Texas, 1999

Tornadoes and Hail in Texas, May 25 to 26, 1999

May 25 to 26, 1999 · NWS SJT · 24 events in 10 counties and zones

Scattered supercell thunderstorms produced very large hail, damaging winds, and a few tornadoes across the northern half of the area during the evening of the 25th. Although no damage was noted, brief tornado touchdowns were reported near Ballinger, Buffalo Gap, and Hamlin.

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
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$91,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
24

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 SJT wrote it up.

Scattered supercell thunderstorms produced very large hail, damaging winds, and a few tornadoes across the northern half of the area during the evening of the 25th. Although no damage was noted, brief tornado touchdowns were reported near Ballinger, Buffalo Gap, and Hamlin. Hail up to the size of baseballs also fell just south of Blackwell and near Oplin, while large hail and high winds damaged windows throughout the community of Sagerton. A line of storms that developed across West Texas moved across the northern Big Country during the early morning hours of the 26th. Damaging winds of up to 70 mph were reported across sections of Haskell and Throckmorton counties.

The radar

The San Angelo radar (KSJT), 72 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:52 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

17 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Coke

When
May 25, 4:54 PM CST
Where
Coke County, 6 mi S of Blackwell
Measured
2.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
32.000, -100.320

Baseball size hail reported south of Blackwell.

Hail, Fisher

When
May 25, 4:55 PM CST
Where
Fisher County, Sylvester
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.720, -100.250

Hail, Coke

When
May 25, 5:09 PM CST
Where
Coke County, 4 mi N of Bronte
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
31.930, -100.300

Hail, Taylor

When
May 25, 5:30 PM CST
Where
Taylor County, Buffalo Gap
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
32.280, -99.820

Thunderstorm Wind, Taylor

When
May 25, 5:32 PM CST
Where
Taylor County, Buffalo Gap
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
32.280, -99.820

Winds gusting to 60 mph reported in southern Taylor County.

Hail, Taylor

When
May 25, 5:38 PM CST
Where
Taylor County, Buffalo Gap
Measured
2 in hail
Reported by
BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates
32.280, -99.820

Hail up to the size of tennis balls falling in southern Taylor County.

Tornado, Taylor

When
May 25, 5:38 PM CST
Where
Taylor County, Buffalo Gap
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
32.280, -99.820

A tornado touched down briefly near Buffalo Gap in southern Taylor County.

Tornado, Runnels

When
May 25, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Runnels County, 2 mi W of Ballinger
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
31.750, -99.980

A brief tornado was reported just west of Ballinger.

Hail, Runnels

When
May 25, 6:04 PM CST
Where
Runnels County, Ballinger
Measured
0.88 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
31.750, -99.950

Hail, Haskell

When
May 25, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Haskell County, Rule
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.180, -99.900

Hail, Callahan

When
May 25, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Callahan County, Oplin
Measured
2.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.150, -99.570

Hail up to the size of baseballs reported in Oplin in southwest Callahan County.

Hail, Callahan

When
May 25, 6:20 PM CST
Where
Callahan County, Oplin
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.150, -99.570

Hail, Haskell

When
May 25, 6:24 PM CST
Where
Haskell County, Rule
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.180, -99.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Runnels

When
May 25, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Runnels County, Ballinger
Property damage
$1,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
31.750, -99.950

A carport in Ballinger was destroyed by high winds.

Hail, Runnels

When
May 25, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Runnels County, 2 mi N of Ballinger
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
31.780, -99.950

Hail up to the size of golf balls covered the ground to a depth of 6 inches just north of Ballinger.

Hail, Haskell

When
May 25, 6:25 PM CST
Where
Haskell County, 2 mi W of Rule
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.180, -99.930

Hail, Haskell

When
May 25, 6:53 PM CST
Where
Haskell County, Sagerton
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.080, -99.970

Large hail brought damage to the small community of Sagerton in northern Haskell County. Windows were broken across the town, while a church reported that 2 of its stained glass windows were also broken.

Hail, Coleman

When
May 25, 7:18 PM CST
Where
Coleman County, Echo
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
31.930, -99.330

Tornado, Jones

When
May 25, 7:40 PM CST
Where
Jones County, 1 mi W of Hamlin
Rating
F0
Path length
0.1 mi
Path width
10 yd
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.880, -100.150

A tornado briefly touched down just west of Hamlin in northwest Jones County.

Hail, McCulloch

When
May 25, 8:20 PM CST
Where
McCulloch County, Placid
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
31.320, -99.180

Hail, Fisher

When
May 25, 8:35 PM CST
Where
Fisher County, Rotan
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
32.850, -100.470

Thunderstorm Wind, Haskell

When
May 26, 1:16 AM CST
Where
Haskell County, Weinert
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.320, -99.680

Wind gusts to 70 mph reported in Weinert.

Hail, Haskell

When
May 26, 1:18 AM CST
Where
Haskell County, Weinert
Measured
1.25 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.320, -99.680

Thunderstorm Wind, Throckmorton

When
May 26, 2:25 AM CST
Where
Throckmorton County, Elbert
Property damage
$80,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
33.270, -99.000

Damaging winds destroyed 2 large grain elevator and downed trees in the small community of Elbert.

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
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 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 1999Warnings in Texas, May 1999

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: 5700724, 5700723, 5700725, 5700726, 5700727, 5700728, 5700729, 5700730, 5700731, 5700732, 5700733, 5700734, 5700735, 5700736, 5700737, 5700738, 5700739, 5700740, 5700802, 5700742, 5700741, 5700743, 5700744, 5700801.