Drought in Texas, May 1 to 31, 1996

Name: Drought in Texas, May 1 to 31, 1996
Start: 1996-05-01T00:01
End: 1996-05-31T23:59
Location: Texas

May 1 to 31, 1996 · NWS EWX · 33 events in 33 counties and zones

Drought persisted through May across South Central Texas. 4 billion loss to agriculture across all of Texas through the past 6 months.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 33 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: 0
Property damage: $20 million
Crop damage: $40 million
Events: 33

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS EWX wrote it up.

Drought persisted through May across South Central Texas. Monthly damages are based on an estimated $2.4 billion loss to agriculture across all of Texas through the past 6 months. Property damages do not include business or commercial revenue losses.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

33 drought. Local standard time, as filed.

Drought, Llano

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Llano forecast zone
Property damage: $20 million
Crop damage: $40 million
Coordinates: 30.706, -98.684 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Burnet

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Burnet forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.788, -98.182 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Williamson

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Williamson forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.648, -97.601 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Val Verde

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Val Verde forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.893, -101.152 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Edwards

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Edwards forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.983, -100.305 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Real

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Real forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.832, -99.822 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Kerr

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Kerr forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.062, -99.350 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Bandera

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Bandera forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.747, -99.246 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Gillespie

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Gillespie forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.318, -98.946 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Kendall

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Kendall forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.945, -98.712 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Blanco

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Blanco forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.266, -98.400 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Hays

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Hays forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.058, -98.031 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Travis

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Travis forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.335, -97.782 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Bastrop

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Bastrop forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.104, -97.312 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Lee

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lee forecast zone
Coordinates: 30.311, -96.966 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Kinney

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Kinney forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.350, -100.418 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Uvalde

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Uvalde forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.357, -99.762 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Medina

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Medina forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.356, -99.110 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Bexar

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Bexar forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.449, -98.520 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Comal

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Comal forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.808, -98.278 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Guadalupe

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Guadalupe forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.583, -97.949 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Caldwell

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Caldwell forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.837, -97.620 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Fayette

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Fayette forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.877, -96.920 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Maverick

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Maverick forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.743, -100.314 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Zavala

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Zavala forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.866, -99.761 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Frio

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Frio forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.868, -99.108 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Atascosa

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Atascosa forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.894, -98.527 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Wilson

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Wilson forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.174, -98.087 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Karnes

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Karnes forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.906, -97.859 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Gonzales

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Gonzales forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.457, -97.492 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, De Witt

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: De Witt forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.082, -97.357 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Lavaca

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Lavaca forecast zone
Coordinates: 29.384, -96.930 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Drought, Dimmit

When: May 1, 12:01 AM CST to May 31, 11:59 PM CST
Where: Dimmit forecast zone
Coordinates: 28.423, -99.757 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Drought: A drought reaching severe (D2) or worse on the US Drought Monitor, or with notable impacts.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Texas in 1996 Every state in 1996 This day in weather history Warnings in Texas, May 1996

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: 5552999, 5553000, 5553001, 5553002, 5553003, 5553004, 5553005, 5553006, 5553007, 5553008, 5553009, 5553010, 5553011, 5553012, 5553013, 5553014, 5553015, 5553016, 5553017, 5553018, 5553019, 5553020, 5553021, 5553022, 5553023, 5553024, 5553025, 5553026, 5553027, 5553028, 5553029, 5553030, 5553031.