Texas, 2000

Tornado and Flash Flooding in Texas, May 19 to 20, 2000

May 19 to 20, 2000 · NWS HGX · 13 events in 5 counties and zones

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

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 5 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
$11 million
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
13

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), 52 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:38 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 thunderstorm wind, 5 flash flood, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Flash Flood, Harris

When
May 19, 5:20 PM CST to 7:15 PM CST
Where
Harris County, North Portion
Property damage
$200,000
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
29.857, -95.392 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Major flooding on Greens, Airtex, Rankin, and Aldine-Westfield Roads with 4 homes damaged. One foot of water in approach control tower at Intercontinental Airport.

Thunderstorm Wind, Harris

When
May 19, 6:40 PM CST
Where
Harris County, Kingwood
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
29.900, -95.317

Trees down.

Thunderstorm Wind, Harris

When
May 19, 6:55 PM CST
Where
Harris County, Crosby
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
29.900, -95.067

Trees down in Crosby and Huffman.

Thunderstorm Wind, Liberty

When
May 19, 7:50 PM CST
Where
Liberty County, 4 mi SW of Dayton
Property damage
$15,000
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
30.017, -94.933

Trees down.

Tornado, Liberty

When
May 19, 7:55 PM CST to 7:56 PM CST
Where
Liberty County, 6 mi S of Dayton
Rating
F0
Path length
1 mi
Path width
50 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
29.967, -94.883

Trees down.

Thunderstorm Wind, Liberty

When
May 19, 8:00 PM CST
Where
Liberty County, Liberty
Property damage
$15,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
30.067, -94.800

Trees down.

Flash Flood, Liberty

When
May 19, 8:00 PM CST to May 20, 7:00 AM CST
Where
Liberty County, West Portion
Property damage
$10 million
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
30.152, -94.812 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Major flash flood in the Liberty and Dayton areas. US 90 water covered and closed for over 12 hours. Half the streets in Liberty covered with 1 to 2 feet of water with widespread street flooding in Dayton. Water into homes with numerous automobiles stranded. At least 262 homes and 42 businesses damaged countywide, including half the homes in the Oak Forest subdivision in Liberty. From 60 to 80 people rescued from flood waters. Several schools damaged by major flooding. Water reached 18 feet high on SH 321 underpass in Dayton. Co-op observer in Liberty reported a storm total of 19.1 inches of rainfall, with 18.3 inches falling in only 5 hours!

Flash Flood, Harris

When
May 19, 9:00 PM CST to May 20, 7:00 AM CST
Where
Harris County, Northeast Portion
Property damage
$200,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
29.857, -95.392 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Four feet of standing water on streets in Kingwood. Significant street flooding in Huffman. Will Clayton Parkway underwater near Intercontinental Airport.

Thunderstorm Wind, Brazoria

When
May 19, 9:50 PM CST to 9:55 PM CST
Where
Brazoria County, Danciger
Property damage
$25,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
29.167, -95.817

Trees down and over highway along FM 1301.

Thunderstorm Wind, Brazoria

When
May 19, 10:30 PM CST
Where
Brazoria County, Old Ocean
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
29.083, -95.767

Barn destroyed and water pipes damaged at end of CR 943 just north of Old Ocean.

Flash Flood, Waller

When
May 19, 11:10 PM CST to May 20, 4:00 AM CST
Where
Waller County, Countywide
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
30.011, -95.988 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High water on US 290 bypass at FM 1098 and on Kickapoo Road with spotty flooding on FM 362.

Thunderstorm Wind, Liberty

When
May 19, 11:30 PM CST
Where
Liberty County, Dayton
Property damage
$15,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
30.050, -94.883

Power lines down.

Flash Flood, Chambers

When
May 20, 2:30 AM CST to 4:00 AM CST
Where
Chambers County, West Central Portion
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
29.708, -94.671 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flooding on SH 124 with street flooding in Anahuac. Rainfall totals up to 8 inches in western part of county.A stationary front combined with deep tropical moisture to produce widespread slow moving thunderstorms over Houston, Galveston, and surrounding areas. Northeast Harris and western Liberty Counties were the hardest hit by a large supercell thunderstorm which remained nearly stationary for several hours. The storm produced over 18 inches of rainfall in Liberty in only 5 hours with widespread flash flooding from near Intercontinental Airport eastward to the Liberty/Dayton areas. Over 300 homes and businesses were damaged in western Liberty County with 60 to 80 people rescued from flood waters. Strong winds resulted from some of the storms, downing trees and power lines, especially near Liberty and Dayton. A storm survey revealed an F0 tornado south of Dayton.

What these are

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.
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 2000Every state in 2000This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 2000Warnings in Texas, May 2000

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: 5149614, 5149615, 5149616, 5149618, 5149617, 5149700, 5149989, 5149701, 5149991, 5149992, 5149990, 5149994, 5149993.