Thunderstorm Wind, Hartley
- When
- May 20, 9:50 PM CST
- Where
- Hartley County, (Dht)dalhart Muni Ar
- Measured
- 50 kt (58 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 36.017, -102.550
Damaging Winds and High Wind in Texas, May 20, 2001
High winds along with severe thunderstorms producing damaging winds affected the northwest into the south central Texas panhandle during the late evening hours.
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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 8
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 AMA wrote it up.
High winds along with severe thunderstorms producing damaging winds affected the northwest into the south central Texas panhandle during the late evening hours.
What forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Amarillo, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 20, 8:15 PM CST, 1 hour 35 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 20, 8:15 PM CST, 1 hour 35 minutes before
TEXAS/OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX 915 PM CDT SUN MAY 20 2001 ISSUED UPDT TO ZONES...ISSUING WND ADZY FOR ALL ZONES BUT SERN SXNS OF TX PNHDL. 00Z SFC ANALYSIS INDCD VERY TIGHT PRES GRADIENT BHND CDFNT...WITH 9 MB PER 3 HR PRES RISES OVR NERN CO. TIGHT GRADIENT WL DVLP/MOV SWD INTO FCST AREA DURG REST OF TNGT. ALSO CALLED FOR AREAL QUALIFIERS FOR TSTMS TNGT INSTEAD OF UNCERTAINTY TERMS. PLENTY OF CNVGNC ACMPYG CDFNT AND NOSE OF INCOMING H8 JETSTREAK. NO CHANGES TO LATER PDS. 03 .AMA... TX...WND ADZY TONIGHT TX ZNS 01>10..11>13..16>18. OK...WND ADZY TONIGHT OK ZNS 01>03. COCKRELL/SLATTERY
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
5 thunderstorm wind, 3 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Sherman
- When
- May 20, 9:50 PM CST
- Where
- Sherman County, Stratford
- Measured
- 56 kt (64 mph)
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 36.417, -102.067
Numerous trees reported blown down.
Thunderstorm Wind, Hansford
- When
- May 20, 10:07 PM CST
- Where
- Hansford County, Gruver
- Measured
- 56 kt (64 mph)
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 36.267, -101.400
Thunderstorm Wind, Moore
- When
- May 20, 10:15 PM CST
- Where
- Moore County, Dumas
- Measured
- 65 kt (75 mph)
- Property damage
- $40,000
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 35.850, -101.967
Numerous trees and power lines and Telco poles reported down. A commercial sign was also reported blown down.
Thunderstorm Wind, Hutchinson
- When
- May 20, 10:51 PM CST
- Where
- Hutchinson County, Hutchison Co Arpt
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 35.700, -101.400
High Wind, Randall
- When
- May 20, 11:08 PM CST
- Where
- Randall forecast zone
- Measured
- 69 kt (79 mph)
- Reported by
- AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
- Coordinates
- 34.966, -101.897 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Wind, Randall
- When
- May 20, 11:17 PM CST
- Where
- Randall forecast zone
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 34.966, -101.897 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
High Wind, Potter
- When
- May 20, 11:59 PM CST
- Where
- Potter forecast zone
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 35.401, -101.894 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Sixty-nine knot non-thunderstorm wind gust recorded at Tradewind Airport one mile south of Amarillo.Sixty-one knot non-thunderstorm wind gust reported twelve miles south of Amarillo. Two power poles blown down by sixty-one knot non-thunderstorm wind gust five miles north of Amarillo.
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.
- High Wind
- Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Damaging Winds in Alabama, May 20, 2001
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Oklahoma, May 20 to 21, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, May 20, 2001
- Tornadoes and Hail in Oklahoma, May 20, 2001
- High Wind in Colorado, May 20, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Oklahoma, May 20, 2001
- Tornado and Hail in Texas, May 20, 2001
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Mississippi, May 20, 2001
- Flash Flood in Texas, May 20, 2001
- Damaging Winds in Texas, May 20, 2001
- Tornadoes and Hail in Kansas, May 20, 2001
- Damaging Wind in Missouri, May 20, 2001
More
Every storm in Texas in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, May 2001
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: 5247439, 5247440, 5247441, 5247521, 5247522, 5247523, 5247524, 5247525.