BILLINGS (AP) - Heavy rain and hail fell Tuesday in parts of central and eastern Montana, and weather forecasters said some funnel clouds and a tornado were reported.
No major damage occurred.
The storms dropped 3/4-inch hail in spots from Billings to Broadus during the afternoon and evening, and the National Weather Service reported 2-inch diameter hail east of Ashland.
A funnel cloud was reported in Fergus County, and law officers said a tornado touched down briefly near Lewistown.
Jim Maczko, a meteorologist at the weather bureau in Billings, said weather systems from the southwest and east collided, creating an unstable air mass.
Evening wind gusts topped 60 mph in Jordan and north of Miles City. A 70 mph gust was reported north of Forsyth.
A wind gust blew the Billings' NWS webcam around 90 degrees, Maczko said, and the city had about five minutes of sustained 50 mph winds around 5 p.m.
A downpour flooded some intersections in Billings.
Miles City reported about half-inch of rain about 8:30 p.m. Although it was still raining there, Maczko said, ''the heaviest stuff'' had moved through.
There was secondary storm development in Big Horn County, Maczko said, with golfball- and half-dollar-sized hail reported, generally north of Lodge Grass and south of Garryowen.
In an area 22 miles northwest of Winnett, 3.33 inches of precipitation fell in about an hour, the weather service said, and pea-sized hail accumulated to a depth of 4 to 6 inches.
Many areas got a half-inch or more of rain. Baker got almost an inch.
