Texas, 2004

Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, February 24, 2004

February 24, 2004 · NWS CRP · 8 events in 5 counties and zones

A strong negatively tilted upper level trough, accompanied by cold mid and upper level temperatures as well as strong upper level diffluence, approached from the Big Bend and northern Mexico during the late night and early morning hours of the 23rd and 24th. This led to the development of scattered showers and thunderstorms across the Rio Grande Plains early on the morning of the 24th.

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
$100,000
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 CRP wrote it up.

A strong negatively tilted upper level trough, accompanied by cold mid and upper level temperatures as well as strong upper level diffluence, approached from the Big Bend and northern Mexico during the late night and early morning hours of the 23rd and 24th. This led to the development of scattered showers and thunderstorms across the Rio Grande Plains early on the morning of the 24th. The showers and thunderstorms organized into a squall line around 930 a.m. across Duval and McMullen counties, in response to the powerful upper level disturbance out of Mexico and increasing easterly low level inflow off the Gulf of Mexico. A bow echo formed around 10 a.m. across eastern Duval county and raced quickly east into Jim Wells county, intensifying as it moved into a more unstable airmass across the Coastal Bend. The bow echo was accompanied by winds of 50 to 60 mph across eastern Duval, Jim Wells and far western Nueces and San Patricio counties with hail ranging from penny to quarter-size. The squall line continued through the southern Coastal Bend between 11 a.m. and noon and weakened as it moved off the coast after noon. Winds of 40 to 50 mph and pea to quarter-size hail were reported across the eastern half of Nueces and San Patricio counties, including metro Corpus Christi. An isolated severe thunderstorm ahead of the squall line produced golfball-size hail across Refugio county, covering State Highway 35. In addition to hail and strong to severe winds, the squall line dumped heavy rainfall across the area which produced minor stream flooding. Doppler Radar estimated as much as two inches of rain fell across the Coastal Bend, with a daily record of 1.37 inches being established at the Corpus Christi International Airport.

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 Corpus Christi, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 24, 9:45 AM CST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 24, 9:45 AM CST, 30 minutes before
SOUTH TEXAS FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
945 AM CST TUE FEB 24 2004

.DISCUSSION...VIGOROUS VORT MAX IN NRN MEXICO ALONG WITH IMPRESSIVE
UPR LVL DIFLUENCE AND MID LVL COOLING IS REALLY HELPING TO FIRE OFF
CONVECTION ACROSS SOUTH TX RIGHT NOW.  IDEAL WBZ VALUES AROUND 8000
FT WL MEAN HAIL WL BE THE GREATEST THREAT.  WL MENTION SEVERE ACROSS
THE ERN PORTIONS OF THE AREA FOR THIS MORNING AND INTO THE EARLY
AFTN.  EXPECT THE WESTERLY WIND SHIFT WHICH HAS ALREADY MOVED
THROUGH COTULLA AND LAREDO WL TEND TO END PCPN DURING THE AFTN.
MADE SOME ADJUSTMENTS TO THE WINDS AND LOWERED TEMPS A BIT GIVEN THE
CLOUD CVR AND PCPN.  NO SCA UNTIL TNT WHEN THE GRADIENT REALLY
INCREASES.

&&

.CRP...WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE.

MB
Hazardous weather outlook, Feb 24, 10:15 AM CST, 0 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
1015 AM CST TUE FEB 24 2004

