EF0 tornado in Rolette County, North Dakota

The Belcourt Fire Department reported a home sustained minor roof damage north of Dunseith due to a brief tornado touchdown. The damage was consistent with EF0 damage on the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Estimated wind speed based on the EF scale was 80 mph.

In the early afternoon hours of Monday, July 7th, isolated thunderstorms developed over southwestern Manitoba, Canada, as a result of an upper level short wave trough tracking east across south central Canada. Maximized low level wind shear along a surface boundary over north central North Dakota, along with low lifted condensation levels, created a favorable environment for low level mesocyclones and the development of isolated tornadoes.

The end result was a tornadic supercellular thunderstorm developing near Lake Metigoshe. It tracked east-southeast through northeastern Bottineau County and across northern Rolette County, before exiting into Towner County (Grand Forks, North Dakota County Warning Area) later in the afternoon. A storm survey conducted the following day found tornado damage in the Belcourt and Rolla areas, with the heaviest damage observed on the north side of Rolla. There were injuries from the tornadoes, but there were no deaths. Estimated damage was around one and a half million dollars.