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Fergus County, Montana severe weather history spans 515 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 48.7% of all recorded events. It ranks #822 nationally and #11 in Montana.
515
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
3
Direct injuries
$4.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Fergus County, Montana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Fergus County, Montana severe weather history averages 7.5 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 174 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 53 events fall before 1990 and 462 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $4.2M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Fergus County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 251 | 0 | $113K | 4.5 | 1956–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 193 | 0 | $231K | 101 | 1957–2025 |
| Tornado | 27 | 0 | $4.2M | F2 | 1964–2005 |
| Heavy Rain | 21 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2004–2022 |
| Flood | 11 | 0 | $135K | 0 | 2002–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2019 |
| Flash Flood | 5 | 0 | $225K | 0 | 2001–2023 |
Decade by decade
Fergus County, Montana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
26 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 23 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002-07-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1999-08-14 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1996-06-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1981-05-28 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1976-06-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-08-23 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-06-17 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-06-25 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2005-06-28 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2004-06-05 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Crossed in |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Fergus County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 14, 1999 | Tornado | LEWISTOWN | 0 | 3 | $4.0M |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Fergus County Sheriff's Office and Emergency Management reported portions of Casino Creek Road washed out from heavy rain and flooding of the creek. The road was washed out completely in at least two locations, per a later NWS survey. Many cattle fields along the creek were also flooded.
Wild Rose Road washed out.|Faron Hill Road washed out.|Middle Fork Road washed out.|Giltedge Road washed out.|Highway 87S from mile marker 31 to 32 a dam was breached.|Highway 191N between Roy and Lewistown road damaged due to a sink hole.|Many homes affected and a shelter was set up in Lewistown for flood victims.
A severe thunderstorm moved across the northern half of Fergus County during the late afternoon hours on the 8th. This storm produced a widespread area of one to two inch hail from Brooks to Roy, with wind gusts over 70 mph. When the storm was just north of Brooks, a tornado developed. This tornado was on the ground for several miles, but remained over rural areas of Fergus County. However, this tornado did hit three residences, causing damage to houses and several barns. A few mobile homes were also damaged and one grain elevator near Moulton was toppled.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
11,687
Population (ACS)
$236K
Median home value
10
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 18, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 11, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Jul 10, 2013 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 17, 2011 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Fergus County, Montana?
515 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $4.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Fergus County?
Hail, with 251 recorded events — 48.7% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Fergus County?
26 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 23 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Fergus County?
10 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Fergus County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Fergus County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Fergus County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 45 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Fergus County, Montana severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Fallon County 348
- Flathead County 203
- Deer Lodge County 46
- Gallatin County 237
- Dawson County 544
- Garfield County 619
Cite this page
“Fergus County, Montana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/montana/fergus-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.