Texas, 2007

Dense Smoke in Texas, October 17, 2007

October 17, 2007 · NWS LUB · 1 event in 1 county or zone

A large wildfire near Portales, New Mexico, resulted in a plume of dense smoke that reduced visibility to near zero over portions of northwestern Bailey County during the late afternoon hours of the 17th. Local authorities were forced to close portions of Texas Farm to Market Roads 1760 and 1731.

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.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
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 LUB wrote it up.

A large wildfire near Portales, New Mexico, resulted in a plume of dense smoke that reduced visibility to near zero over portions of northwestern Bailey County during the late afternoon hours of the 17th. Local authorities were forced to close portions of Texas Farm to Market Roads 1760 and 1731.

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 Lubbock, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 17, 2:27 PM CST, 1 hour 33 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 17, 2:27 PM CST, 1 hour 33 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Oct 17, 10:27 AM CST, 5 hours 33 minutes before
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</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
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The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 dense smoke. Local standard time, as filed.

Dense Smoke, Bailey

When
October 17, 4:00 PM CST to 6:00 PM CST
Where
Bailey forecast zone
Reported by
Law Enforcement
Coordinates
34.069, -102.830 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Dense Smoke
Smoke reducing visibility to a quarter mile or less.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Texas in 2007Every state in 2007This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, October 2007

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 66166.