SUNDAY AS THE TROUGH MOVES INTO THE WESTERN DAKOTAS. BY SUNDAY EVENING THE TROUGH IS PROGGED TO EXTEND NORTH-SOUTH OVER THE WESTERN QUARTER OF NORTH DAKOTA. ENOUGH INSTABILITY AHEAD AND ALONG THIS FEATURE FOR THUNDERSTORMS SUNDAY AFTERNOON OVER WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA. BY MIDNIGHT SUNDAY NIGHT THE TROUGH SHOULD BE JUST EAST OF MINOT/BISMARCK...WITH THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE EAST OF THIS LINE AND RAIN OR SNOW SHOWERS BEHIND IT AS COLD AIR PUSHES IN BEHIND THE SYSTEM. STRONG UPPER LOW ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL HELP STRONG WEST WINDS BEHIND THE SYSTEM. THE UPPER LOW LIFTS NORTHEAST INTO SASKATCHEWAN ON MONDAY AND ALLOWS A DRY SLOT TO PUNCH INTO WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA...EFFECTIVELY KEEPING PRECIP CHANCES LIMITED TO EXTREME NORTHERN AND EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA. LONG TERM...TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY. WE BEGIN THE DAY 4-5 PERIOD WITH A CLOSED UPPER LOW EXITING THE REGION. SURFACE LOW WILL BE WELL EAST OF THE AREA BUT WITH CYCLONIC UPPER FLOW AND COLDER 50H TEMPERATURES...SHOULD BE ENOUGH INSTABILITY AND LIFT FOR A FEW RAIN OR SNOW SHOWERS ON TUESDAY. POSSIBLY A FEW LINGERING SHOWERS TUESDAY EVENING...BUT FOR NOW HAVE KEPT THE PERIOD DRY. MODELS BEGIN TO DIVERGE BY DAY 5. BOTH THE ECMWF AND GFS BRING A SHORTWAVE ONSHORE OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST AROUND 12Z WEDNESDAY. THE GFS IS QUICKER AND WEAKER WITH THIS SHORTWAVE TROUGH AS IT MOVES INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS DUE TO AN UPSTREAM UPPER LOW THAT IS MUCH MORE PROGRESSIVE THAN THE ECMWF AND THE GFS ENSEMBLE MEAN. THIS BRINGS MUCH MORE RIDGING INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS BY THE END OF THE EXTENDED PERIOD. THE ECMWF SOLUTION BRINGS THE AFOREMENTIONED SHORTWAVE...ALONG WITH ANOTHER SHORTWAVE DROPPING DOWN FROM CANADA...INTO THE REGION AND CARVE OUT A MEAN UPPER TROUGH OVER THE NORTHWEST AND NORTH CENTRAL U.S. BY THE END OF THE WORK WEEK. FAVOR A ECMWF AND GFS ENSEMBLE SOLUTION AND ADJUSTED WEDNESDAY NIGHT POPS A BIT TO FIT THE ECMWF SOLUTION. ONLY SOME MINOR ADJUSTMENTS TO PREVIOUS MAX/MIN TEMPERATURES. LARGE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE WARM GFS AND COLD ECMWF BY THE WEEKEND. FOR THE DAY 8 TEMPERATURES WE SIDED TOWARD THE COOLER ECMWF SOLUTION. AVIATION... EXPECT VFR CONDITIONS TODAY WITH A STRONG SOUTHEAST FLOW DEVELOPING AHEAD OF A DEEPENING SURFACE TROUGH OVER EASTERN MONTANA. FIRE WEATHER... SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS EXPECTED TO INCREASE TO 20 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS 25 TO 30 MPH OVER WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA. DEWPOINTS IN THE MID TO UPPER 20S TODAY WILL BRING RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES TO 20 PERCENT OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF THE STATE. THE GUSTY WINDS...20 PERCENT RELATIVE HUMIDITY IN THE AFTERNOON...AND DRY VEGETATION WILL PRODUCE CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS WESTERN NORTH DAKOTA TODAY. RANGELAND FIRE DANGER VALUES WILL ALSO BEEN IN THE VERY HIGH TO EXTREME CATEGORIES ACROSS MUCH OF WESTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA