Name: Wildfire in Montana, July 30, 2023
Start: 2023-07-30T16:30
End: 2023-07-30T19:00
Location: Montana

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: $300,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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 MSO wrote it up.

Gusty westerly winds combined with low humidity to create conditions supportive of fire growth during the afternoon and evening hours.

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 Missoula, MT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 30, 12:44 PM MST, 3 hours 46 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 30, 12:44 PM MST, 3 hours 46 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Missoula MT
144 PM MDT Sun Jul 30 2023

.DISCUSSION...A ridge of high pressure with its axis over eastern
Montana, in conjunction with a closed low spinning along the
coast of British Columbia, is keeping the Northern Rockies under
southwest flow aloft. The jet stream is also positioned over the
northern U.S. The lower atmosphere will experience some drying
through Wednesday. The low-level drying will limit thunderstorm
development compared to the last few days, though isolated thunder
will still not be out of the question for this afternoon and
evening over northwest and southwest Montana. Combined with
modest instability, the dry lower atmosphere and high winds aloft
will mean increased winds will be able to descend to the surface.
Drier conditions and increased winds will be conducive to
increased fire danger, especially across the Bitterroot, southwest
Montana, and the Mission Valley for today and Monday. Red Flag
Warnings are in effect this afternoon for CSKT Tribal Lands and
the Bitterroot National Forest.

Ensemble model solutions begin to show a change after Wednesday.
Most members show an increase in precipitable water and continued
southwest flow. This pattern will suggest chances for more
convective storms by Thursday afternoon.

&&

.AVIATION... Mostly clear skies and VFR conditions will persist
over the Northern Rockies airspace today and Monday. Expect an
increase in westerly winds to about 20-25 knots this afternoon
and Monday at most locations. KGPI and KBTM will have a slight
chance for a shower or thunderstorm this afternoon.

&&

.MSO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
MT...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM MDT this evening for Flathead
     Reservation.

     Red Flag Warning until 9 PM MDT this evening for Bitterroot.

ID...&&

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.

Wildfire, Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys

When: July 30, 4:30 PM MST to 7:00 PM MST
Where: Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys forecast zone
Property damage: $300,000
Reported by: Law Enforcement
Coordinates: 46.560, -114.023 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A fast moving grass fire was reported in a neighborhood just southwest of the town of Lolo. At the time of the fire, a nearby RAWS station reported southwest winds around 10 mph gusting between 25-30 MPH. Relative humidity ranged from 10 to 15 percent. Loss estimates include one mobile home lost and one damaged, 16 outbuildings/sheds lost, and 11 vehicles/RV’s were lost or damaged. Three civilians were treated for smoke inhalation and one firefighter suffered a knee injury.

What these are

Wildfire: A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Montana in 2023 Every state in 2023 This day in weather history Warnings in Montana, July 2023

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1105371.