628
NOUS41 KWBC 191440
PNSWSH
SERVICE CHANGE NOTICE 25-95
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HEADQUARTERS SILVER SPRING MD
940 EST FRI DEC 19 2025
TO: SUBSCRIBERS:
-NOAA WEATHER WIRE SERVICE
-EMERGENCY MANAGERS WEATHER INFORMATION NETWORK
-NOAAPORT
OTHER NWS PARTNERS, USERS AND EMPLOYEES
FROM: MARY MULLUSKY, CHIEF
OPERATIONS SERVICES DIVISION
SUBJECT: CHANGES TO PUBLIC FORECAST ZONES FOR WFO BISMARCK, ND,
EFFECTIVE MARCH 3, 2026
EFFECTIVE ON TUE, MARCH 3, 2026, AT 3:00 PM CENTRAL STANDARD
TIME (CST), 2100 COORDINATED UNIVERSAL TIME (UTC), THE NWS
WEATHER FORECAST OFFICE IN BISMARCK, ND (WFO BIS) WILL CHANGE
PUBLIC FORECAST ZONES ENCOMPASSING MCLEAN, MORTON, SIOUX, AND
WARD COUNTIES IN CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA. THE MCLEAN, MORTON,
SIOUX, AND WARD FORECAST ZONES WILL EACH BE SPLIT INTO TWO
ZONES.AFTER THIS CHANGE, ALL FORECASTS AND RELATED PRODUCTS
WILL USE THE ZONE NUMBERS AND NAMES SHOWN IN TABLE 2 BELOW.
IF MARCH 3, 2026 IS DECLARED A CRITICAL WEATHER DAY, THIS
IMPLEMENTATION WILL BE POSTPONED TO MARCH 4, 2026 AT 2100 UTC
THESE CHANGES WILL RESULT IN MORE GEOGRAPHICALLY PRECISE
FORECAST, WATCH AND WARNING PRODUCTS FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND
WILL ENHANCE WEB-BASED GRAPHICAL PRODUCT CONSISTENCY AND
APPEARANCE.
FOUR CURRENT ZONES WILL BE CONVERTED INTO EIGHT SEPARATE ZONES.
THESE NEW ZONES ARE BEING DIVIDED TO OPTIMIZE ISSUANCE OF HAZARD
PRODUCTS FOR CONDITIONS THAT VARY SIGNIFICANTLY IN CENTRAL NORTH
DAKOTA, ESPECIALLY DURING WINTER WEATHER AND HIGH WIND EVENTS.
THE NEW ZONES ARE LISTED IN TABLE 2.
TABLE 1. UNIVERSAL GEOGRAPHIC CODES (UGC): CURRENT
PUBLIC FORECAST ZONE NAME
----------------------------------
NDZ011: WARD
NDZ021: MCLEAN
NDZ034: MORTON
NDZ045: SIOUX
TABLE 2. UGC: NEW PUBLIC FORECAST ZONE NAME
-------------------------------
NDZ055: NORTHWEST WARD
NDZ056: CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN WARD/MINOT AREA
NDZ057: WESTERN MCLEAN
NDZ058: EASTERN MCLEAN
NDZ059: WESTERN MORTON
NDZ060: EASTERN MORTON
NDZ061: WESTERN SIOUX
NDZ062: EASTERN SIOUX
TABLE 3. NWS PRODUCTS AFFECTED BY THE WFO BISMARCK, ND, BY THESE
PUBLIC FORECAST ZONE CHANGES ARE LISTED BELOW.
PRODUCT NAME WMO HEADING AWIPS ID
------------- ----------- --------
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FXUS63 KBIS AFDBIS
FLOOD WATCH WGUS63 KBIS FFABIS
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FLUS43 KBIS HWOBIS
NON-PRECIPITATION WEATHER MESSAGE WWUS73 KBIS NPWBIS
POINT FORECAST MATRICES FOUS53 KBIS PFMBIS
PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT NOUS43 KBIS PNSBIS
RECREATIONAL FORECAST SXUS43 KBIS RECBIS
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT WWUS83 KBIS SPSBIS
STATE FORECAST PRODUCT FPUS63 KBIS SFPND
WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE WWUS43 KBIS WSWBIS
ZONE FORECAST FPUS53 KBIS ZFPBIS
NWS PARTNERS AND USERS WILL NEED TO MAKE NECESSARY CHANGES TO
THEIR COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS TO ACCOMMODATE THESE WEATHER
FORECAST ZONE CHANGES.
PRELIMINARY SHAPEFILES FOR PUBLIC FORECAST ZONES ARE AVAILABLE
ONLINE AT:
HTTPS://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/GIS/PUBLICZONES
FINAL VERSIONS OF THESE SHAPEFILES WILL BE AVAILABLE ON FEBRUARY
13, 2026.
A GRAPHICAL DEPICTION OF THIS CHANGE IS ONLINE AT:
HTTPS://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/BIS/ZONECHANGE2026
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
JEFFREY SAVADEL
METEOROLOGIST IN CHARGE
NWS BISMARCK, ND
JEFFREY.SAVADEL@NOAA.GOV
701-250-4224
NATIONAL SERVICE CHANGE NOTICES ARE ONLINE AT:
HTTPS://WWW.WEATHER.GOV/NOTIFICATION/
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