What Are The Chances You’ll Get Caught In A Twister In Montana?

What are the chances of being taken out by a tornado in Montana?  If you're like me, you think, "pretty slim", and you're right, sort of.

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I dug around, and it's surprising to me how many tornadoes have happened in Montana.  Data Central has been keeping track of tornadoes in Montana since 1952, and in that time, Montana has recorded 422.

How Many Tornadoes Does Montana Average In A Year?

They don't exactly give that information, but they did give totals per year.  The smallest years in Montana for a tornado are one per year.  The biggest year for tornadoes in this state was 1991.  There were 30 tornadoes that year.  I was floored by this number.  I don't recall hearing anything about it, and I work at a place where we hear about most things.  In 1999, there were 22 recorded tornadoes in Montana that year. In 1988 there were 20 tornadoes in Montana.

Are There A Lot Of Casualties?

Short answer, no.  In 1952 there was one, in 1983 there was one death and in 2010 there were 2 deaths.

What's The Largest Tornado In Montana History?

From NBC Montana the longest path of a tornado was in 1952 and it was 55 miles.  The widest path of a tornado was 1,320 in 1953.

The Father's Day Tornado of 2010

All of us remember when the tornado touched down on Rimrock Auto Arena at Metrapark in Billings.  I lived in Oregon then and it was news.

From Wikipedia:

The tornado was on the ground for 12 minutes taking the roof off the Rimrock Auto Arena at Metrapark also causing heavy damage to other businesses in and around the Billings area.  There was high wind and hail in addition to the tornado and a flash flood was caused in the Heights.  This was the first time a significant tornado hit Billings since 1958.

Is There A Big Chance Of Being Caught Up In A Twister?

Not really, but according to Ground Zero Shelters the counties most likely to have a tornado are Dawson, Richland and Prairie Counties.

Thanks for coming to my Tornado Ted Talk.