Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, January 20, 1973

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, January 20, 1973
Start: 1973-01-20T14:10
End: 1973-01-20T23:40
Location: Texas

January 20, 1973 · 17 events in 14 counties and zones

11 tornado, 3 hail, 3 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 1
Property damage: $585,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 17

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

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

Tornado, Shelby

When: January 20, 2:10 PM CST
Where: Shelby County
Rating: F1
Path length: 14.5 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 31.880, -94.380

Tornado, Shelby

When: January 20, 2:15 PM CST
Where: Shelby County
Rating: F1
Path length: 17.3 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 31.880, -94.380

Tornado, Smith

When: January 20, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Smith County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.3 mi
Path width: 200 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 32.570, -95.430

Tornado, Smith

When: January 20, 3:15 PM CST
Where: Smith County
Rating: F2
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 100 yd
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 32.150, -95.280

Tornado, McCulloch

When: January 20, 6:00 PM CST
Where: McCulloch County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 20 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 31.120, -99.430

Tornado, San Saba

When: January 20, 6:15 PM CST
Where: San Saba County
Rating: F1
Path length: 4.3 mi
Path width: 440 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 31.200, -98.780

Tornado, Gillespie

When: January 20, 7:00 PM CST
Where: Gillespie County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 30.250, -98.830

Hail, Bexar

When: January 20, 7:11 PM CST
Where: Bexar County
Measured: 1 in hail
Coordinates: 29.380, -98.570

Tornado, Guadalupe

When: January 20, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Guadalupe County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Coordinates: 29.600, -97.970

Tornado, Camp

When: January 20, 7:30 PM CST
Where: Camp County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.3 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $250
Coordinates: 32.950, -95.050

Hail, Titus

When: January 20, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Titus County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 33.170, -95.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Travis

When: January 20, 8:15 PM CST
Where: Travis County
Coordinates: 30.300, -97.600

Thunderstorm Wind, Bastrop

When: January 20, 8:20 PM CST
Where: Bastrop County
Coordinates: 30.350, -97.370

Tornado, Milam

When: January 20, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Milam County
Rating: F1
Path length: 0.3 mi
Path width: 10 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 30.570, -97.070

Tornado, Travis

When: January 20, 9:00 PM CST
Where: Travis County
Rating: F2
Path length: 0.1 mi
Path width: 40 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 30.350, -97.920

Thunderstorm Wind, Montgomery

When: January 20, 11:30 PM CST
Where: Montgomery County
Coordinates: 30.500, -95.700

Hail, Gregg

When: January 20, 11:40 PM CST
Where: Gregg County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 32.480, -94.720

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

Tornado in Louisiana, January 20, 1973$25,000 · F2 · 1 event

Every storm in Texas in 1973 Every state in 1973 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Texas, 1973

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: 10136129, 10136130, 10136131, 10136132, 10136133, 10136134, 10136135, 10136353, 10136354, 10136355, 10136356, 10136357, 10136358, 10136359, 10136360, 10136361, 10136362.