A strong, late season winter storm system emerged from the Canadian Rockies region and pushed an initial wintry mix of precipitation through northeast Montana which eventually changed over to all snow by the end of the episode.
Every event with a place to put it; 9 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.
A strong, late season winter storm system emerged from the Canadian Rockies region and pushed an initial wintry mix of precipitation through northeast Montana which eventually changed over to all snow by the end of the episode.
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 17, 3:14 AM MST, 3 hours 46 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 414 AM MDT SUN MAR 17 2013 .SHORT TERM...FOR NORTHEAST MONTANA...TODAY THROUGH TUESDAY... STRONG JET PUSHING INTO SOUTHERN IDAHO WITH SURFACE LOW DEVELOPING OVER SOUTHWEST MONTANA. WARM AIR ATTEMPTING TO WORK NORTHWARD AHEAD OF THE LOW WITH TEMPERATURES IN THE 30S ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL MONTANA. COLDER SURFACE AIRMASS LINGERING ACROSS NORTHEAST MONTANA ALTHOUGH SLOWLY WARMING. WARM AIR ADVECTION OFF THE SURFACE INDICATED BY TEMPERATURE OF 33 AT ZORTMAN...ABOVE 850MB. MODELS INDICATING WARMING ALOFT PEAKS BETWEEN 12Z AND 15Z BEFORE LOW MOVES EAST AND COLD AIR ADVECTION BEGINS. LIMITED FREEZING RAIN POTENTIAL TO THE MORNING HOURS AND GENERALLY ACROSS THE SOUTH WITH ANY ICE ACCUMULATIONS EXPECTED TO BE VERY LIGHT WITH RADAR RETURNS VERY SPOTTY THIS MORNING. PRECIPITATION EXPECTED TO INTENSIFY AS SNOW BY LATE MORNING AS LOW PUSHES TOWARD NORTHEAST WYOMING AND COLD AIR STREAMS INTO NORTH CENTRAL MONTANA. STRONG COLD AIR ADVECTION AND PRESSURE RISES WILL RESULT IN VERY STRONG WINDS FOR SIGNIFICANT BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW. SNOWFALL EXPECTED TO TAPER OFF IN THE LATE AFTERNOON WHILE STRONGEST WINDS WILL LIKELY OCCUR DURING THE EVENING HOURS. THE DISCONNECT WITH TIMING OF MOST INTENSE SNOWFALL AND WINDS MAY KEEP BLIZZARD CONDITIONS FROM DEVELOPING BUT EXTENSIVE REDUCTION OF VISIBILITIES ARE EXPECTED. HIGH PRESSURE MOVES INTO EASTERN MONTANA BY MONDAY MORNING WITH WINDS DYING OFF AND VERY COLD TEMPERATURES. A LITTLE UPSLOPE OR OVERRUNNING SNOW MAY DEVELOP OVER THE SOUTHWEST ZONES WITH A WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY OVER CENTRAL MONTANA. THIS BOUNDARY EXPECTED TO FLEX NORTHEASTWARD MONDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING AS A WAVE MOVES ALONG IT. UPPER RIDGE BEGINS BUILDING INTO THE NORTHERN ROCKIES ON TUESDAY BUT WITH HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE NORTHERN PLAINS AND NEW SNOW COVER...COLDER TEMPERATURES WILL PERSIST. EBERT .LONG TERM...TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY... SYNOPTIC SET UP... COLDEST AIR OF THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE EXISTS OVER THE NORTHWESTERN AND YUKON TERRITORIES. A TROUGH SPUR RUNS DOWN FROM THIS THROUGH MANITOBA AND INTO THE THE UPPER MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. A LARGE RIDGE WILL BE IN PLACE OVER THE WESTERN HALF OF THE US AND ITS AXIS RUNS UP FROM ARIZONA THROUGH OREGON AND INTO SOUTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA. NORTHEAST MONTANA BEGINS THE LONG RANGE STUCK BETWEEN THESE TWO LARGER FEATURES IN NORTHWESTERN FLOW ALOFT. A SECOND TROUGH SPUR RUNS DOWN THE GULF OF ALASKA AND OFF THE COAST OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY... RIDGE WILL BUILD INTO THE REGION MAKING FOR PARTLY CLOUDY SKIES AND DRY CONDITIONS. DOWNSLOPE WARMING MAY PUSH IN AS WELL. BUT THIS WILL PROBABLY STOP JUST SHORT OF THE NEWER SNOW PACK AROUND PHILLIPS AND PETROLEUM COUNTY GENERATED FROM THE PREVIOUS SYSTEM. WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT... TROUGH OVER PACIFIC NORTHWEST WILL MOVE INTO EASTERN MONTANA AND IDAHO COLLAPSING THE PREVIOUS RIDGE DOWN TO THE SOUTH. THIS BREAKDOWN WILL ALLOW FOR A FAIRLY LONG LASTING SHORTWAVE TO HANG OUT ACROSS NORTHEASTERN MONTANA AND GENERATED NEW RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS. THE MORPHOLOGY OF THIS STORM IS DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE AS SOME ASPECTS LOOK LIKE A DEVELOPING CYCLONE EARLY ON WHILE OTHERS LOOK MORE LIKE A OVERRUNNING EVENT LATER ON. MODELS HAVE NOT REALLY SETTLED ON DYNAMICS YET... BUT DO HAVE SIMILAR PRECIPITATION STREAMS ORIENTED FROM ROUGHLY NORTH/SOUTH OVER A 24 HOUR PERIOD. FRIDAY ONWARD... FLOW ALOFT WILL BECOME NORTHWEST DURING THIS GROUP OF PERIODS AND WILL BECOME HARDER TO TAP STRONG MOISTURE. HOWEVER WEAKER SHORTWAVES