Texas, 1970

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, July 4, 1970

July 4, 1970 · 5 events in 4 counties and zones

3 tornado, 1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind, 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
1
Injuries
5
Property damage
$28,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
5

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

3 tornado, 1 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Orange

When
July 4, 4:45 PM CST
Where
Orange County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
30 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
30.100, -93.750

Hail, Jefferson

When
July 4, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Jefferson County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
29.880, -93.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Harris

When
July 4, 5:30 PM CST
Where
Harris County
Coordinates
29.680, -95.000

Tornado, Travis

When
July 4, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Travis County
Rating
F2
Path length
1.5 mi
Path width
47 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
4 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates
30.430, -97.920

Tornado, Harris

When
July 4, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Harris County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
29.780, -95.020

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Travis1970-07-04Direct

What these are

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.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Texas in 1970Every state in 1970This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1970

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: 10132713, 10132714, 10132715, 10132716, 10132717.