Texas, 1997

Tornado and Flash Flooding in Texas, November 5, 1997

November 5, 1997 · NWS HGX · 18 events in 4 counties and zones

9 hail, 5 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood, 1 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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
$161,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
18

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.

The radar

The Houston radar (KHGX), 32 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 09:16 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

9 hail, 5 thunderstorm wind, 3 flash flood, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Galveston

When
November 5, 3:15 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Galveston
Property damage
$15,000
Coordinates
29.300, -94.820

Powerlines down and an 18 -wheeler overturned at Harborside Dr. & Ave A.

Hail, Galveston

When
November 5, 3:35 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Texas City
Measured
0.88 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
29.400, -94.900

Hail, Brazoria

When
November 5, 3:55 AM CST
Where
Brazoria County, 2 mi SW of Brazoria
Measured
0.75 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
29.030, -95.600

3/4" hail at HWY 36 & CR 310.

Thunderstorm Wind, Galveston

When
November 5, 4:15 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Galveston
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
29.300, -94.820

Hotel roof on 61st St. blown off.

Thunderstorm Wind, Galveston

When
November 5, 4:15 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Galveston
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
29.300, -94.820

Garden shed at nursery on 32nd St. destroyed

Thunderstorm Wind, Galveston

When
November 5, 4:15 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Galveston
Property damage
$1,000
Coordinates
29.300, -94.820

Windows blown out at the Moody Center on the Seawall.

Thunderstorm Wind, Galveston

When
November 5, 4:15 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, Galveston
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
29.300, -94.820

Powerlines blown down in eastern Galveston.

Flash Flood, Galveston

When
November 5, 5:00 AM CST to 8:00 AM CST
Where
Galveston County, East Portion
Property damage
$20,000
Coordinates
29.298, -94.811 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy rain combined with high tides caused severe street flooding in the eastern half of Glaveston Island.

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 5:24 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 5:35 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
1 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Tornado, Brazoria

When
November 5, 6:00 AM CST to 6:02 AM CST
Where
Brazoria County, Oyster Creek
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
25 yd
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
29.000, -95.320

Tornado destroyed boat shed.

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 6:13 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
0.75 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 6:45 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
1 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 8:00 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
0.75 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Flash Flood, Houston

When
November 5, 8:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Central Portion
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
31.318, -95.423 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Crockett flooded. FM 2115 bridge washed out. Houston County Lake Road between FM 229 & HWY 287 washed out.

Hail, Houston

When
November 5, 8:10 AM CST
Where
Houston County, Crockett
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Coordinates
31.320, -95.450

Flash Flood, Trinity

When
November 5, 8:31 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where
Trinity County, Groveton
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.089, -95.135 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Street flooding.

Hail, Trinity

When
November 5, 8:47 AM CST
Where
Trinity County, 5 mi N of Groveton
Measured
0.88 in hail
Property damage
$5,000
Coordinates
31.130, -95.150

What these are

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.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Flash Flood
Flooding that begins within six hours of the rain that causes it, or of a dam or levee failure or ice jam release, often with deadly speed.
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 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1997Warnings in Texas, November 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: 5620758, 5620759, 5620760, 5620761, 5620762, 5620763, 5620764, 5620765, 5620766, 5620767, 5620768, 5620769, 5620770, 5620771, 5620772, 5620773, 5620774, 5620775.