Lake storm history
Storm events recorded in Lake, Montana between 1950 and 2025.
111
Total events
4
Tornadoes
48
Hail
2
Floods
0
Deaths
$895K
Property damage
Most significant events
Strongest tornadoes, deadliest events, and biggest damage in this county. Up to 50 shown.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A lot of trees down around St. Ignatius. The wind picked up a turkey pen and flipped it upside down. Trees and power lines were also downed in Kicking Horse and Polson.
Hail Hail
The public reported two rounds of hail in and around the Bison Range. They reported wind gusts to 53 mph with the first round of hail.
Hail Hail
The public measured 1.5 inch hail near Ferndale east of Big Fork.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A person from the public reported that there were dozens of trees down on forest service roads east and northeast of Arlee.
Tornado EF0 Tornado
A thunderstorm moved through the Mission Valley, near St. Ignatius and produced a tornado as confirmed by multiple public reports and social media pictures. It briefly touched down and caused some minor property damage. Metal roofing was torn off a farm outbuilding, and minor shi…
Hail Hail
Ping pong size hail, very heavy rain, and gusty winds were reported at the National Bison Range. A hay crop was destroyed near St. Ignatius. Hail damaged an RV roof.
Hail Hail
Both the Flathead Bio Station and a spotter 13 mi northeast of Polson reported 1/2 inch hail, resulting in unknown quantity of plant and leaf damage.
Hail Hail
A spotter in Bigfork, MT sent in a photo showing 1 1/2 inch hail. Near Lakeside on Flathead Lake a cherry orchard reported a total loss of their cherry and apple crop from 125 trees, and they had to replace all their screens on one side of the house and a larger cherry producer i…
Hail Hail
One inch hail was reported in Charlo, MT.
Hail Hail
Two reports of large hail were received, one of .88 around Ravalli ,MT and the second of 1 just south of Ninepipes Reservoir.
Hail Hail
Hail Hail
This storm that moved generally from Lakeside northeast to the Flathead Valley just north of Echo Lake produced two reports of 1 inch hail. One of those reports was from Somers and the other along HWY-35 just north of Bigfork, MT.
Hail Hail
There was a report of 1.25 hail from a storm that traversed the southern portions of Flathead Lake. Two greenhouse businesses in Jette, MT reported nickel size hail, or 7/8. A greenhouse received significant damage.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Multiple large, mature Colorado spruce and ponderosa pine trees were blown down along with smaller deciduous trees across the Mission Valley. Shingle damage also occurred on several homes with power outages in Pablo.
Hail Hail
A Facebook report of 1.00 inch hail in Arlee.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Several live trees were uprooted as thunderstorm outflow winds moved from southwest to northeast across the Mission Valley. Power outages and one report of minor vehicle damage from a falling tree branch were reported.
Hail Hail
A photo on social media showed several hailstones that were a little larger than a quarter. Also hail was reported to have accumulated several inches in the storm's path.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Numerous tree damage led to power outages and blocked roadways. Damage was noted on both sides of Flathead Lake, but damage was most concentrated near Polson, Dayton, and Finley Point.
Heavy Rain Heavy Rain
General rainfall of 1 to 2 inches fell across parts of the Flathead and Mission valleys eastward to the Continental Divide. Heavier amounts of 3 to 4 inches fell locally on the east side of Flathead Lake and in the Mission Mountains, which were near record 2-day totals for the mo…
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Estimated winds to 60 mph caused waves to 4 feet on Flathead Lake and power outages in the Dayton area.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A 25 foot power pole was snapped by the wind in Charlo, MT. The wind was strong enough to make it difficult for resident to open his front door.
Heavy Rain Heavy Rain
A resident in Charlo, MT reported 0.80 inches of rain in 10 min with minor street flooding.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Power lines and trees were downed by the wind. One of the trees that was knocked over was 18 inches in diameter.
Flood Flood
A driveway was completely washed out by a flood, presumably caused by snowmelt and very warm temperatures.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A trained spotter from Woods Bay reported power outages with at least one tree snapped in half.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A NWS employee reported trees bending with one large tree blown down. The waves on Flathead lake were the highest she had ever seen.
