PlainHazard

Montana extreme cold

Every recorded extreme cold record since 1996 · 52 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 1,102 extreme cold records in Montana from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 44 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the December 24, 2009 extreme cold/wind chill in Wibaux County: 1 death. Montana ranks 19th of 51 states and territories by count and 38th of 50 per square mile.

Extreme cold in Montana, 1996 to 2026

Cold records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $1 million
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
1,1021996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
44average
Deaths
56 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$75Kas filed
Busiest year
2025165 records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Are extreme cold records common in Montana?

Montana averages about 44 extreme cold records a year since 2000, 19th of 51 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2025 (165). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Montana records 76 extreme cold records since 1996, 38th of 50 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. Maryland 1039
  2. 2. New Jersey 901
  3. 3. West Virginia 808
  4. 4. Vermont 703
  5. 5. New York 602
  6. 6. Kentucky 578
  7. 7. Delaware 565
  8. 8. Minnesota 532
  9. 9. Iowa 492
  10. 10. Illinois 483
  11. 38. Montana 76

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in Montana have the most extreme cold records?

Per square mile, Silver Bow County leads Montana: 29 days with a extreme cold record since 1996, 40.4 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Roosevelt County has the most cold records (93 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Silver Bow County 40.4 (29)
  2. Deer Lodge County 39.4 (29)
  3. Sheridan County 35.8 (64)
  4. Daniels County 34.4 (50)
  5. Lake County 32.9 (82)
  6. Roosevelt County 27.2 (93)
  7. Wibaux County 24.7 (23)
  8. Granite County 20.8 (45)
  9. Missoula County 17.7 (82)
  10. Richland County 17.3 (39)
  11. Toole County 16.7 (43)
  12. Pondera County 14.8 (48)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is the cold season in Montana?

67% of its extreme cold records since 1996 fell in January and February. The busiest month is February (397 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 340 · Feb 397 · Mar 66 · Apr 4 · May 2 · Jun 4 · Jul 0 · Aug 0 · Sep 32 · Oct 5 · Nov 15 · Dec 237 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

What were the deadliest extreme cold records in Montana?

Montana: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2009-12-24 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillWibaux County · forecast zone Wibaux A two year old visiting relatives in Wibaux was found dead outside due to hypothermia at 0630 am on December 24th. He had gotten out of the house sometime during the night. Temperatures were around 15 below zero with wind chills near 30 below zero. 1 0 –
1997-01-08 Cold/Wind ChillRoosevelt County · forecast zone Western Roosevelt Very strong winds and extremely cold temperatures dropped wind chills to colder than 80 below zero at times. The strong winds also caused blowing and drifting snow which made travel trecherous. One man died when his vehicle became stuck in a snow drift. After staying with his car until it ran out of gas, he decided to ... 1 0 –
1996-02-01 Cold/Wind ChillBeaverhead County · forecast zone Beaverhead Extremely cold temperatures in combination with gusty winds dropped wind chill readings to 104 degrees below zero in Opheim, 96 degrees below zero in Glasgow and 86 degrees below zero in Sidney. 1 0 –
1996-01-28 Cold/Wind ChillMineral County and 2 more · forecast zone Lower Clark Fork Region Lorraine Wood, age 75, in Craig, fell on some ice while trying to get into her car, the night of the 28th. She was unable to get up and died of exposure overnight. Temperatures were well below normal for this time of year, estimated to be between zero and 10 below zero. 1 0 –
2005-02-06 Cold/Wind ChillRoosevelt County · forecast zone Eastern Roosevelt A 55 yer old women died of hypothermia after leaving a bar in Frazer, Montana when it closed. The temperature was around 2 below zero at the time. 1 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest extreme cold records in Montana

Montana: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-05-18 Frost/FreezeMissoula County and Ravalli County · forecast zone Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys 0 6 $10K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are extreme cold records becoming more frequent in Montana?

Montana's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

Extreme cold: Montana and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadeMontanaUnited StatesMontana's share
1996-99395,5390.7%
2000s20614,7921.4%
2010s35118,1621.9%
2020-2650615,3293.3%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent extreme cold records in Montana

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-08 Frost/FreezeMissoula County and Ravalli County · forecast zone Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys 0 0 –
2026-06-08 Frost/FreezeMineral County and 2 more · forecast zone Lower Clark Fork Region 0 0 –
2026-06-08 Frost/FreezeFlathead County and 2 more · forecast zone Kootenai/Cabinet Region 0 0 –
2026-06-07 Frost/FreezeGranite County and 3 more · forecast zone Potomac / Seeley Lake Region 0 0 –
2026-05-18 Frost/FreezeMissoula County and Ravalli County · forecast zone Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys 0 6 $10K
2026-04-25 Frost/FreezeGranite County and 2 more · forecast zone Bitterroot / Sapphire Mountains 0 0 –
2026-04-25 Frost/FreezeMissoula County and Ravalli County · forecast zone Missoula / Bitterroot Valleys 0 0 –
2026-04-25 Frost/FreezeFlathead County and 2 more · forecast zone Flathead/Mission Valleys 0 0 –
2026-04-25 Frost/FreezeFlathead County and 2 more · forecast zone Kootenai/Cabinet Region 0 0 –
2026-01-25 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillRichland County · forecast zone Richland 0 0 –
2026-01-24 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillDaniels County · forecast zone Daniels 0 0 –
2026-01-23 Extreme Cold/Wind ChillRoosevelt County · forecast zone Eastern Roosevelt 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

Next