Severe storms developed along a dryline over the extreme southeastern panhandle and the Rolling Plains of west Texas during the late afternoon of the 2nd. Numerous reports of large hail up to the size of golfballs were received, along with a few reports of damaging thunderstorm winds and at least one weak tornado.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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 episode as NWS LUB wrote it up.
May 2 Severe Thunderstorm Event Summary...Severe storms developed along a dryline over the extreme southeastern panhandle and the Rolling Plains of west Texas during the late afternoon of the 2nd. Numerous reports of large hail up to the size of golfballs were received, along with a few reports of damaging thunderstorm winds and at least one weak tornado. The community of Turkey (southwestern Hall County) sustained damage from wind-driven hail. Reports indicated that windows were broken and that some roofs and vehicles were damaged.
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 Lubbock, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 2, 2:15 PM CST, 59 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 315 PM CDT TUE MAY 2 2006 .SHORT TERM... LATEST SATELLITE/RADAR TRENDS ARE DEPICTING THE EFFECTS OF INCREASED FORCING FOR ASCENT IN ADVANCE OF NEW MEXICO SHORTWAVE TROUGH...WITH CONVECTION INITIATING ATTM. THE THREAT FOR DEEP/POTENTIALLY SEVERE CONVECTION WILL QUICKLY SHIFT EAST OF THE INTERSTATE 27 CORRIDOR...INTO TORNADO WATCH 276. FORECAST SOUNDINGS DEPICT A VERY UNSTABLE AIRMASS WITH RATHER MARGINAL DEEP LAYER SHEAR FOR A FEW SUPERCELLS. A OUTFLOW BOUNDARY LINGERING IN THE WAKE OF NORTH TEXAS/SOUTHWEST OKLAHOMA CONVECTION INTERSECTS THE DRYLINE VICINITY CAPROCK CANYON STATE PARK...AND AIRMASS SOUTH/EAST OF THIS FEATURE IS CHARACTERIZED BY SLIGHTLY ENHANCED VEERING OF THE LOW LEVEL WIND FIELD/HIGHER THETA E. PRIMARY THREATS ALONG/EAST OF I27 WITH ANY SEVERE STORM WILL BE VERY LARGE HAIL...BUT AN ISOLATED TORNADO CAN NOT BE RULED OUT OVER THE ROLLING PLAINS ESPECIALLY BY EARLY EVENING AS LLJ INCREASES...PARTICULARLY NEAR THE REMNANT BOUNDARY. FURTHER WEST...EXPECT VERY HIGH BASED CONVECTION TO SPREAD EAST FROM NEW MEXICO IN THE DRY AIR. FORECAST THERMO PROFILES THERE ARE INDICATIVE OF POSSIBLY DRY MICROBURST ACTIVITY. GRIDDED POPS WILL REFLECT CHANCE POPS /40 PERCENT/ OVER THE ROLLING PLAINS...DECREASING TO SLIGHT CHANCE NORTHEAST AFTER 06Z. COULD SEE SOME LOW CLOUD DEVELOPMENT OVERNIGHT OVER THE EASTERN ZONES VICINITY BETTER MOISTURE/WEAK WARM AIR ADVECTION NEAR THE LLJ. .LONG TERM... WEST TO SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT WILL GRADUALLY INCREASE LATE WEDNESDAY AS UPPER LEVEL TROUGH EDGES SLOWLY EAST THROUGH THE SOUTHWEST. THIS WILL BE OF INTEREST FOR SEVERAL DAYS...WITH PATTERN FAVORING PERSISTENT SLOW MOVING WEAK LOW OVER THE SOUTHWEST. EXPECT MOISTURE AND DRY-LINE TO BE IN GOOD SHAPE BY LATE WEDNESDAY WHILE SURFACE FRONTAL BOUNDARY EDGES IN FROM THE NORTH. MAINTAINING OR SLIGHTLY INCREASED ALREADY CHANCE CATEGORY MENTION OF THUNDERSTORMS FOR FAVORED NORTH TO EASTERN AREAS. LIKE TODAY...STILL A LOT OF QUESTION IF WESTERN ZONES REALLY WILL HAVE A VALID SHOT AT SIGNIFICANT THUNDERSTORM COVERAGE SO OPTING TO MAINTAIN ONLY LOW MENTION THUNDER THIS AREA. FRONT WILL GRADUALLY SAG THROUGH THE AREA BY EARLY THURSDAY WITH AIRMASS PERHAPS MODIFIED SLIGHTLY AS A RESULT...BUT WE HAVE BEEN GETTING MIXED ON-AND-OFF AGAIN SIGNALS ON WHETHER TO COOL OR WARM TEMPERATURES ON THURSDAY. SOMEWHAT COOLER SIMILAR TO PREVIOUS FORECAST SEEMS VALID GIVEN FRONTAL AND MOISTURE OPPORTUNITIES. OVER-RUNNING WEST TO SOUTHWEST FLOW ALOFT STILL ON FRIDAY WITH RELATIVELY COOL SURFACE RIDGE EDGED OVER THE AREA ENOUGH TO HOLD ON TO A LOW CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS AGAIN MOST AREAS. LATEST RUNS HAVE DELAYED A CLEAR EJECTION OF THE SOUTHWEST TROUGH SOMEWHAT...SO EXTENDED CHANCE UNTIL EARLY SATURDAY MORNING. AND IT IS FURTHER POSSIBLE THAT THE RESULTING WEST-NORTHWEST FLOW ALOFT THIS WEEKEND WILL NOT BE RIPPLE-FREE AND THAT WE WILL NOT DRY OUT SIGNIFICANTLY. HOWEVER...CLEAR SIGNALS IN FAVOR OF SIGNIFICANT PRECIPITATION REMAIN LACKING IN THIS FLOW AND WE WILL KEEP A DRY AND WARMER FORECAST FOR THE LATE EXTENDED. RELATIVELY FEW SIGNIFICANT CHANGES THEREFORE. MCQUEEN && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FRIONA 57 91 53 77 / 10 20 10 20 TULIA 59 90 55 72 / 20 30 20 20 PLAINVIEW 61 91 58 75 / 20 20 20 20 LEVELLAND 63 92 60 80 / 20 20 20 20 LUBBOCK 63 92 61 83 / 20 20 20 20 BROWNFIELD 65 93 62 84 / 20 10 20 10 CHILDRESS 63 90 62 79 / 40 40 40 20 SPUR 66 93 65 80 / 40 40 40 20 ASPERMONT 67 94 68 83 / 40 40 40 20 && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 20/05