Hail Hail
A trained spotter on the east side of Flathead Lake reported an estimated 1 hail with no damage to cherry trees.
Hail Hail
A thunderstorm outflow boundary triggered another cell that grew in strength over higher terrain west of Moiese. This thunderstorm produced hail one inch in diameter, as reported by personnel at the National Bison Range.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
A 72 foot, 26 inch diameter Douglas Fir fell down from very strong thunderstorm winds and crashed onto owners' house. Soil moisture was relatively dry, but as seen in photo much of the branches on the trunk except at the top had already been cut off before this event. A forester …
Heavy Rain Heavy Rain
A spotter measured 0.34 inch rainfall in 1 hour.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
The highway department reported several trees blown down across highway MT-83 near mile marker 48.
Heavy Rain Heavy Rain
Equipment at Ronan reported 0.89 inches of rainfall in 12 hours.
Heavy Rain Heavy Rain
Rainfall of 0.91 inches was reported by a trained spotter.
Tornado EF0 Tornado
A waterspout formed over Skidoo Bay and remained over water. No damage was reported.
Hail Hail
The public measured 1.00 inch hail that covered the ground.
Hail Hail
Ping pong ball sized hail was measured at Yellow Bay.
Hail Hail
The public reported 2 inch diameter hail that occurred for about three minutes at Yellow Bay.
Hail Hail
A trained spotter NNW of Arlee measured 0.88 inch hail.
Hail Hail
The public estimated 1.00 inch hail in Saint Ignatius.
Hail Hail
A trained spotter relayed that their neighbor received golf ball sized hail that left dents in their car and caused damage to their corn crop.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
The Lake County Emergency Manager reported trees blown down on Highway 35 near Blue Bay along Flathead Lake.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
The public reported four trees blown down from thunderstorm winds at Lake Mary Ronan State Park.
Lightning Lightning
A home in St. Ignatius was completely burned down and destroyed by a lightning strike.
Hail Hail
Public reported nickel size hail and heavy rain from thunderstorm over the Irvine Flats area.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Public reported widespread tree damage near Lion Creek northeast of Condon. Many spruce trees 1.5 feet in diameter snapped.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
Sheriff reported 30 trees blown down over Highway 83 10 miles northwest of Condon.
Hail Hail
Car dealership 5 miles south of Ronan reported 0.88 inch hail and damage to vehicles in the car lot.
Hail Hail
Spotter reported 1.50 inch hail 7 miles south of Ronan.
Tornado EF0 Tornado
The public reported a tornado 10 miles west northwest of Pablo and also a waterspout over Flathead Lake north of Polson. In addition, a sail boat (located on the Flathead County/Lake County line) was spun around at least once in a counterclockwise direction and then sank.
Thunderstorm Wind Thunderstorm Wind
National Weather Service storm survey crew saw numerous trees and several power poles down along the storm's track. Two structures received roof damage. The damage observed was indicative of straight line winds. A flag pole was bent in half southwest of Polson. Based upon the dam…
Events by year
| Year | Events | Tornadoes |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 0 |
| 2023 | 1 | 1 |
| 2022 | 10 | 0 |
| 2021 | 1 | 0 |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 |
| 2019 | 2 | 0 |
| 2016 | 2 | 0 |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 |
| 2013 | 5 | 0 |
| 2012 | 2 | 0 |
| 2011 | 8 | 1 |
| 2010 | 3 | 0 |
| 2009 | 2 | 0 |
| 2008 | 4 | 0 |
| 2007 | 8 | 1 |
| 2006 | 12 | 0 |
| 2005 | 1 | 0 |
| 2004 | 4 | 0 |
| 2003 | 6 | 0 |
| 2002 | 3 | 0 |
| 2001 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | 2 | 0 |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 |
| 1998 | 4 | 0 |
| 1997 | 4 | 0 |
| 1996 | 4 | 0 |
| 1994 | 1 | 0 |
| 1993 | 1 | 0 |
| 1991 | 1 | 1 |
| 1989 | 3 | 0 |
| 1988 | 2 | 0 |
| 1987 | 1 | 0 |
| 1985 | 1 | 0 |
| 1982 | 1 | 0 |
| 1962 | 1 | 0 |
| 1961 | 1 | 0 |