Texas, 1979

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, May 3, 1979

May 3, 1979 · 51 events in 29 counties and zones

23 hail, 17 tornado, 11 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
5
Property damage
$28 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
51

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

23 hail, 17 tornado, 11 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Randall

When
May 3, 12:30 AM CST
Where
Randall County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.980, -101.920

Hail, Potter

When
May 3, 1:30 AM CST
Where
Potter County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
35.250, -102.050

Hail, Gray

When
May 3, 1:40 AM CST
Where
Gray County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
35.530, -100.970

Hail, Hood

When
May 3, 7:55 AM CST
Where
Hood County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.450, -97.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Hood

When
May 3, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Hood County
Measured
55 kt (63 mph)
Coordinates
32.420, -97.800

Hail, Irion

When
May 3, 8:44 AM CST
Where
Irion County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
31.270, -100.820

Thunderstorm Wind, Irion

When
May 3, 8:44 AM CST
Where
Irion County
Coordinates
31.270, -100.820

Hail, Mills

When
May 3, 9:00 AM CST
Where
Mills County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
31.450, -98.600

Tornado, Tarrant

When
May 3, 9:28 AM CST
Where
Tarrant County
Rating
F0
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
32.670, -97.470

Hail, Tarrant

When
May 3, 9:30 AM CST
Where
Tarrant County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
32.650, -97.500

Tornado, Johnson

When
May 3, 10:00 AM CST
Where
Johnson County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
32.470, -97.220

Tornado, Parker

When
May 3, 10:01 AM CST
Where
Parker County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
32.780, -97.680

Hail, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:06 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.730, -96.970

Hail, Jones

When
May 3, 10:10 AM CST
Where
Jones County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.800, -99.630

Hail, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:11 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.770, -96.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:24 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
62 kt (71 mph)
Coordinates
32.850, -96.850

Tornado, Tarrant

When
May 3, 10:30 AM CST
Where
Tarrant County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
50 yd
Coordinates
32.580, -97.120

Tornado, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:30 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
100 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.730, -96.820

Hail, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:33 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.920, -96.630

Hail, Collin

When
May 3, 10:42 AM CST
Where
Collin County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
33.020, -96.720

Tornado, Dallas

When
May 3, 10:48 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
100 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
32.830, -96.870

Hail, Collin

When
May 3, 10:55 AM CST
Where
Collin County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
33.070, -96.370

Hail, Rockwall

When
May 3, 11:00 AM CST
Where
Rockwall County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.930, -96.450

Tornado, Hunt

When
May 3, 11:38 AM CST
Where
Hunt County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
32.900, -96.130

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When
May 3, 11:54 AM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
64 kt (74 mph)
Coordinates
32.850, -96.850

Hail, Franklin

When
May 3, 12:40 PM CST
Where
Franklin County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.350, -95.230

Tornado, Lamar

When
May 3, 12:58 PM CST
Where
Lamar County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
33.600, -95.380

Tornado, Dallas

When
May 3, 1:05 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Rating
F2
Path length
7.6 mi
Path width
200 yd
Injuries
5 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25 million
Coordinates
32.550, -96.880

Tornado, Red River

When
May 3, 1:08 PM CST
Where
Red River County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
33.380, -94.850

Hail, Red River

When
May 3, 1:15 PM CST
Where
Red River County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.620, -94.950

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When
May 3, 1:20 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Coordinates
32.850, -96.850

Tornado, Dallas

When
May 3, 1:25 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Rating
F0
Path length
0.5 mi
Path width
50 yd
Property damage
$250
Coordinates
32.530, -96.880

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When
May 3, 1:45 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Coordinates
32.630, -96.780

Hail, Dallas

When
May 3, 2:20 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.650, -96.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Ellis

When
May 3, 2:45 PM CST
Where
Ellis County
Coordinates
32.520, -96.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Kaufman

When
May 3, 3:00 PM CST
Where
Kaufman County
Coordinates
32.720, -96.470

Thunderstorm Wind, Van Zandt

When
May 3, 4:20 PM CST
Where
Van Zandt County
Coordinates
32.550, -95.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When
May 3, 4:22 PM CST
Where
Dallas County
Coordinates
32.630, -96.530

Hail, Red River

When
May 3, 4:30 PM CST
Where
Red River County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.620, -95.050

Tornado, Wood

When
May 3, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Wood County
Rating
F3
Path length
7.2 mi
Path width
400 yd
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
32.780, -95.520

Tornado, Camp

When
May 3, 5:20 PM CST
Where
Camp County
Rating
F2
Path length
10.8 mi
Path width
200 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
32.900, -95.030

Hail, Camp

When
May 3, 5:37 PM CST
Where
Camp County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
33.000, -94.970

Tornado, Cass

When
May 3, 5:55 PM CST
Where
Cass County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
33.180, -94.120

Tornado, Smith

When
May 3, 6:30 PM CST
Where
Smith County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
32.400, -95.250

Tornado, Bowie

When
May 3, 6:30 PM CST
Where
Bowie County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
33.330, -94.350

Tornado, Upshur

When
May 3, 6:30 PM CST
Where
Upshur County
Rating
F1
Path width
33 yd
Coordinates
32.580, -94.830

Hail, Upshur

When
May 3, 7:39 PM CST
Where
Upshur County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
32.730, -94.770

Hail, Karnes

When
May 3, 9:30 PM CST
Where
Karnes County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
28.770, -97.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Wilson

When
May 3, 9:40 PM CST
Where
Wilson County
Coordinates
29.180, -98.070

Hail, Karnes

When
May 3, 10:10 PM CST
Where
Karnes County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
28.820, -97.850

Hail, Duval

When
May 3, 10:40 PM CST
Where
Duval County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
27.880, -98.620

What these are

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.
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 1979Every state in 1979This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1979

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: 10128559, 10128560, 10128561, 10128562, 10128563, 10128564, 10128565, 10128566, 10128567, 10128568, 10128569, 10128570, 10128571, 10128572, 10128573, 10128574, 10128575, 10128576, 10128577, 10128578, 10128579, 10128580, 10128581, 10128582, 10128583, 10128584, 10128585, 10128586, 10128587, 10128588, 10129432, 10129433, 10129434, 10129435, 10129436, 10129437, 10129438, 10129653, 10129654, 10129655, and more.