Pondera County, Montana severe weather history spans 141 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 53.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #2,739 nationally and #44 in Montana.
141
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$5.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Pondera County, Montana severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pondera County, Montana severe weather history averages 2.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 38 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 22 events fall before 1990 and 119 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is thunderstorm wind, with $5.0M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Pondera County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 76 | 0 | $500K | 4.5 | 1956–2024 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 48 | 0 | $5.0M | 80 | 1980–2025 |
| Heavy Rain | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2013–2022 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2008–2019 |
| Funnel Cloud | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–1996 |
| Flash Flood | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2002–2013 |
Decade by decade
Pondera County, Montana severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pondera County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 10, 1989 | Hail | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Flooding occurred over North Central Montana on June 10th. Between 2 and 5 inches of rain fell over the plains during the morning and early afternoon hours resulting in many rivers rising to bank full along with urban street flooding. The water began to recede below bank full early on the 11th.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
6,035
Population (ACS)
$206K
Median home value
14
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 7, 2026 | Straight-Line Winds | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Jul 18, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORM AND FLOODING | DR |
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Aug 30, 2018 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Sep 12, 2017 | Fire | STRAWBERRY FIRE | FM |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pondera County, Montana?
141 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $5.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pondera County?
Hail, with 76 recorded events — 53.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pondera County?
14 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pondera County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pondera County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pondera County as very low risk, placing it in the 25 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pondera 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
- Phillips County 610
- Powder River County 578
- Petroleum County 225
- Powell County 103
- Park County 243
- Prairie County 337
Cite this page
“Pondera County, Montana.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/montana/pondera-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.