Park County
Population 18,214 (2025) 2,803 sq mi
Large wildfires have burned 288,862 acres of Park County since 1984, 13th most of 56 counties in Montana; the largest was the Storm Creek Fire in 1988.
Hazard fingerprint Each spoke is this county’s percentile among U.S. counties where that hazard occurs. How it is computed
- Tornado damage paths since 19502
- Wildfire burn scars since 198424
- Major flood years since 19782
At a glance
The record for Park County in eight numbers. Each links to its section below.
Acres burned since 1984
288,862
13th of 56 in Montana
24 large fires; the largest was Storm Creek, 1988
DetailsTornadoes since 1950
2
41st of 56 in Montana
Fewer than the typical Montana county, which has had 6
DetailsStrongest tornado
EF2
July 2, 2010, 2.1 mile path
Federal disaster declarations
14
Most recent: Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, 2026
DetailsTornadoes
About one every 38 years since 1950, none rated F3/EF3 or stronger.
Strongest
July 2, 2010
EF2, 2.1 mile path
150 yards wide.
Most recent
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
EF0, 0.1 mile path
15 years ago.
Every recorded tornado
| Aug 9, 2011 | EF0 | 0.1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jul 2, 2010 | EF2 | 2.1 | 0 | 0 |
- Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Park County: 0.
- Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.
Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.
Hurricanes and tropical storms
No tropical storm or hurricane has tracked within 100 miles since records began in 1851.
Wildfire and smoke
288,862 acres burned in 24 large fires since 1984, equal to 16% of the land.
Largest
June 19, 1988
Storm Creek Fire, 115,951 acres
82,101 acres inside Park County.
Most recent
July 17, 2021
American Fork Fire
20,717 acres in total.
Every large fire
| American Fork | 2021 | 10,018 | 20,717 |
| Buffalo | 2016 | 1,334 | 13,698 |
| Miner Paradise Complex | 2013 | 12,059 | 12,207 |
| Pine Creek | 2012 | 7,707 | 7,704 |
| Paradise Valley | 2012 | 1,129 | 1,130 |
| Wh Complex (Hicks Park) | 2007 | 367 | 1,815 |
| Wh Complex (Wicked Creek) | 2007 | 22,195 | 22,175 |
| Owl | 2007 | 1,957 | 2,173 |
| Passage Falls | 2006 | 6,837 | 6,831 |
| Jungle | 2006 | 22,611 | 23,828 |
| Big Creek | 2006 | 13,374 | 13,413 |
| Rough Draw Complex (Brundage) | 2003 | 2,762 | 2,761 |
| Rough Draw Complex (Slippery Rock) | 2003 | 1,106 | 1,105 |
| Rough Draw Complex (Rough Draw) | 2003 | 1,341 | 1,339 |
| Fridley | 2001 | 27,574 | 27,549 |
| Monument | 2001 | 1,057 | 2,855 |
| Six Mile | 1999 | 1,106 | 1,105 |
| Coyote Pnf | 1996 | 3,807 | 3,814 |
| Deckard | 1994 | 1,906 | 1,905 |
| Hellroaring | 1988 | 60,553 | 77,539 |
| North Fork | 1988 | 1,287 | 563,089 |
| Clovermist | 1988 | 234 | 303,221 |
| Fan | 1988 | 4,429 | 20,407 |
| Storm Creek | 1988 | 82,101 | 115,951 |
- Large fires mapped by the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity program since 1984: 1,000 acres or more in the West, 500 or more in the East. Prescribed burns are excluded. Acres here are the part of each perimeter inside this place.
Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (USGS and U.S. Forest Service), 1984 to 2026.
Smoke overhead
Smokiest year
2021: 61 days
Heavy smoke on 41 days in 2021, the most of any year.
Last 10 years
25.7 days a year
Medium or heavy smoke, 2016 to 2025.
2025
15 days
Medium or heavy smoke. 27 so far in 2026.
- A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.
NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Floods and flood insurance
141 federal flood insurance claims since 1978, with $3.3 million paid.
Most claims in one year
1997: 64 claims
$586,000 paid.
2nd most
2022: 34 claims
$2.5 million paid.
3rd most
1996: 17 claims
$76,000 paid.