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 1128 AM CDT TUE MAY 2 2006 TXZ021>044-031630- PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE- FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING- YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL- 1128 AM CDT TUE MAY 2 2006 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT CONVECTIVE THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE EXTREME SOUTHERN PANHANDLE...THE SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. THE RISK AREA IS GENERALLY ALONG AND EAST OF A SILVERTON TO POST LINE. THE MAIN SEVERE WEATHER THREATS ARE LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. SURFACE DEW POINT TEMPERATURES IN THE UPPER 50S AND LOWER 60S HAVE RETURNED TO AREAS ALONG THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE CAPROCK ESCARPMENT AND EASTWARD AS A WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY THAT HAS BEEN LOCATED ACROSS THE AREA THIS MORNING HAS BEGUN TO DISSIPATE. AS THE DRYLINE MOVES EASTWARD TO THE EASTERN EDGE OF THE CAPROCK THIS AFTERNOON ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS MAY DEVELOP. THE COMBINATION OF TEMPERATURES NEAR 90 DEGREES AND DEW POINT TEMPERATURES NEAR 60 DEGREES WILL YIELD PLENTY OF ENERGY FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS. WINDS MAY BECOME MORE FAVORABLE FOR ORGANIZATION OF THUNDERSTORMS INTO SUPERCELLS AS A WEAK DISTURBANCE ALOFT MOVES OVERHEAD FROM EASTERN NEW MEXICO RESULTING IN SLIGHTLY STRONGER WINDS ALOFT. THUS THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE FROM LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. AN ISOLATED TORNADO IS ALSO POSSIBLE...PARTICULARLY ACROSS THE EXTREME SOUTHEAST PANHANDLE AND NORTHERN ROLLING PLAINS...IF LOW LEVEL WINDS CAN BECOME MORE EASTERLY OR SOUTHEASTERLY. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY A COLD FRONT WILL APPROACH THE NORTHERN SOUTH AND ROLLING PLAINS BY WEDNESDAY EVENING...WITH THE DRYLINE EXTENDING SOUTH THROUGH THE CENTRAL SOUTH PLAINS. THE COMBINATION OF THE COLD FRONT...DRYLINE... AS WELL AS ANY PREEXISTING BOUNDARIES FROM EARLIER CONVECTION MAY COMBINE TO GENERATE SEVERE CONVECTION. THE MAIN AREA OF CONCERN WEDNESDAY WILL BE ALONG AND EAST OF THE I-27 CORRIDOR. SIMILAR FACTORS MAY BRING THE POSSIBILITY OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS TO THE AREA THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME FOR SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT.
The Amarillo radar (KAMA), 113 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:13 UTC.
9 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Large hail up to the size of golfballs was reported by storm spotters, fire department personnel, and local law enforcement officials from north of Turkey along Texas Highway 70 eastward to Farm to Market Road 86 northeast of Turkey.
Golfball size hail was reported along Texas Highway 70 north of Matador.
A National Weather Service cooperative observer reported nickel size hail northwest of Dickens.
Local law enforcement officials reported large hail that ranged in size from peas to golfballs near the intersection of Farm to Market Roads 2320 and 208 west of Jayton.
Hail up to the size of golfballs broke windows and caused minor roof and vehicle damage in Turkey. The hail was accompanied by damaging winds.
Severe thunderstorm winds combined with large hail to break windows and down large tree limbs in Turkey.
Several storm chasers photographed a well-developed and long-lived landspout tornado between Roaring Springs and Matador. The tornado remained in open fields near Texas Highway 70. Although the tornado persisted for more than fifteen minutes, no damage resulted.
Storm chasers and law enforcement personnel reported golfball size hail in rural areas west of Jayton.
The Motley County Fire Department reported quarter size hail in rural areas of eastern Motely County.
A report of golfball size hail in southeastern Hall County was relayed through the local broadcast media. No damage was reported.
The Paducah Fire Department initially reported estimated thunderstorm wind gusts up to 60 MPH southwest of the city. A nearby West Texas Mesonet site confirmed these estimates with a measured gust to 58 MPH just a few minutes later. Storm spotters with the Paducah Fire Department continued to report severe thunderstorm winds eastward to U.S. Highway 83 south of Paducah. The winds were accompanied by nickel size hail south of the city. No damage was reported.
Severe thunderstorm winds destroyed a horse barn near Guthrie. No additional structural damage was reported.
Nickel size hail was accompanied by 60 MPH winds south of Paducah along U.S. Highway 83. No damage was reported.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 2006Warnings in Texas, May 2006
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: 5504868, 5504869, 5504954, 5504870, 5504871, 5504872, 5504873, 5504874, 5504875, 5504876, 5504877, 5504878, 5504953.