Tornado Risk in Broadwater County, MT
Broadwater County, MT: what NOAA's tornado record says
1 tornado track have crossed Broadwater County since 1992 by NOAA's count, roughly one every 76.9 years - the Minimal band on this site's scale. That is the 5th percentile nationally for tornado frequency. Montana has 56 counties in this dataset; Broadwater County ranks 51 of them by frequency.
The number that matters more than frequency
No violent (EF4-5) tornado has been recorded in Broadwater County in NOAA's 76-year database. Of its 1 recorded tracks, 1 were weak (EF0-1) and 0 significant (EF2-3).
Shelter and safe-room economics
Montana does not currently have a confirmed state rebate layered on top of FEMA's 75% Hazard Mitigation cost-share, so a Broadwater County homeowner should expect the full national range: $2,890-$13,280, $7,645 typical.
Power after the storm, not just shelter during it
Power loss after a tornado outbreak in Montana often reaches homes the storm itself never touched. A battery-backup unit covers the outage without the fuel and venting a generator needs.
What Broadwater County's figure does not tell you
Broadwater County's figure is county-wide, not address-specific. Broadwater County covers about 1,192 square miles, so a single touch here counts the same as a single touch in a county a fraction of that size. NOAA also documents that older records undercount weaker tornadoes from before Doppler radar became standard. Broadwater County has about 8,302 residents.