Claims by ZIP code
| 59047 | 121 | $2.8 million |
| 59027 | 5 | $143,000 |
Flood events since 1996
- Flood6
- Flash Flood1
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.
River crests
Most severe crest
June 13, 2022
Yellowstone River at Corwin Springs, 14.72 ft
3.72 feet above the 11.0 ft flood stage; major flooding by today’s categories.
Most recent moderate or major crest
June 13, 2022
Yellowstone River at Corwin Springs, 14.72 ft
Major flooding.
River gauges
| Shields River near Livingston | 5.5 | 6.80 ft | 0 |
| Yellowstone River at Corwin Springs | 11.0 | 14.72 ft | 1 |
| Yellowstone River near Livingston | 10.0 | 11.63 ft | 1 |
- Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.
NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Drought
In severe drought or worse for 169 of 1,581 months since 1895 (11%); the longest spell lasted 47 months.
169
Months in severe drought or worse since 1895
84
Months in extreme drought
11%
Share of all months, severe or worse
5
Drought reports to the Weather Service since 1996
Lowest reading
March 1905
−7.35, extreme drought
Longest severe spell
47 months
January 1934 to November 1937.
Latest month
September 2026
−1.92, mild drought
Last severe month: September 2025.
- The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.
NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.
Earthquakes, volcanoes and landslides
104 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles since 1900; the largest was magnitude 7.2 in 1959.
10
Magnitude 2.5+ inside the county since 1973
519
Magnitude 3+ within 50 miles since 1973
104
Magnitude 4+ within 50 miles since 1900
26
Magnitude 5+ within 50 miles since 1900
Largest within 50 miles
August 17, 1959
The 1959 Hebgen Lake, Montana Earthquake; 16.3 miles away, 7.5 miles deep.
Most recent, magnitude 3 or more
July 16, 2026
Magnitude 3.3
39 km SSE of Mammoth, Wyoming; 36.5 miles away.
Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles
- Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
- Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).
USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Volcanoes within 100 miles
| Yellowstone | 34.5 | High |
- U.S. volcanoes within 100 miles, from the USGS Volcano Hazards Program. The threat category is the USGS 2018 National Volcanic Threat Assessment, which ranks volcanoes by how hazardous their past eruptions were and how many people and how much infrastructure lie near them. It is not a forecast of eruption.
USGS Volcano Hazards Program, retrieved October 30, 2026.
Mapped landslides
12
Landslides mapped, probable or better
1
With a recorded date
4
Source inventories
Mapped by USGS Post-Fire Debris Flows (5), USGS Conterminous (4), WY WSGS (2), NASA (1).
- Landslides mapped in the USGS compilation of landslide inventories across the United States (version 3.0, 2025), rated probable or better. The compilation joins inventories made by federal and state agencies for different purposes and areas, so the number mapped in a county reflects how closely it has been surveyed as much as how often its slopes fail. An area with few records may simply not have been mapped. Deaths are as recorded in the inventories; a slide listed in two inventories is counted once.
USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0, retrieved October 27, 2026.
Severe weather and other events
766 events in the National Weather Service record, 715 of them since 1996.
31
Hail reports, 1 inch or larger
0
Hail, 2 inches or larger
176
Damaging gusts, 58 mph+
328
Winter weather events since 1996
0
Heat events since 1996
0
Cold events since 1996
Largest hail
July 18, 1997
1.75 inches
Strongest measured or estimated gust
July 6, 1983
100 mph
More event types since 1996
| Lightning | 1 | 0 |
| Debris flows | 1 | 0 |
| Avalanches | 5 | 3 |
Costliest events since 1996
- May 24, 2011Flood$130,000
National Weather Service narrative
County officials reported significant flooding across Park County, especially along the foothill locations and on the Shields River in the northern part of the county. The Shields River and its tributaries experienced significant flooding with adjacent low lying areas under water. Some of the creeks that were impacted by high water included Mission, Billman, and Fleshman Creeks. County officials also reported that several roads were closed, damaged and eventually washed out by high water. During the height of the event, the Department of Transportation closed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 90 at Springdale due to water over the road from Peterson Creek.|Damage estimates were…
- Jul 2, 2010Tornado$33,000
National Weather Service narrative
At approximately 345pm to about 352pm, a supercell thunderstorm produced a tornado with surrounding microburst damage occurred about 15 miles northeast of Wilsall over the foothills of the Crazy Mountains in Park County. Thousands of trees were damaged, including large trees that were uprooted or snapped off at the base. Trees as large as three to four feet in diameter were uprooted and/or snapped. EF-2 scale damage with estimated wind speeds up to 120 mph was determined with this tornado.
- Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.
Weather records
From Livingston Airport, 9.9 miles from the county’s population centre, with records from 1948.
- All-time high
- 105°F2 times, most recently Jul 12, 2026
- All-time low
- −41°FDec 24, 1983
- Warmest night
- 73°FAug 10, 2000
- Coldest day
- −26°FFeb 3, 1989
- Wettest day
- 2.90 inJun 16, 1992
- Snowiest day
- 16.4 inDec 4, 1998
- Hottest year
- 1999mean 49.5°F
- Coldest year
- 1975mean 41.8°F
- Wettest year
- 197522.87 in
- Driest year
- 19549.01 in
Station Livingston Airport (USW00024150), 4,645 ft elevation, 9.9 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1948 to October 26, 2026; 99.9% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.
NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.
Federal disaster declarations
14 since 1953. The most recent: Severe Winter Storm and Straight-Line Winds, April 7, 2026.
| Apr 7, 2026 | Straight-Line Winds | DR-4902-MT |
| Aug 12, 2023 | Flood | DR-4726-MT |
| Jun 16, 2022 | Flood | DR-4655-MT |
| Mar 31, 2020 | Biological | DR-4508-MT |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | EM-3476-MT |
| May 24, 2019 | Flood | DR-4437-MT |
| Oct 31, 2018 | Flood | DR-4405-MT |
| Apr 17, 2014 | Flood | DR-4172-MT |
| Jun 17, 2011 | Severe Storm | DR-1996-MT |
| Sep 13, 2005 | Hurricane | EM-3253-MT |
| Aug 30, 2000 | Fire | DR-1340-MT |
| Aug 16, 2000 | Fire | FM-2321-MT |
| Jul 25, 1997 | Severe Storm | DR-1183-MT |
| Feb 23, 1996 | Severe Storm | DR-1105-MT |
This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.
How this compares
Where Park County stands among 56 counties in Montana and 3,143 in the United States.
| Tornadoes since 1950 | 2 | 41 / 56 |
| Tornadoes rated F3/EF3 or stronger | 0 | — |
| Tropical cyclones within 50 mi | 0 | — |
| Hurricane-strength passes within 50 mi | 0 | — |
| Wildfire acres since 1984 | 288,863 | 13 / 56 |
| Flood insurance claims | 141 | 6 / 56 |
| Flood insurance paid | $3.3 million | 1 / 56 |
| Disaster declarations | 14 | 9 / 56 |
| Flood events since 1996 | 7 | 54 / 56 |
| Hail and wind events since 1996 | 360 | 29 / 56 |
| Winter storm events since 1996 | 328 | 11 / 56 |
| Reported damage since 1996 | $163,000 | 49 / 56 |
| River crests at major flood stage | 2 | 14 / 56 |
| High tide flooding days a year, last 10 years | 0.0 | — |
| Months in severe drought since 1895 | 169 | 23 / 56 |
| Medium or heavy smoke days a year, last 10 years | 25.7 | 54 / 56 |
| Earthquakes M4+ within 50 mi since 1900 | 104 | 4 / 56 |
| Earthquakes M2.5+ in the county since 1973 | 10 | 15 / 56 |
Neighbouring counties
| Carbon County | 3 | 0 |
| Gallatin County | 4 | 0 |
| Meagher County | 3 | 0 |
| Park County WY | 10 | 0 |
| Stillwater County | 1 | 0 |
| Sweet Grass County | 2 | 0 |
Sources and vintage
Every number on this page comes from these public records.
- Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
- Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
- Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
- Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
- Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
- Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00024150.
- River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
- Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
- Volcanoes USGS Volcano Hazards Program, U.S. volcanoes and 2018 threat assessment.
- Landslides USGS Landslide Inventories across the United States, version 3.0 (2025).
- Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.
Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.