GMZ230-235-250-255-270-275-TXZ229>234-239>247-251200-
ARANSAS-BAYS AND WATERWAYS FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT ARANSAS-
BAYS AND WATERWAYS FROM PORT ARANSAS TO PORT OCONNOR-BEE-CALHOUN-
COASTAL WATERS BAFFIN BAY TO PORT ARANSAS OUT 20 NM-
COASTAL WATERS PORT ARANSAS TO MATAGORDA SHIP CHANNEL OUT 20 NM-
DUVAL-GOLIAD-JIM WELLS-KLEBERG-LASALLE-LIVE OAK-MCMULLEN-NUECES-
REFUGIO-SAN PATRICIO-VICTORIA-
WATERS BAFFIN BAY TO PORT ARANSAS 20 TO 60 NM-
WATERS PORT ARANSAS TO MATAGORDA SHIP CHANNEL 20 TO 60 NM-WEBB-
1015 AM CST TUE FEB 24 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTH TEXAS.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE THROUGH TEXAS TODAY AND
PRODUCE SCATTERED TO NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SOUTH
TEXAS.  SOME OF THE THUNDERSTORMS THAT MOVE THROUGH THE COASTAL BEND
WILL CONTAIN LARGE HAIL...GUSTY WINDS UP TO 70 MPH AND LOCALLY HEAVY
RAIN BETWEEN ONE AND TWO INCHES. THE STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS
WILL MOVE QUICKLY EAST THROUGH THE LATE MORNING AND EARLY AFTERNOON
HOURS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL MOVE OFFSHORE LATE TONIGHT PROVIDING BREEZY
TO WINDY CONDITIONS ACROSS THE REGION WEDNESDAY. SMALL CRAFT
ADVISORY CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED LATE TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY
WITH WINDS APPROACHING GALE FORCE OVER THE OFFSHORE WATERS.
OVERNIGHT LOWS MAY APPROACH FREEZING THURSDAY MORNING ACROSS
NORTHWESTERN SECTIONS FROM COTULLA TO TILDEN AS HIGH PRESSURE
SETTLES INTO THE REGION.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...
SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS RECOMMENDED...ESPECIALLY FOR THE EASTERN
PORTIONS OF THE COASTAL BEND.

MB

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Feb 24, 9:36 AM CST, 39 minutes before
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE CORPUS CHRISTI TX
936 AM CST TUE FEB 24 2004

TXZ239-240-241630-
DUVAL-WEBB-
936 AM CST TUE FEB 24 2004

...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ALERT FOR SMALL HAIL 40 TO 50 MPH WINDS FOR
DUVAL AND WEBB COUNTIES THROUGH 1030 AM CST...

AT 936 AM CST...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A
LINE OF STRONG THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THE WEBB DUVAL COUNTY LINE MOVING
EAST AT 30 MPH.

PERSONS IN THE COMMUNITIES OF FREER AND BENAVIDES ARE IN THE PATH OF
THESE STORMS.

JM

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

6 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Duval

When
February 24, 10:15 AM CST
Where
Duval County, Rios
Measured
50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
27.450, -98.267

Roof blown off barn in Rios. Power lines also reported down around Rios.

Hail, Jim Wells

When
February 24, 10:55 AM CST
Where
Jim Wells County, Orange Grove
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
27.967, -97.933

Hail, Nueces

When
February 24, 11:04 AM CST
Where
Nueces County, Agua Dulce
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
27.800, -97.900

Quarter-size hail reported by law enforcement along Highway 44 between Agua Dulce and Banquete.

Thunderstorm Wind, Nueces

When
February 24, 11:15 AM CST
Where
Nueces County, San Pedro
Measured
52 kt (60 mph) estimated gust
Property damage
$100,000
Reported by
NWS STORM SURVEY
Coordinates
27.767, -97.667

Winds blew off roof of one wing of the San Pedro Elementary School.

Hail, Nueces

When
February 24, 11:25 AM CST
Where
Nueces County, Robstown
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
27.783, -97.667

Hail, Refugio

When
February 24, 11:30 AM CST
Where
Refugio County, 5 mi S of Tivoli
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
28.383, -96.900

Video from public of golfball-size hail along Highway 35 South of Tivoli.

Hail, Nueces

When
February 24, 11:50 AM CST
Where
Nueces County, Corpus Christi
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
27.783, -97.417

Quarter-size hail reported by trained spotter at Alameda and Robert Drive. Numerous other reports throughout Corpus Christi of hail ranging from pea to penny-size from 1130 to 1200 CST.

Hail, San Patricio

When
February 24, 12:20 PM CST
Where
San Patricio County, Aransas Pass
Measured
0.88 in hail
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
27.900, -97.150

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

More

Every storm in Texas in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, February 2004

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: 5383719, 5383720, 5383721, 5383722, 5383723, 5383724, 5383725, 5383726.