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Storms That Hit

NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database

Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Butte, MT

Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.

Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated

No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Butte, Montana since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 2 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.

Hurricanes
0

within 75 mi, since 1851

Tropical storms
0

below hurricane strength

Tornadoes
2

within 25 mi, since 1950

EF3 or stronger
0

no recorded deaths

What the records show for Butte

The strongest of the 2 tornadoes within 25 miles was an F0 on September 15, 1997; its path came within 17 miles. The most recent tornado was on August 6, 2023. Of the 73 Montana cities on this site, 73% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Butte. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 33 times since 1967, with stones up to 2.5 inches (tennis ball size). Butte has more hail reports within 10 miles than 60% of the 73 Montana cities.

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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Butte

By decade

  • 2020s1
  • 1990s1
Strongest tornadoes near Butte, Montana
DateRatingDistancePathKilled / injured
Sep 15, 1997F017 mi0.1 mi0 / 0
Aug 6, 2023Unrated19 mi3.66 mi0 / 0

The strongest 2 of 2, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.

Hail in Butte

The Storm Prediction Center has 33 hail reports within 10 miles of Butte since 1967, made on 26 separate days. Of these, 22 were 1 inch across or larger, and 2 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.5 inches (tennis ball size), fell on August 6, 2009. The most recent report is from August 10, 2019. August has the most reports, 16.

Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.

Weather by month in Butte

The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Butte Bert Mooney Airport, MT, 2 miles south of Butte at 5,506 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 81°F and low of 46°F; December is the coolest, at 31°F and 7°F. June is the wettest at 2.5 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 12.7 inches over 39 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 7 days a year, almost all from July to August. Lows fall below freezing on about 220 nights a year. That 12.7 inches is more than at 13 of the 58 Montana stations used on this site (22%). Anaconda, 25 miles northwest, has its own station (Anaconda, MT): 15.0 inches a year, 2.3 more than here, and a July average high of 83°F against 81°F.

Monthly climate normals 1991–2020 at Butte Bert Mooney Airport, MT
MonthHigh °FLow °FPrecip. inDays ≥ 0.1"
Jan3280.42
Feb35100.41
Mar44190.62
Apr51261.34
May61342.06
Jun70412.57
Jul81461.24
Aug80441.33
Sep69371.13
Oct54270.83
Nov40160.62
Dec3170.51
Year542612.739

Averages for 1991–2020 at Butte Bert Mooney Airport, MT (5,506 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.

Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Butte

Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 19 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Butte: 13 thunderstorm wind reports, 3 flash floods and 3 heavy rain events. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $29,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 69 mph, on August 6, 2009.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.

Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings

Silver Bow County, which includes Butte, has been named in 7 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1981, 4 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 fires, 1 flood, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Silver Bow County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, inland flooding, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $14.4 million a year, the 15th highest of 56 Montana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.2 million (22%), is from inland flooding.

Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).

What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.

Cities near Butte

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