A late spring Pacific storm brought blizzard conditions to portions of North Central Montana. Snow accumulations in excess of 6 inches was reported along with gusty winds and visibilities less than one-quarter mile.
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 TFX wrote it up.
A late spring Pacific storm brought blizzard conditions to portions of North Central Montana. Snow accumulations in excess of 6 inches was reported along with gusty winds and visibilities less than one-quarter mile.
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 Apr 28, 4:45 AM MST, 15 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT 545 AM MDT TUE APR 28 2009 UPDATED AVIATION SECTION .DISCUSSION... MAJOR SPRING STORM EXPECTED TO INTENSIFY TODAY AND TONIGHT. TODAY THROUGH THURSDAY...THE DEEP UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE AREA ALONG THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST WILL CONTINUE TO ROTATE DEEP MOISTURE INTO MONTANA THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. PRECIPITATION WILL INCREASE TODAY AND TONIGHT AS A SHORTWAVE TROUGH EJECTS FROM THE MAIN UPPER LOW AND BRINGS STRONG LIFT INTO SOUTHWEST...CENTRAL...AND NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA. DEEPENING SURFACE LOW PRESSURE WILL CONTINUE TO DRAW COOL CANADIAN AIR SOUTH ALONG THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT...AS WELL AS CAUSE INCREASING NORTHEAST UPSLOPE WINDS ACROSS THE AREA. WIND GUSTS TO 40 MPH ARE EXPECTED ALONG THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT AND ALONG THE CANADIAN BORDER. THESE WIND GUSTS...ALONG WITH THE HEAVY SNOWFALL AT TIMES ALONG THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT AND ADJACENT PLAINS...WILL CAUSE WIDESPREAD BLIZZARD CONDITIONS THERE...MAINLY THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. THEREFORE...HAVE UPGRADED THE WINTER STORM WARNING THERE TO A BLIZZARD WARNING. SNOW WILL STILL MIX WITH RAIN FARTHER EAST TODAY INTO THIS EVENING...SO WIDESPREAD BLIZZARD CONDITIONS ARE NOT EXPECTED THERE. HOWEVER...PRECIPITATION IS STILL EXPECTED TO CHANGE OVER TO ALL SNOW TONIGHT AS THE CANADIAN AIR SPREADS EAST...SO WILL KEEP THE WINTER STORM WARNING GOING THERE. THE HEAVY SNOWFALL THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT WILL ALSO AFFECT CENTRAL MONTANA...BUT WINDS WILL NOT BE QUITE AS STRONG...SO WILL LEAVE THE WINTER STORM WARNING GOING THERE AS WELL. HEAVY SNOW IS ALSO POSSIBLE INTO JEFFERSON AND MEAGHER COUNTIES...SO HAVE EXPANDED THE WARNING TO INCLUDE THEM. PRECIPITATION WILL BE MORE SHOWERY AND NOT QUITE AS HEAVY IN SOUTHWEST MONTANA DURING THIS PERIOD. SNOW WILL MIX WITH RAIN THERE TODAY...AND IT WILL BECOME SOMEWHAT UNSTABLE FOR A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS. PRECIPITATION WILL CHANGE OVER TO MAINLY SNOW OVERNIGHT AND CONTINUE THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. SNOWFALL TOTALS ARE EXPECTED TO BE IN THE 3 TO 7 INCH RANGE IN THE VALLEYS FOR THIS PERIOD...WITH 10 TO 20 INCHES POSSIBLE OVER THE NEXT 48 HOURS IN THE MOUNTAINS. HAVE THEREFORE GONE WITH A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW THERE THROUGH WEDNESDAY NIGHT. OCCASIONAL WIND GUSTS TO 30 MPH THROUGH FAVORED VALLEYS WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES AT TIMES. THE MAIN LOW WILL THEN WEAKEN AND MOVE EAST ACROSS IDAHO AND WYOMING ON THURSDAY...FOR DECREASING SHOWERS AND WINDS. TEMPERATURES WILL REMAIN BELOW NORMAL THROUGH THIS PERIOD. COULSTON THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT...MODELS ARE IN GOOD AGREEMENT EARLY IN THE PERIOD WITH A NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT OVER THE AREA. A WEATHER DISTURBANCE ALOFT SHOULD PRODUCE SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS OVER SOUTHWEST AND CENTRAL MONTANA THURSDAY NIGHT. FOR FRIDAY THROUGH FRIDAY NIGHT THE FORECAST AREA WILL BE SUSCEPTIBLE TO PERIODS OF MOISTURE AND LIFT FROM WEATHER DISTURBANCES ALOFT. WILL CONTINUE WITH THE IDEA OF SLIGHT CHANCE TO CHANCE PROBABILITIES OF PRECIPITATION OVER CENTRAL AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA. MODEL DIFFERENCES SHOW UP BY SATURDAY AS THE GFS MODEL DEVELOPS AN UPPER RIDGE OVER WESTERN MONTANA WHILE THE ECMWF MODEL CONTINUES THE NORTHWEST FLOW. BY SUNDAY THE GFS MODEL HAS THE AREA UNDER SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WHILE THE ECMWF MODEL CONTINUES THE NORTHWEST FLOW. EVEN WITH THESE DIFFERENCES BOTH MODELS INDICATE THE NORTHERN PLAINS WILL BE DRY AND OTHER GUIDANCE SUPPORTS THIS IDEA. HAVE GENERALLY DROPPED THE MENTION OF PRECIPITATION FOR THE NORTHERN PLAINS ZONES FOR SATURDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY NIGHT. BLANK MONDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...MODEL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE GFS AND ECMWF DETRACT FROM FORECAST CONFIDENCE DURING THIS PERIOD. A BLENDED SOLUTION WAS USED INDICATING A FEW DISTURBANCES MOVING ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA IN A WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT. THIS WOULD RESULT IN UNSETTLED CONDITIONS WITH SCATTERED...MAINLY SNOW SHOWERS OVER THE MOUNTAINS...AND ISOLATED RAIN SHOWERS OVER THE LARGER VALLEYS AND MUCH OF THE PLAINS. MIXED RAIN AND SNOW IS EXPECTED AT NIGHT OVER LOWER ELEVATIONS. DOWNSLOPE WINDS HELP LIMIT PRECIPITATION OVER THE PLAINS AND LARGER VALLEYS. TEMPERATURES SHOULD WARM A FEW DEGREES BUT REMAIN SEVERAL DEGREES BELOW SEASONAL AVERAGES AT MOST LOCATIONS. EK && .AVIATION... UPDATED 0435Z. EXPECT WIDESPREAD MVFR/IFR CEILINGS AND VISIBILITIES THROUGH TONIGHT. ALONG WITH THIS EXPECT WIDESPREAD MOUNTAIN/PASS OBSCUREMENT. DO NOT EXPECT MUCH IF ANY IMPROVEMENT IN CONDITIONS THIS AFTERNOON. PRECIPITATION WILL BE IN THE FORM OF SNOW AT KGTF AND KCTB BUT COULD BE EITHER RAIN OR SNOW AT THE OTHER TAF SITES DURING THE DAY. PRECIPITATION WILL BE ALL SNOW AFTER DARK. DO NOT HAVE MUCH CONFIDENCE IN THE EXACT DETAILS OF THE VISIBILITIES DURING THE PERIOD. ALSO FOR KGTF/KLWT/KBZN/KHLN ACTUALLY HAVE HIGHER CONFIDENCE IN FORECAST WIND DIRECTIONS FOR THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THAN FOR THIS MORNING. FINALLY ALTHOUGH NOT MENTIONED IN THE TAFS DO EXPECT A THREAT OF ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS OVER SOUTHWEST MONTANA THIS AFTERNOON. BLANK && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... GTF 35 28 31 25 / 100 100 100 80 CTB 30 25 30 22 / 100 100 100 70 HLN 40 30 35 27 / 100 100 80 70 BZN 49 32 41 29 / 80 80 80 60 WEY 44 25 40 21 / 90 80 80 60 DLN 45 29 39 26 / 80 80 80 60 HVR 41 30 38 27 / 80 100 100 60 LWT 41 28 34 23 / 100 100 100 80 && .TFX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 AM MDT THURSDAY FOR MTZ011>014-047-050>052-054. BLIZZARD WARNING UNTIL 6 AM MDT THURSDAY FOR MTZ009-010-044>046-048-049. WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM MDT THURSDAY FOR MTZ008-015-053-055. && SHORT TERM...COULSTON LONG TERM...BLANK/EK AVIATION...AVIATION WEATHER.GOV/GREATFALLS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREAT FALLS MT 551 AM MDT TUE APR 28 2009 MTZ009>014-044>052-054-291300- NORTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT-EASTERN GLACIER-HILL-CASCADE- CHOUTEAU-CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN LEWIS AND CLARK-TOOLE-LIBERTY- EASTERN PONDERA-BLAINE-SOUTHERN ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT- EASTERN TETON-JUDITH BASIN-FERGUS-JEFFERSON-MEAGHER- 551 AM MDT TUE APR 28 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL MONTANA...NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA AND SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A BLIZZARD WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN FRONT AND ITS ADJACENT PLAINS. A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW IS IN EFFECT FOR THE REMAINDER OF NORTH CENTRAL AND CENTRAL MONTANA AND PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THE BLIZZARD WARNING AND WINTER STORM WARNING ARE IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM THURSDAY MORNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MTZ008-015-053-055-291300- BEAVERHEAD-MADISON-BROADWATER-GALLATIN- 551 AM MDT TUE APR 28 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW IS IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF SOUTHWEST MONTANA. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 6 AM THURSDAY MORNING. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.
7 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.
Twelve inches of snow fell at Babb and 22 inches of snow fell at Badger Pass. In addition to the snow, winds gusting to 40 mph was reported.
Eight inches of snow fell at Cut Bank. Winds gusting to 40 mph was also reported.
Twelve inches of snow fell at Shelby. In addition to the snow, winds gusting to 30 mph caused visibilities to be reduced to less than one-quarter mile.
Eighteen inches of snow fell at Carter 18N. In addition to the snow, winds gusting to 40 mph occurred.
Eight inches of snow fell at Valier. Winds gusting to 40 mph was also reported.
Thirty-one inches of snow fell at Dupuyer 15SW (the Dupuyer Creek SNOTEL site - elevation 5750 feet).
Tweleve inches of snow fell at Fairfield. In addition to the snow, winds gusts to 40 mph and visibilities near zero occurred for most of the afternoon hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, April 2009
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: 161813, 161815, 161816, 161817, 161818, 161824, 161827.