The combination of an upper level disturbance and surface temperatures below freezing produced freezing rain across much of the Big Country.
Every event with a place to put it; 6 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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 SJT wrote it up.
The combination of an upper level disturbance and surface temperatures below freezing produced freezing rain across much of the Big Country.
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 San Angelo, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 5, 5:27 AM CST, 33 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX 527 AM CST MON JAN 5 2009 .AVIATION... /12Z UPDATE/ FREEZING RAIN IS OCCURRING THIS MORNING OVER KABI WITH THE ONSET OF FREEZING RAIN SOUTH OF KABI EXPECTED WITHIN THE NEXT FEW HOURS. SOUTH OF KABI TEMPERATURES REMAIN A FEW DEGREES ABOVE FREEZING BUT TEMPERATURES SHOULD COOL BY A FEW DEGREES ONCE RAINFALL BEGINS... CHANGING OVER TO FREEZING RAIN AT KSJT AND KBBD. WILL LEAVE PRECIPITATION IN THE LIQUID FORM AT KSOA AND KJCT ...BUT WILL UPDATE IF NECESSARY. TEMPERATURES ARE NOT EXPECTED TO WARM MUCH DURING THE DAY AND FREEZING RAIN WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON PERIOD NORTH OF INTERSTATE 10. CEILINGS ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN MVFR THROUGH EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE AREA WITH FREEZING RAIN ENDING AND SURFACE WINDS BACKING TO THE SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST AS THE UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM EXITS THE AREA THIS EVENING. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 452 AM CST MON JAN 5 2009/ SHORT TERM... COMPOSITE RADAR LOOP INDICATES BANDS OF SHOWERS MOVING NORTHEAST ACROSS MUCH OF TEXAS THIS MORNING. ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS...VERY LIGHT RETURNS COVER MOST COUNTIES AND EXTEND FROM CROCKETT COUNTY NORTHEAST INTO THE SOUTHERN BIG COUNTRY. SURFACE TEMPERATURES ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS RANGE FROM 32 IN ABILENE TO 36 IN JUNCTION. CORRESPONDING DEWPOINTS RANGE FROM A VERY DRY 7 TO 21...RESPECTIVELY. THE FIRST TWO PERIODS REMAIN THE PRIMARY CONCERN AND CHALLENGE THIS FORECAST CYCLE. MODELS CONTINUE TO BRING QPF OVER WEST CENTRAL TEXAS DURING THE NEXT 24 HOURS. THE ECMWF CONTINUES TO DEVELOP THE GREATEST QPF TODAY WITH THE GFS A CLOSE SECOND. GIVEN SURFACE TEMPERATURES ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS NEAR OR A FEW DEGREES ABOVE THE FREEZING MARK THIS MORNING...BELIEVE SOME TYPE OF WINTRY PRECIPITATION MIX IS POSSIBLE ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS TODAY. MY ONLY SHORT-TERM CONCERN IS THE VERY DRY BOUNDARY LAYER. ANALYSIS OF TIME HEIGHT IMAGES CENTERED ON ABILENE....SAN ANGELO...AND JUNCTION...INDICATES OUR BOUNDARY LAYER DOES NOT SATURATE UNTIL JUST AFTER SUNRISE THIS MORNING. GIVEN THE POTENTIAL FOR SOME WET BULBING AT THE SURFACE...BELIEVE OUR CURRENT ADVISORIES ARE ON TRACK. ONCE PRECIPITATION BEGINS REACHING THE GROUND...WET BULBING WILL HELP MAINTAIN SURFACE TEMPERATURES AT OUR JUST BELOW THE FREEZING MARK. AGAIN...WE EXPECT ICE ACCUMULATIONS TO REMAIN BELOW ONE QUARTER INCH...AND WE DO NOT ANTICIPATE ANY SIGNIFICANT SLEET ACCUMULATION. FOR TONIGHT...PRECIPITATION CHANCES END FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST AS THE UPPER-LEVEL TROUGH AXIS MOVES OVER CENTRAL TEXAS. FOR TUESDAY THROUGH THE END OF THE SHORT TERM...EXPECT CLEAR SKIES AND A SLIGHT WARMING TREND. LONG TERM... WILL CONTINUE DRY FORECAST FOR THE LONG TERM. THIS MODEL CYCLE NOW BRINGS THE NEXT STRONG COLD FRONT ACROSS WEST CENTRAL TEXAS THIS FRIDAY NIGHT. BEFORE THIS NEXT COLD AIR SURGE...LOOK FOR MUCH WARMER TEMPERATURES THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. HOWEVER...PLAN FOR AFTERNOON HIGHS NEXT WEEKEND AROUND SEASONAL NORMALS...MAINLY IN THE MID TO UPPER 50S. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... ABILENE 32 31 57 32 69 / 60 20 10 10 10 SAN ANGELO 35 32 59 31 70 / 60 30 10 10 10 JUNCTION 37 35 64 31 69 / 80 50 10 10 10 && .SJT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES: CALLAHAN...FISHER...HASKELL...JONES...NOLAN... SHACKELFORD...TAYLOR...THROCKMORTON. FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY UNTIL 6 PM CST THIS AFTERNOON FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES: BROWN...COKE...COLEMAN...CONCHO...CROCKETT... IRION...KIMBLE...MASON...MCCULLOCH...MENARD...RUNNELS...SAN SABA...SCHLEICHER...STERLING...SUTTON...TOM GREEN. && 99/99/15
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX 545 AM CST MON JAN 5 2009 TXZ049-054-064>066-071>073-076>078-098-099-113-114-127-128-139- 140-154-155-168>170-061145- FISHER-NOLAN-STERLING-COKE-RUNNELS-IRION-TOM GREEN-CONCHO- CROCKETT-SCHLEICHER-SUTTON-HASKELL-THROCKMORTON-JONES-SHACKELFORD- TAYLOR-CALLAHAN-COLEMAN-BROWN-MCCULLOCH-SAN SABA-MENARD-KIMBLE- MASON- 545 AM CST MON JAN 5 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT AS AN UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM SLOWLY APPROACHES TEXAS FROM THE WEST TODAY...PRECIPITATION WILL CONTINUE OVER ALL OF WEST CENTRAL TEXAS THROUGH MUCH OF THE DAY. FREEZING RAIN COULD CONTINUE THROUGH AT LEAST THE MORNING HOURS ACROSS THE CONCHO VALLEY AND HEARTLAND. IN THE BIG COUNTRY...THE FREEZING RAIN COULD BE MIXED WITH SLEET AT TIMES THROUGH EARLY AFTERNOON. THE FREEZING RAIN WILL CAUSE HAZARDOUS TRAVEL CONDITIONS AS ICE FORMS ON ROADWAYS...ESPECIALLY ELEVATED SURFACES SUCH AS BRIDGES AND OVERPASSES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. 15
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
6 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain across the county. Bridges and overpasses were icy.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain across the county. Bridges and overpasses were icy.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain across the county. Bridges and overpasses were icy.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain across the county. Bridges and overpasses were icy.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain across the county. Roads were icy in Abilene. The Abilene Police and Fire Department handled over 80 accidents, and Loop 322 was closed for nearly 3 hours.
Law Enforcement reported freezing rain and sleet across the county. Bridges and overpasses were icy.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2009Every state in 2009This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, January 2009
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: 139587, 139588, 139589, 139590, 139591, 139601.