TODAY. THUS WILL UPGRADE FIRE WEATHER WATCH TO A RED FLAG WARNING FOR MOST OF MY FORECAST AREA. WILL NOT INCLUDE JAMESTOWN TO HARVEY TO WISHEK AND ELLENDALE AREAS...AS RELATIVE HUMIDITIES ARE EXPECTED TO BE ABOVE 20 PERCENT AND WINDS SHOULD NOT REACH 20 MPH. THE RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM CDT TO 9 PM CDT TODAY. A COLD FRONT WILL TRAVERSE WESTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND INTO THE OVERNIGHT. THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SUNDAY AFTERNOON AND INTO THE EARLY OVERNIGHT ACROSS THE WESTERN AND CENTRAL PORTIONS OF THE STATE. AT THIS TIME DRY LIGHTNING IS NOT EXPECTED. HOWEVER...LIGHTNING STRIKES ARE POSSIBLE AND WILL BE A HAZARD WITH DRY FUEL CONDITIONS. PRECIPITATION WILL CHANGE OVER INTO RAIN AND SNOW MIX BEHIND THE COLD FRONT SUNDAY NIGHT. ALTHOUGH STRONG WINDS OF 20 TO 35 MPH ARE EXPECTED SUNDAY...MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES OF 30 TO 35 PERCENT ARE FORECAST. THESE CONDITIONS WOULD NOT MEET RED FLAG CRITERIA. && .BIS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 9 PM CDT /8 PM MDT/ THIS EVENING FOR NDZ001>005-009>013-017>022-031>035-040>046. && JWS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BISMARCK ND 519 AM CDT SAT APR 19 2008 NDZ001>005-009>013-017>022-031>035-040>046-201030- DIVIDE-BURKE-RENVILLE-BOTTINEAU-ROLETTE-WILLIAMS-MOUNTRAIL-WARD- MCHENRY-PIERCE-MCKENZIE-DUNN-MERCER-OLIVER-MCLEAN-SHERIDAN- GOLDEN VALLEY-BILLINGS-STARK-MORTON-BURLEIGH-SLOPE-HETTINGER- GRANT-BOWMAN-ADAMS-SIOUX-EMMONS- 519 AM CDT SAT APR 19 2008 /419 AM MDT SAT APR 19 2008/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA...NORTHWEST NORTH DAKOTA...SOUTH CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA AND SOUTHWEST NORTH DAKOTA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A RED FLAG WARNING IS IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM CDT TO 9 PM CDT FOR LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY AROUND 20 PERCENT...GUSTY SOUTHEAST WINDS OF 15 TO 25 MPH...AND DRY VEGETATION. SEE RED FLAG WARNING FOR DETAILS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY STRONG SOUTHEAST WINDS 20 TO 35 MPH EXPECTED SUNDAY. A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT...WITH A GOOD CHANCE OF RAIN OR SNOW SUNDAY NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. NDZ023-025-036-037-047-048-050-051-201030- WELLS-FOSTER-KIDDER-STUTSMAN-LOGAN-LA MOURE-MCINTOSH-DICKEY- 519 AM CDT SAT APR 19 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTH CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA AND SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY STRONG SOUTHEAST WINDS 20 TO 35 MPH EXPECTED SUNDAY. A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. JV
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
Wildfires were reported west and southeast of Minot, in the Trestle Valley and Eastside Estates areas respectively. Two homes, two outbuildings, and some equipment were burned or destroyed. Two firefighters suffered minor direct injuries due to heat exhaustion.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in North Dakota in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in North Dakota, April 2008
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: 88862.