Name: Hail and Damaging Wind in North Dakota, July 31, 2010
Start: 2010-07-31T15:14
End: 2010-07-31T19:30
Location: North Dakota

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: 2

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 BIS wrote it up.

An area of low level convergence near a surface warm front, coupled with moderate instability, resulted in scattered thunderstorm development over northern South Dakota and far southern North Dakota during the late afternoon hours of Saturday, July 31st. Severe Thunderstorm Watch number 555 was issued earlier in anticipation of this activity. One severe thunderstorm moving across far southern Sioux County resulted in a report of severe hail.

Later Saturday evening, Severe Thunderstorm Watch number 556 was issued across northern North Dakota in anticipation of strong to severe thunderstorms over far south central Canada pushing south into North Dakota. One severe thunderstorm over Rolette County generated a severe thunderstorm wind gust.

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 Bismarck, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 1:23 PM MST, 1 hour 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 31, 1:23 PM MST, 1 hour 51 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 31, 2:48 AM MST, 12 hours 26 minutes before

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In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 31, 1:46 PM MST, 1 hour 28 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jul 31, 2:26 PM MST, 48 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jul 31, 2:53 PM MST, 21 minutes before

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The radar

The Bismarck radar (KBIS), 108 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:12 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Sioux

When: July 31, 3:14 PM MST to 3:22 PM MST
Where: Sioux County, 30.91 mi W of Selfridge
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 45.980, -101.570

Heavy rain accompanied quarter to ping pong sized hail.

Thunderstorm Wind, Rolette

When: July 31, 7:22 PM CST to 7:30 PM CST
Where: Rolette County, 5.19 mi WSW of Belcourt
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: RAWS
Coordinates: 48.810, -99.840

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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

More

Every storm in North Dakota in 2010 Every state in 2010 This day in weather history Warnings in North Dakota, July 2010

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: 248860, 248861.