Texas, 2003

Strong Wind in Texas, December 2, 2003

December 2, 2003 · NWS AMA · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A strong gust of wind resulted in a fatal motor vehicle accident in which two people were killed and two people were injured.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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The toll

Deaths
2
Injuries
2
Property damage
$60,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
1

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.

A strong gust of wind resulted in a fatal motor vehicle accident in which two people were killed and two people were injured.

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 Dec 2, 3:48 AM CST, 6 hours 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 2, 3:48 AM CST, 6 hours 12 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
330 AM CST TUE 02 DEC 2003

SFC LOW OVR ERN COLO IS FCST TO DEEPEN AND MOV TWD PNHDLS TDA.
TIGHTENING SFC PRES GRADIENT THIS AFTN IN RESPONSE TO INCOMING H5
VOT MAX CAUSES CONCERNS FOR WNDS TDA.  LLJ OF 35 TO 40 KT IS
ALREADY IN PLACE OVR CNTRL AND NRN SXNS.  BELIEVE THAT ST OVR ERN
ZNS WL PRST INTO THE AFTN...AND THAT CI WL COVER MOST SXNS TIL LATE
AFTN.  THUS...DO NOT EXPC WND ADZY TO BE NEEDED TDA.  CDFNT WL MOV
INTO NWRN ZNS THIS AFTN...AND SWEEP THRU RMNDR OF FCST AREA BFR SR
WED.  HAVE RETAINED POPS FOR TDA AND TNGT...MAINLY OVR ERN ZNS
WHERE RICHER MSTR WL BE IN PLACE.

COOLER CONDS ON WED IN WAKE OF CDFNT.  ANOTHER CDFNT ON THU DROPS
TEMPS FURTHER.  CONTG CAA FOLLOWING THU FROPA SETS MAX TEMPS ON FRI
INTO 40S AREA-WIDE.  MODEST RECOVERY ON SAT AS COLD HI MOVS E OF
AREA...FOLLOWED BY DEEPENING SFC TROF AND WMR TEMPS ON SUN.  CDFTN
ON MON WL BRING COOLER TEMPS AND SLGT CHC PCPN MON AND TUE.

FCSTID = 03

AMARILLO    62 35 55 30 / 20 10 00 00
BEAVER      57 33 53 28 / 30 20 00 00
BOISE CITY  63 32 52 30 / 10 00 00 00
BORGER      58 34 55 29 / 20 10 00 00
BOYS RANCH  67 33 56 29 / 10 00 00 00
CANYON      62 35 56 30 / 20 10 00 00
CLARENDON   57 39 57 33 / 30 20 00 00
DALHART     66 32 53 29 / 10 00 00 00
GUYMON      60 33 54 28 / 20 10 00 00
HEREFORD    64 35 57 31 / 10 00 00 00
LIPSCOMB    54 37 53 30 / 30 20 00 00
PAMPA       54 37 55 31 / 30 20 00 00
SHAMROCK    56 41 57 34 / 30 20 00 00
WELLINGTON  56 41 59 34 / 30 20 00 00

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

COCKRELL
Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 2, 6:00 AM CST, 4 hours before
TEXAS/OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
600 AM CST TUE DEC 2 2003

OKZ001>003-TXZ001>020-021900-
ARMSTRONG-BEAVER-CARSON-CIMARRON-COLLINGSWORTH-DALLAM-DEAF SMITH-
DONLEY-GRAY-HANSFORD-HARTLEY-HEMPHILL-HUTCHINSON-LIPSCOMB-MOORE-
OCHILTREE-OLDHAM-POTTER-RANDALL-ROBERTS-SHERMAN-TEXAS-WHEELER-
600 AM CST TUE DEC 2 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLES.

.DAY ONE...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

05

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Strong Wind, Hartley

When
December 2, 10:00 AM CST to 5:00 PM CST
Where
Hartley forecast zone
Measured
48 kt (55 mph) estimated gust
Deaths
2 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$60,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
35.840, -102.603 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A strong gust of wind lifted a pickup truck and travel trailer off of the highway and into the path of another vehicle. The fatal accident occurred five and a half miles southwest of Dalhart on U.S. Highway 54.

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Strong Wind, Hartley2003-12-0250FemaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect
Strong Wind, Hartley2003-12-0256MaleVehicle/Towed TrailerDirect

What these are

Strong Wind
Non-thunderstorm winds below high wind criteria that nonetheless caused damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Texas in 2003Every state in 2003This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, December 2003

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: 5331188.