Texas, 1989

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, May 17, 1989

May 17, 1989 · NWS LBB · 46 events in 32 counties and zones

17 tornado, 15 hail, 14 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
1
Injuries
42
Property damage
$10 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
46

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

17 tornado, 15 hail, 14 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Terry

When
May 17, 12:05 AM CST
Where
Terry County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.030, -102.230

Tornado, Lynn

When
May 17, 12:35 AM CST
Where
Lynn County
Rating
F0
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
40 yd
Coordinates
33.180, -101.980

Thunderstorm Wind, Kinney

When
May 17, 12:37 AM CST
Where
Kinney County
Coordinates
29.320, -100.420

Hail, Kinney

When
May 17, 2:10 AM CST
Where
Kinney County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
29.320, -100.420

Tornado, Williamson

When
May 17, 3:02 AM CST
Where
Williamson County
Rating
F3
Path length
3 mi
Path width
1,700 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
28 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
30.770, -97.620

Tornado, Gillespie

When
May 17, 3:30 AM CST
Where
Gillespie County
Rating
F2
Path length
2 mi
Path width
100 yd
Coordinates
30.350, -98.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Gillespie

When
May 17, 4:30 AM CST
Where
Gillespie County
Coordinates
30.430, -98.870

Hail, Kinney

When
May 17, 4:34 AM CST
Where
Kinney County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
29.320, -100.420

Thunderstorm Wind, Travis

When
May 17, 7:00 AM CST
Where
Travis County
Coordinates
30.280, -97.750

Tornado, Coryell

When
May 17, 7:10 AM CST
Where
Coryell County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
31.100, -97.820

Tornado, Anderson

When
May 17, 7:30 AM CST
Where
Anderson County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
32.000, -95.500

Hail, Anderson

When
May 17, 7:30 AM CST
Where
Anderson County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
31.880, -95.700

Tornado, Coryell

When
May 17, 7:37 AM CST
Where
Coryell County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
31.070, -97.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Williamson

When
May 17, 7:45 AM CST
Where
Williamson County
Coordinates
30.450, -97.770

Thunderstorm Wind, Williamson

When
May 17, 8:15 AM CST
Where
Williamson County
Coordinates
30.500, -97.680

Tornado, Smith

When
May 17, 8:25 AM CST
Where
Smith County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
32.130, -95.420

Tornado, Henderson

When
May 17, 9:05 AM CST
Where
Henderson County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
32.130, -96.020

Tornado, Smith

When
May 17, 9:23 AM CST
Where
Smith County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
32.500, -95.170

Thunderstorm Wind, Falls

When
May 17, 9:40 AM CST
Where
Falls County
Coordinates
31.300, -96.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Upshur

When
May 17, 10:00 AM CST
Where
Upshur County
Coordinates
32.730, -94.930

Hail, Bailey

When
May 17, 10:35 AM CST
Where
Bailey County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.030, -102.950

Hail, Parmer

When
May 17, 11:50 AM CST
Where
Parmer County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.330, -102.920

Thunderstorm Wind, Lee

When
May 17, 12:30 PM CST
Where
Lee County
Coordinates
30.420, -97.000

Hail, Parmer

When
May 17, 1:25 PM CST
Where
Parmer County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.520, -102.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Cass

When
May 17, 2:30 PM CST
Where
Cass County
Coordinates
33.150, -94.120

Hail, Dickens

When
May 17, 2:52 PM CST
Where
Dickens County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
33.620, -100.720

Hail, Randall

When
May 17, 3:03 PM CST
Where
Randall County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.970, -101.950

Hail, Swisher

When
May 17, 3:24 PM CST
Where
Swisher County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.730, -101.820

Tornado, Motley

When
May 17, 3:32 PM CST
Where
Motley County
Rating
F1
Path length
6 mi
Path width
100 yd
Coordinates
34.080, -100.780

Tornado, Smith

When
May 17, 3:55 PM CST
Where
Smith County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.5 mi
Path width
50 yd
Coordinates
32.220, -95.100

Tornado, Trinity

When
May 17, 4:00 PM CST
Where
Trinity County
Rating
F2
Path length
6 mi
Path width
400 yd
Injuries
3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
31.200, -94.970

Tornado, Nacogdoches

When
May 17, 4:10 PM CST
Where
Nacogdoches County
Rating
F2
Path length
12 mi
Path width
400 yd
Injuries
3 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
31.280, -94.920

Tornado, Childress

When
May 17, 4:13 PM CST
Where
Childress County
Rating
F1
Path length
6 mi
Path width
200 yd
Coordinates
34.330, -100.300

Tornado, Nacogdoches

When
May 17, 4:20 PM CST
Where
Nacogdoches County
Rating
F2
Path length
13 mi
Path width
400 yd
Injuries
8 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$2.5 million
Coordinates
31.480, -94.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Smith

When
May 17, 4:25 PM CST
Where
Smith County
Coordinates
32.150, -95.120

Tornado, Nacogdoches

When
May 17, 4:40 PM CST
Where
Nacogdoches County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
31.820, -94.500

Hail, Nueces

When
May 17, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Nueces County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
27.580, -97.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Shelby

When
May 17, 5:00 PM CST
Where
Shelby County
Coordinates
31.780, -94.180

Hail, Colorado

When
May 17, 5:23 PM CST
Where
Colorado County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
29.700, -96.780

Tornado, Polk

When
May 17, 5:28 PM CST
Where
Polk County
Rating
F2
Path length
3 mi
Path width
150 yd
Coordinates
30.800, -94.880

Hail, Kleberg

When
May 17, 5:45 PM CST
Where
Kleberg County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
27.430, -97.870

Thunderstorm Wind, Waller

When
May 17, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Waller County
Coordinates
30.080, -96.000

Thunderstorm Wind, Harris

When
May 17, 7:30 PM CST
Where
Harris County
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Coordinates
29.720, -95.600

Hail, Harris

When
May 17, 8:00 PM CST
Where
Harris County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
29.730, -95.370

Thunderstorm Wind, Jasper

When
May 17, 8:30 PM CST
Where
Jasper County
Coordinates
30.920, -94.000

Hail, Liberty

When
May 17, 9:10 PM CST
Where
Liberty County
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
30.050, -94.880

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, Williamson1989-05-17Direct

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.
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 1989Every state in 1989This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1989Warnings in Texas, May 1989

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: 10138677, 10139526, 10139527, 10139528, 10139529, 10139530, 10139531, 10139532, 10139533, 10139534, 10139535, 10139536, 10139537, 10139751, 10139752, 10139753, 10139754, 10139755, 10139756, 10139757, 10139758, 10139759, 10139760, 10139761, 10139762, 10139763, 10139764, 10139765, 10139766, 10139767, 10139768, 10139769, 10139770, 10139771, 10139772, 10139773, 10139774, 10139775, 10139776, 10139777, and more.