WILL STILL BE POSSIBLE. MODEL CONSISTENCY OF THESE SMALLER WAVES DROPS OFF DURING THESE TIMES. THEREFORE HAD TO FALL BACK ON CLIMATOLOGY AND MOS. BEST GUESS IS FOR A VERY SLOW DEVELOPING RIDGE BY SUNDAY. THIS WOULD BE IN RESPONSE TO A LARGE TROUGH EACH MODEL IS DROPPING OUT OF THE BEARING SEA AROUND THIS TIME... WHICH SHOULD POINT TOWARD A WARM UP AT LEAST BY LATE IN THE WEEKEND. GAH && .AVIATION... MVFR CONDITIONS SLOWLY DETERIORATING TO IFR THROUGH TODAY. AIRPORT SHUTDOWNS ARE POSSIBLE LATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH THE EVENING. ANOTHER WINTER STORM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION BRINGING SNOW WITH ACCUMULATIONS BY THE AFTERNOON HOURS. BLOWING SNOW BEHIND A COLD FRONT WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO LESS THAN A MILE AT TIMES INTO SUNDAY EVENING. STORM IS ANTICIPATED TO WANE BY MID MORNING MONDAY... LATE IN THE TAF CYCLE. EXPECT EASTERLY WIND OF 10 TO 15 KTS INITIALLY... CALMING THROUGH THIS MORNING. AROUND 18Z WINDS WILL SHIFT NORTHWESTERLY BEHIND A COLD FRONT AND INCREASE TO 25KT SUSTAINED WITH GUSTS UP TO 40KT BY AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING. CALMING IS NOT ANTICIPATED UNTIL JUST AFTER THE TAF CYCLE. GAH && .GLASGOW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT MDT TONIGHT FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS...PETROLEUM...NORTHERN PHILLIPS... SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS. WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 6 AM MDT MONDAY FOR CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY...DANIELS...SHERIDAN...WESTERN ROOSEVELT... GARFIELD...MCCONE...RICHLAND...DAWSON...PRAIRIE...WIBAUX... NORTHERN VALLEY...EASTERN ROOSEVELT. && WEATHER.GOV/GLASGOW
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GLASGOW MT 348 AM MDT SUN MAR 17 2013 MTZ017>020-022>027-061-062-181000- CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN VALLEY-DANIELS-SHERIDAN-WESTERN ROOSEVELT- GARFIELD-MCCONE-RICHLAND-DAWSON-PRAIRIE-WIBAUX-NORTHERN VALLEY- EASTERN ROOSEVELT- 348 AM MDT SUN MAR 17 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM WILL BRING STRONG WINDS AND SNOW TO THE AREA TODAY AND TONIGHT. A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FROM THROUGH TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY CONFIDENCE IS INCREASING THAT ANOTHER WINTER STORM IS EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH THE AREA ON THURSDAY. THIS STORM COULD PRODUCE ACCUMULATING SNOW AND STRONG WIND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. MTZ016-021-059-060-181000- CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST PHILLIPS-PETROLEUM-NORTHERN PHILLIPS- SOUTHWEST PHILLIPS- 348 AM MDT SUN MAR 17 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHEAST MONTANA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM WILL BRING STRONG WINDS AND SNOW TO THE AREA TODAY. A LITTLE FREEZING RAIN IS ALSO POSSIBLE EARLY THIS MORNING. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT THROUGH THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY CONFIDENCE IS INCREASING THAT ANOTHER WINTER STORM IS EXPECTED TO MOVE THROUGH THE AREA ON THURSDAY. THIS STORM COULD PRODUCE ACCUMULATING SNOW AND STRONG WIND. .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.
9 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Cooperative observer at 12 SE Opheim reported 7 inches of new snowfall.
Generally, 6 to 7 inches of new snowfall were reported across most of the county with 10.3 inches reported at the Burke Ranch in far southwestern Valley County.
Cooperative observers at the Port of Raymond border station reported 8.5 inches of new snowfall.
Cooperative observer at 4 NW Scobey reported 6 inches of new snowfall.
The public reported 6 inches of new snowfall in Brusett.
Cooperative observer at 6 NE Vida reported 6 inches of new snowfall.
Although snowfall amounts were less than 6 inches, a wind gust of 62 mph caused blowing snow and reduced visibility during the event.
Montana Department of Transportation road reports had severe driving conditions from Wibaux eastward to the state line.
Montana Department of Transportation road reports had severe driving conditions along US Highway 2 from Poplar eastward to the state line.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Montana in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Montana, March 2013
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: 441372, 441360, 441362, 441361, 441364, 441365, 441369, 441370, 441373.