Texas, 1997

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, June 16, 1997

June 16, 1997 · NWS LUB · 16 events in 7 counties and zones

Severe thunderstorms developed during the afternoon of the 16th and continued into the evening. The Hockley County Sheriff''s Office relayed an oil field worker report of a tornado 2 miles east of the intersection of Highway 214 and FM road 1585.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$45,000
Crop damage
$35,000
Events
16

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 LUB wrote it up.

Severe thunderstorms developed during the afternoon of the 16th and continued into the evening. The Hockley County Sheriff''s Office relayed an oil field worker report of a tornado 2 miles east of the intersection of Highway 214 and FM road 1585. Other brief, weak tornadoes were spotted by the King County Sheriff's office 4 miles south of Guthrie, by the Dickens County Sheriff's Office in southwest portions of King County, and by the Kent County Sheriff's Office in northeast Kent County, north-northeast of the town of Jayton. A hail storm during the afternoon in Parmer County caused crop damage to corn, wheat, and milo. Strong winds in the town of Dickens produced some tree damage while strong winds in the city of Childress caused sign damage and knocked over trees and antennas. The roof of the Dickens Electric Cooperative warehouse was destroyed and a tree landed on the hood of a car in the town of Spur. Many trees were blown over in the south part of the town of Dickens.

The radar

The Cannon AFB radar (KFDX), 66 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:49 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 hail, 5 thunderstorm wind, 4 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Parmer

When
June 16, 1:50 PM CST
Where
Parmer County, 9 mi N of Bovina
Measured
1 in hail
Crop damage
$25,000
Coordinates
34.650, -102.900

Hail, Parmer

When
June 16, 2:48 PM CST
Where
Parmer County, 5 mi N of Hub
Measured
0.88 in hail
Crop damage
$10,000
Coordinates
34.600, -102.750

Tornado, Cochran

When
June 16, 3:48 PM CST
Where
Cochran County, 7 mi SW of Whiteface
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
33.530, -102.700

Hail, Crosby

When
June 16, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Crosby County, 3 mi NE of Kalgary
Measured
1.25 in hail
Coordinates
33.430, -101.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Childress

When
June 16, 6:21 PM CST
Where
Childress County, Childress Muni Arpt
Measured
55 kt (63 mph)
Property damage
$20,000
Coordinates
34.430, -100.300

Hail, Childress

When
June 16, 6:21 PM CST
Where
Childress County, Childress
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
34.420, -100.200

Hail, Dickens

When
June 16, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Dickens County, Spur
Measured
1 in hail
Coordinates
33.480, -100.850

Thunderstorm Wind, Dickens

When
June 16, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Dickens County, Dickens
Property damage
$10,000
Coordinates
33.620, -100.830

Thunderstorm Wind, Dickens

When
June 16, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Dickens County, Spur
Property damage
$15,000
Coordinates
33.480, -100.850

Hail, Kent

When
June 16, 6:33 PM CST
Where
Kent County, 10 mi W of Girard
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.350, -100.830

Thunderstorm Wind, Childress

When
June 16, 6:41 PM CST
Where
Childress County, Childress
Measured
53 kt (61 mph)
Coordinates
34.420, -100.200

Thunderstorm Wind, Kent

When
June 16, 6:45 PM CST
Where
Kent County, Girard
Measured
57 kt (66 mph)
Coordinates
33.350, -100.670

Hail, Kent

When
June 16, 6:50 PM CST
Where
Kent County, Girard
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
33.350, -100.670

Tornado, King

When
June 16, 6:50 PM CST
Where
King County, 15 mi SW of Guthrie
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
33.470, -100.520

Tornado, Kent

When
June 16, 6:52 PM CST
Where
Kent County, 6 mi NNE of Jayton
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
33.330, -100.550

Tornado, King

When
June 16, 7:15 PM CST
Where
King County, 4 mi S of Guthrie
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Coordinates
33.570, -100.330

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 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1997Warnings in Texas, June 1997

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: 5606874, 5606875, 5606887, 5606876, 5606885, 5606886, 5606877, 5606888, 5606889, 5606879, 5606880, 5606882, 5606878, 5606883, 5606881, 5606884.