Texas, 1996

Tornado in Texas, September 15, 1996

September 15, 1996 · NWS EWX · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Tornado formed 6 miles south of Utopia and moved northward to 2 miles south of Utopia before dissipating. It knocked over numerous trees of 15 to 20 foot diameter, damaging vehicles, trailers and barns along the way.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
1
Property damage
$20,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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.

Tornado formed 6 miles south of Utopia and moved northward to 2 miles south of Utopia before dissipating. It knocked over numerous trees of 15 to 20 foot diameter, damaging vehicles, trailers and barns along the way. The tornado moved cabins and took the roofs off two of the cabins at a Girl Scout Camp. It moved the cabins off their foundations, but caused no injuries as the Scouts had gathered in a larger, more substantial building. The tornado moved across a second campground, destroying the site and causing one injury as it knocked a tree over on one of the campers.

The radar

The Laughlin AFB radar (KDFX), 78 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 07:45 UTC.

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Event by event

1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Uvalde

When
September 15, 1:45 AM CST to 1:57 AM CST
Where
Uvalde County, Utopia to 6 mi S of Utopia
Rating
F2
Path length
4 mi
Path width
700 yd
Injuries
1 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$20,000
Coordinates
29.530, -99.530

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Texas in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1996Warnings in Texas, September 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: 5564380.