Thunderstorm Wind — Big Horn, Montana
July 15, 2022 · NOAA Storm Events record
Event narrative (NOAA)
Around 4:15 PM MDT, a thunderstorm outflow moved through the Hardin area. It produced a wind gust of 62 mph in the 4:35 PM MDT observations from the Big Horn County Airport. Along with the outflow winds, blowing dust reduced visibility to less than a quarter mile on the AWOS. This resulted in a 20 to 30 vehicle pile up along Interstate 90 around mile marker 493 reported at 4:30 PM MDT, very close to the airport. Prior to this, the Montana DOT RWIS station at Arrow Creek Hill, 25 miles west of Hardin, reported a peak wind gust of 48 mph about 15 minutes prior. This accident resulted in 6 deaths and multiple injuries.
Other notable thunderstorm wind events in Montana
Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database. Deaths and injuries are those NOAA classifies as direct. Damage is the reporting office's estimate at the time and is not inflation-adjusted. This is a catalogue record, not a forecast.