NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Great Falls, 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 Great Falls, Montana since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 17 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 17
- EF3 or stronger
- 0
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Great Falls
The highest rating among the 17 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1, reached 9 times; the most recent, on July 3, 1998, came within 13 miles. Of the 17, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and one has come since 2000. July has had the most tornadoes, 8. The most recent tornado was on June 23, 2018. Great Falls has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 89% of the 73 Montana cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 97 times since 1955, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Great Falls has more hail reports within 10 miles than 95% of the 73 Montana cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Great Falls
By decade
- 2010s1
- 1990s3
- 1980s2
- 1970s5
- 1960s5
- 1950s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 3, 1998 | F1 | 13 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 5, 1988 | F1 | 12 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 3, 1978 | F1 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 3, 1978 | F1 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 3, 1978 | F1 | 15 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 1, 1977 | F1 | 24 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 2, 1964 | F1 | 9 mi | 27 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 1961 | F1 | 11 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 1960 | F1 | 23 mi | 0.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 23, 2018 | EF0 | 25 mi | 1.41 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 21, 1993 | F0 | 2 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 26, 1992 | F0 | 20 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 17, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Great Falls
The Storm Prediction Center has 97 hail reports within 10 miles of Great Falls since 1955, made on 65 separate days. Of these, 68 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest, 2.75 inches (baseball size), fell on July 10, 1965. The most recent report is from July 31, 2025. June has the most reports, 34.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Great Falls
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Great Falls 16st, MT, 1 mile southeast of Great Falls at 3,505 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 55°F; January is the coolest, at 37°F and 18°F. Highs reach 90°F on about 25 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 143 nights a year. That 15.4 inches is more than at 38 of the 58 Montana stations used on this site (66%). Cascade, 27 miles southwest, has its own station (Cascade 5 S, MT): 16.9 inches a year, 1.5 more than here, and the same July average high, 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 37 | 18 | 0.6 | 3 |
| Feb | 39 | 19 | 0.6 | 3 |
| Mar | 48 | 25 | 0.6 | 2 |
| Apr | 58 | 33 | 1.8 | 6 |
| May | 67 | 42 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Jun | 75 | 50 | 2.7 | 5 |
| Jul | 86 | 55 | 1.3 | 2 |
| Aug | 84 | 53 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Sep | 73 | 45 | 1.4 | 4 |
| Oct | 59 | 36 | 1.1 | 3 |
| Nov | 45 | 26 | 0.7 | 3 |
| Dec | 37 | 20 | 0.6 | 3 |
| Year | 59 | 35 | 15.4 | 43 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Great Falls 16st, MT (3,505 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 Great Falls
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 129 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Great Falls: 99 thunderstorm wind reports, 13 heavy rain events, 11 flash floods, 5 floods and 1 lightning strike. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $83,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 83 mph, on August 8, 2003. June has had the most flash floods, 6 of 11. Of the 42 Montana cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 40 have had fewer than Great Falls.
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
Flood insurance policyholders in Great Falls's 3 ZIP codes have filed 186 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $412,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1997, with 34. Of the 26 Montana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 24 have fewer than Great Falls.
Cascade County, which includes Great Falls, has been named in 7 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1975, 5 of them major disasters (by incident: 2 biological emergencies, 2 floods, 1 fire, 1 hurricane). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on March 31, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Cascade County a Relatively Moderate rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for inland flooding, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for hail and heat waves; Very Low for tornadoes. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $55.3 million a year, the 5th highest of 56 Montana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $25.4 million (46%), 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 Great Falls
- Cascade, MT27 mi
- Fairfield, MT35 mi
- Choteau, MT54 mi
- Conrad, MT57 mi
- Helena, MT68 mi
- East Helena, MT69 mi
- Shelby, MT71 mi
- Townsend, MT76 mi
- Clancy, MT77 mi
- Box Elder, MT84 mi
- Lewistown, MT91 mi
- Boulder, MT96 mi
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