Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, September 5, 2002

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, September 5, 2002
Start: 2002-09-05T17:45
End: 2002-09-05T19:08
Location: Texas

September 5, 2002 · NWS AMA · 10 events in 4 counties and zones

Severe thunderstorms producing damaging winds and large hail moved across the southern and central Texas panhandle during the early evening hours.

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: $60,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 10

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.

Severe thunderstorms producing damaging winds and large hail moved across the southern and central Texas panhandle during the early 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 Sep 5, 3:31 PM CST, 2 hours 14 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Sep 5, 3:31 PM CST, 2 hours 14 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
430 PM CDT THU 05 SEP 2002

SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WELL UNDERWAY ACROSS THE EASTERN TEXAS AND
OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES THIS AFTERNOON IN RESPONSE TO MID-LEVEL
DISTURBANCE INTERACTING WITH MODERATE INSTABILITY. CONVECTION WILL
GRADUALLY WEAKEN AND DISSIPATE LATE THIS EVENING AS BOUNDARY LAYER
COOLS. MODELS HINT THAT DISTURBANCE WILL NOT BE GOING ANYWHERE
FAST AND WILL LIKELY WEAKEN AND SHEAR A BIT BEFORE MIGRATING TO THE
NORTH AND NORTHEAST DURING THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS. THEREFORE...WILL
GO AHEAD AND INTRODUCE SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FOR 2ND AND 3RD PERIODS
AND LET NEXT FORECAST SHIFT TRIM TO REFLECT LATER TRENDS.

OTHERWISE...BROAD RIDGE ALOFT WILL REMAIN PARKED OVER THE CENTRAL
AND SOUTHERN PLAINS THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. WEST COAST
TROUGH THIS WEEKEND TRIES TO ADVANCE EAST INTO THE SOUTHERN
ROCKIES...BUT SOMEWHAT RELUCTANT RIDGE WILL RESIST TROUGH/S
EFFORTS. HOWEVER...A FEW VORT LOBES SHOULD BRUSH THE PANHANDLES AS
THEY ARE EJECTED NORTHEAST OUT OF WESTERN TROUGH NEXT WEEK.
FURTHERMORE...NEXT COLD FRONT /MAY/ PUSH SOUTH INTO THE PANHANDLES
BY LATE TUESDAY OR WEDNESDAY. THEREFORE...WENT AHEAD AND MENTIONED
SLIGHT CHANCE TSRA FOR WEDNESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHT.

FCSTID = 04

AMARILLO    63 91 62 90 / 20 20 20 00
BEAVER      66 91 65 91 / 30 20 20 00
BOISE CITY  61 88 58 89 / 20 20 20 00
BORGER      65 91 63 90 / 20 20 20 00
BOYS RANCH  62 91 61 90 / 20 20 20 00
CANYON      63 91 61 90 / 20 20 20 00
CLARENDON   66 92 65 90 / 30 20 20 00
DALHART     61 89 59 89 / 20 20 20 00
GUYMON      64 90 62 90 / 20 20 20 00
HEREFORD    62 92 60 90 / 20 20 20 00
LIPSCOMB    66 91 65 90 / 30 20 20 00
SHAMROCK    67 92 66 90 / 30 20 20 00
WELLINGTON  67 92 66 90 / 30 20 20 00

.AMA...
TX...NONE.
OK...NONE.

JH

The radar

The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 20 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:46 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 thunderstorm wind, 4 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Carson

When: September 5, 5:45 PM CST
Where: Carson County, 2 mi N of Pantex
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 35.367, -101.567

Thunderstorm Wind, Carson

When: September 5, 6:04 PM CST
Where: Carson County, Pantex
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Reported by: OTHER FEDERAL AGENCY
Coordinates: 35.333, -101.567

Thunderstorm Wind, Carson

When: September 5, 6:15 PM CST
Where: Carson County, 9 mi SW of Panhandle
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Property damage: $60,000
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 35.250, -101.500

Trucks were reported blown off the roadway and there was extensive damage to a home west of Panhandle when a large tree fell on the home.

Thunderstorm Wind, Potter

When: September 5, 6:21 PM CST
Where: Potter County, 8 mi E of Amarillo
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: NWS EMPLOYEE(OFF DUTY)
Coordinates: 35.200, -101.667

Thunderstorm Wind, Potter

When: September 5, 6:24 PM CST
Where: Potter County, 8 mi E of Amarillo
Measured: 56 kt (64 mph)
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 35.200, -101.667

Hail, Potter

When: September 5, 6:25 PM CST
Where: Potter County, 10 mi E of Amarillo
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: NWS EMPLOYEE(OFF DUTY)
Coordinates: 35.200, -101.633

Hail, Armstrong

When: September 5, 6:32 PM CST to 6:40 PM CST
Where: Armstrong County, Washburn
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 35.183, -101.583

Thunderstorm Wind, Potter

When: September 5, 6:40 PM CST
Where: Potter County, 9 mi E of Amarillo
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 35.200, -101.650

Hail, Potter

When: September 5, 6:40 PM CST
Where: Potter County, 9 mi E of Amarillo
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 35.200, -101.650

Hail, Randall

When: September 5, 7:08 PM CST
Where: Randall County, 11 mi NE of Canyon
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 35.100, -101.783

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.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Texas in 2002 Every state in 2002 This day in weather history Warnings in Texas, September 2002

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: 5321133, 5321134, 5321135, 5321224, 5321225, 5321226, 5321227, 5321228, 5321229, 5321230.