NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Malta, 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 Malta, Montana since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 3 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 0 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 3
- 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 Malta
The highest rating among the 3 tornadoes within 25 miles is F1 or EF1, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 10, 2007, came within 7 miles. Of the 73 Montana cities on this site, 59% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Malta. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 32 times since 1962, with stones up to 1.75 inches (golf ball size). Malta has more hail reports within 10 miles than 57% of the 73 Montana cities.
Compare Malta's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Malta
By decade
- 2000s1
- 1980s1
- 1970s1
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 10, 2007 | EF1 | 7 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 25, 1980 | F1 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 30, 1979 | F0 | 13 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 3 of 3, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Malta
The Storm Prediction Center has 32 hail reports within 10 miles of Malta since 1962, made on 20 separate days. Of these, 18 were 1 inch across or larger, and none reached 2 inches. The largest size, 1.75 inches (golf ball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently June 16, 2005. The most recent report is from September 8, 2023. July has the most reports, 17.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Malta
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Malta, MT, 9 miles north of Malta at 2,262 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 57°F; January is the coolest, at 29°F and 7°F. June is the wettest at 2.7 inches of precipitation on average and January and February the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 13.5 inches over 36 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 30 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 173 nights a year. That 13.5 inches is more than at 19 of the 58 Montana stations used on this site (33%).
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 29 | 7 | 0.4 | 1 |
| Feb | 32 | 11 | 0.4 | 2 |
| Mar | 45 | 21 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Apr | 59 | 33 | 1.3 | 4 |
| May | 69 | 42 | 1.7 | 6 |
| Jun | 77 | 52 | 2.7 | 6 |
| Jul | 86 | 57 | 1.6 | 4 |
| Aug | 86 | 56 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Sep | 74 | 46 | 1.4 | 3 |
| Oct | 59 | 33 | 1.0 | 3 |
| Nov | 43 | 20 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Dec | 31 | 10 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Year | 58 | 32 | 13.5 | 36 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Malta, MT (2,262 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 Malta
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 24 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Malta: 21 thunderstorm wind reports, 1 flash flood, 1 flood and 1 heavy rain event. None is recorded as killing or injuring anyone; the NWS estimated $5,000 in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 87 mph, on June 22, 2005.
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 Malta's ZIP code 59538 have filed 19 claims with the National Flood Insurance Program since 1978, and were paid $28,000 for buildings and contents, in the dollars of each year. The year with the most claims was 1978, with 11. 11% of the claims carry the name of a storm or flood event; the rest have no event name. Of the 26 Montana cities on this site with 10 or more claims, 9 have fewer than Malta.
Phillips County, which includes Malta, has been named in 10 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1986, 8 of them major disasters (by incident: 3 floods, 2 biological emergencies, 2 severe storms, 1 fire). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, on April 7, 2026. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Phillips County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for lightning; Relatively Low for inland flooding; Very Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $7.7 million a year, the 31st highest of 56 Montana counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $3.4 million (44%), 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 Malta
- Harlem, MT45 mi
- Glasgow, MT52 mi
- Chinook, MT65 mi
- Havre, MT94 mi
- Box Elder, MT99 mi
- Wolf Point, MT99 mi
- Lewistown, MT113 mi
- Poplar, MT122 mi
- Roundup, MT122 mi
- Shepherd, MT157 mi
- Forsyth, MT158 mi
- Miles City, MT161 mi
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