Texas, 1961

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, May 16, 1961

May 16, 1961 · 11 events in 8 counties and zones

6 hail, 5 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$253,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
11

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

6 hail, 5 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Carson

When
May 16, 3:30 PM CST
Where
Carson County
Measured
3 in hail
Coordinates
35.280, -101.400

Tornado, Carson

When
May 16, 4:45 PM CST
Where
Carson County
Rating
F2
Path length
0.5 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
35.320, -101.330

Tornado, Pecos

When
May 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Pecos County
Rating
F2
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
30.900, -102.880

Hail, Pecos

When
May 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Pecos County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
31.000, -103.000

Tornado, Reeves

When
May 16, 5:15 PM CST
Where
Reeves County
Rating
F0
Path length
1 mi
Path width
280 yd
Coordinates
31.320, -108.750

Hail, Gray

When
May 16, 5:30 PM CST
Where
Gray County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
35.380, -100.780

Tornado, Gray

When
May 16, 5:40 PM CST
Where
Gray County
Rating
F0
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
35.380, -100.770

Hail, Wheeler

When
May 16, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Wheeler County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
35.200, -100.280

Hail, Cottle

When
May 16, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Cottle County
Measured
2 in hail
Coordinates
34.280, -100.180

Tornado, Wilbarger

When
May 16, 7:00 PM CST
Where
Wilbarger County
Rating
F0
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
50 yd
Coordinates
34.220, -99.270

Hail, Hardeman

When
May 16, 7:30 PM CST
Where
Hardeman County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.280, -99.780

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Texas in 1961Every state in 1961This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1961

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10122341, 10122342, 10122343, 10122344, 10122345, 10122346, 10122347, 10122348, 10122349, 10122350, 10122351.