254
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$386K
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Custer County, Montana: 254 recorded events between 1957 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 91. That places the county #668 nationally and #6 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Custer County, Montana: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Custer County is the 2010s, when 65 of the county's 254 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Custer County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 46.7% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #668 for this hazard and #6 within Montana, putting it in the 78.8 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Custer County with 107 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 6, 2016 | KINSEY | 70 | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 14, 2024 | MILES CITY | 65 | 0 | 3 | $0 |
| Jul 10, 2000 | MILES CITY | 0 | 0 | 2 | $5K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 18, 2025 | MILES CITY | 55 | $0 |
| Aug 18, 2025 | MILES CITY ARPT | 57 | $0 |
| Aug 8, 2025 | MILES CITY ARPT | 64 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2025 | KINSEY | 55 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2025 | FT KEOGH | 60 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2025 | MILES CITY ARPT | 59 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2025 | KNOWLTON | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 16, 2025 | MILES CITY ARPT | 70 | $0 |
| Jul 14, 2024 | KNOWLTON | 63 | $0 |
| Jul 14, 2024 | MILES CITY | 67 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Custer County
- Hail 239
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The roof of a house was torn off by thunderstorm winds. Another house had part of it's roof torn off. A shed was also blown over and a garage was damaged. Several trees were blown down. Estimated damage was $180 thousand. Winds up to 50 mph were recorded at the airport around this time. The time is estimated.
A tree was downed at Missouri and Fourth St in Miles City. The tree fell on and smashed a fence. Multiple branches with diameters of 3 to 4 inches were down in Riverside Park. In addition, a tree fell on and knocked a street light off a power pole on the 2100 block of Main Street. Other trees and branches with diameters of 6 inches were down across the city.
A microburst with an estimated wind gust of 70 mph caused trees to be uprooted. In addition, the wind snapped a couple of power poles causing a grass fire. The fire was reported off the Tongue River Road. The power pole lines fell on the edge of a large stack of hay bales. Local ranchers estimated 300+ hay bales were lost in the fire.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Custer County, Montana?
254 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Custer County between 1957 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Custer County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Custer County measured 91.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Custer County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Custer County, Montana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/montana/custer-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.