Montana lightning
Every recorded lightning record since 1996 · 25 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 51 lightning records in Montana from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 2.4 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the September 18, 1998 lightning in Petroleum County: 1 death and 1 injury. Montana ranks 49th of 52 states and territories by count and 50th of 51 per square mile.
Lightning in Montana, 1996 to 2026
Lightning 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
- 511996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 2.4average
- Deaths
- 938 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $866Kas filed
- Busiest year
- 20036 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 lightning records common in Montana?
Montana averages about 2.4 lightning records a year since 2000, 49th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2003 (6). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Montana records 3.5 lightning records since 1996, 50th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
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 lightning records?
Per square mile, Deer Lodge County leads Montana: 3 days with a lightning record since 1996, 4.1 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Valley County has the most lightning records (5 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).
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 lightning season in Montana?
63% of its lightning records since 1996 fell in June and July. The busiest month is July (19 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 0 · Feb 0 · Mar 0 · Apr 1 · May 8 · Jun 13 · Jul 19 · Aug 6 · Sep 2 · Oct 2 · Nov 0 · Dec 0 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest lightning records in Montana?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998-09-18 | LightningWinnett, Petroleum County One man died after lightning struck him and a friend while the two were bow hunting. The two were hunting between Crooked Creek and Barrel Springs when a thunderstorm moved overhead. The two took cover under a tree. Lightning struck the pair knocking both unconscious. When the one man awoke he tried to revive his ... | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 1998-07-08 | LightningMissoula County Two people were struck by lightning on Blue Mountain and one died. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2011-06-11 | LightningWade, Carbon County Carbon County officials reported that a rancher was struck and killed by lightning in the Pryor Mountains. The Sheriff's department said a 54-year-old man was rounding up cattle for branding at a ranch about 12 miles east of Bridger when he and his horse were struck about 1:30 pm on June 11th. The man and his horse ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2007-05-18 | LightningTownsend, Broadwater County Man fishing alone in boat on southern Canyon Ferry Resevoir, on east shore across from Silos, struck and killed by lightning around 320 pm MDT. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2009-07-04 | LightningBillings Hgts, Yellowstone County A line of strong thunderstorms moved into the area west of Billings around 730pm MDT. A lightning strike occurred around 800pm MDT at Castlerock Park where the Celebrate Freedom community gathering was occuring. A visitor (26 year old male resident of Billings) at the celebration was struck in the forehead and died. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1999-06-17 | LightningBozeman, Gallatin County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1999-06-25 | LightningMizpah, Custer County A 14 year-old boy was struck and killed by lightning while standing on a front tire of a tractor in a field. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2020-07-31 | LightningGlendive Dawson Airport, Dawson County Dawson County DES Coordinator reported a 65 year old woman struck and killed by lightning while walking along Airport Road west of Glendive. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 1999-07-17 | LightningDecker, Big Horn County A 13 year old girl was stuck and killed by lightning on the Tongue River Reservoir. | 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 lightning records in Montana
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-05-27 | LightningCorvallis, Ravalli County | 0 | 0 | $338K | |
| 1998-10-02 | LightningBillings, Yellowstone County | 0 | 1 | $18K | |
| 2004-06-29 | LightningGreat Falls, Cascade County | 0 | 1 | $16K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are lightning 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.
| Decade | Montana | United States | Montana's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 11 | 3,521 | 0.31% |
| 2000s | 22 | 8,052 | 0.27% |
| 2010s | 10 | 5,103 | 0.20% |
| 2020-26 | 8 | 1,544 | 0.52% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent lightning records in Montana
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-06-11 | LightningHelena Regional Arp, Lewis and Clark County | 0 | 2 | – | |
| 2022-06-18 | LightningGilman, Lewis and Clark County | 0 | 3 | – | |
| 2020-07-31 | LightningGlendive Dawson Airport, Dawson County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2013-07-17 | LightningSt Mary, Glacier County | 0 | 3 | – | |
| 2013-05-09 | LightningFlorence, Ravalli County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2011-07-26 | LightningChico, Park County | 0 | 3 | – | |
| 2011-06-11 | LightningWade, Carbon County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2010-05-27 | LightningCorvallis, Ravalli County | 0 | 0 | $338K | |
| 2009-07-04 | LightningBillings Hgts, Yellowstone County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2008-06-13 | LightningPoplar, Roosevelt County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2008-05-29 | LightningWhitefish, Flathead County | 0 | 2 | – | |
| 2007-05-18 | LightningTownsend, Broadwater County | 1 | 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
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