In a cooler air mass after a cold frontal passage, a strong shortwave disturbance moved across the area and produced an isolated severe thunderstorm.
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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 HGX wrote it up.
In a cooler air mass after a cold frontal passage, a strong shortwave disturbance moved across the area and produced an isolated severe thunderstorm.
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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 15, 8:56 AM CST, 1 hour 19 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 956 AM CDT SUN MAR 15 2009 .UPDATE... SMATTERING OF LIGHT RAIN ACROSS OUR FAR NORTHWESTERN COUNTIES...ALONG WITH MORE ORGANIZED RAIN AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS MOVING INTO COLORADO AND WHARTON COUNTIES...THIS MORNING. THIS RETURNING PRECIPITATION ALONG THE LEADING EDGE OF A SOUTH CENTRAL TEXAS S/W RIDING UP THE EASTERN PERIPHERY OF A BROAD UPPER LEVEL TROUGH...ITS 5H AXIS CENTERED ROUGHLY OVER THE NM-TX LINE. RAIN CHANCES WILL INCREASE TO LIKELY FOR THE SOUTHERN 1/2 OF THE FA TO INCLUDE ALL WATERS. AS THIS AFOREMENTIONED TROUGH TRAVELS THROUGH NORTHERN TEXAS INTO THE EVENING...THE HIGHEST AMOUNT OF RAIN WILL GENERALLY FALL ALONG AND SOUTH OF THE I-10 CORRIDOR...OR ACROSS (NEAR) COASTAL COMMUNITIES. LATER TODAY...THIS REGION WILL FALL UNDER THE DYNAMICALLY-FAVORED RRQ OF A NEAR 105KT 200MB JET DRAPED FROM THE TEXAS COAST UP INTO THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. ALTHOUGH SOMEWHAT DIFFICULT TO DISCERN IN W/V...UPSTREAM VORTICITY ROUNDING THE BEND AND ENTERING THE COASTAL BEND REGION WITHIN WSW FLOW...IS BEING PROGGED TO ALSO ADD A BIT MORE LIFT IN THIS SUFFICIENTLY MOIST AIR MASS/ERODE THIS MORNING'S DEEP 5-6K FT LL INVERSION. ON AN INTERESTING CLIMATE NOTE: WHAT A DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES...THIS TIME LAST YEAR WE WERE BREAKING MAXIMUM TEMPERATURE RECORDS. MARCH 14 AND 15 OF 2008 YIELDED MAXIMUM RECORDS OF 87 F AND 90 F...RESPECTFULLY ...WITHIN THE CITY (AS WELL AS UP NORTH AT KCLL). NOW...IN THIS COOL AND WET PATTERN...WE ARE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SPECTRUM...ACHIEVING RECORD MINIMUM MAXIMUM RECORD TEMPERATURES. A YEAR AGO WE WERE TOPPING OUT AT 90 F...NOW WE CAN NOT ESCAPE THE GRIP OF THESE CHILLED MID TO UPPER 40S! 31 && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 614 AM CDT SUN MAR 15 2009/ AVIATION... APPROACHING UPPER LEVEL JET CORE PRODUCING AREAS OF RA/SHRA FROM MIDDLE RIO GRANDE VALLEY TO NEAR BASTROP AND SHOULD AFFECT WESTERN SECTIONS OF OUR CWFA SOON. MULTI-LAYERED LOW CLOUDS OVER TAF SITES WITH CEILINGS VARYING FROM SLIGHTLY BELOW 1000 FT TO 3000 FT. SOME DRIZZLE AND LIGHT FOG POSSIBLE THROUGH MID MORNING. CEILINGS LIFTING GRADUALLY AS THE DAY PROGRESSES. PERIODS OF -RA EXPECTED FROM MID MORNING THROUGH AFTERNOON. 37 PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 447 AM CDT SUN MAR 15 2009/ DISCUSSION... ANALYSIS SHOWS THAT THE HIGHEST MOISTURE LEVELS ARE CONFINED TO IMMEDIATE COAST/OFFSHORE AREAS WHERE PWS ARE 1.0-1.3 INCHES AND 850 MB DEWPOINTS ARE AROUND +8C. OVER INLAND AREAS...MOISTURE LEVELS ARE QUITE MODEST NOW WITH PWS RUNNING AROUND 0.75 INCH. UPPER LOW EVIDENT ON WATER VAPOR IMAGERY OVER THE FOUR CORNERS REGION WILL PUSH EASTWARD AND CROSS TEXAS TONIGHT. 120 KT JET MAX OVER THE SOUTHERN BAJA WILL ADVANCE EAST ACROSS NORTH TX LATER TODAY. THE JET DYNAMICS AND APPROACHING TROUGH WILL AID IN INCREASING LIFT OVER SE TX. RADAR ALREADY SHOWS SHOWER DEVELOPMENT OVER THE EWX CWA AND THIS ACTIVITY WILL BEGIN AFFECTING SE TX THIS MORNING. HAVE BLANKETED CHANCE POPS ACROSS THE AREA...WITH LIKELY POPS FOR THE COASTAL ZONES AND CATEGORICAL OFFSHORE. RAINFALL WILL BE LIGHT...WITH GREATEST AMOUNTS OF 1/4-1/2 INCH AND LOCALLY HIGHER CONFINED TO THE SOUTHERN HALF. ELEVATED INSTABILITY WILL SUPPORT SOME ISOLATED THUNDER MAINLY ALONG THE COAST/OFFSHORE. GIVEN EXTENSIVE CLOUD COVER/PRECIP HAVE AGAIN LEANED TOWARD COOLEST NAM 2M TEMPS. MODELS SHOW THE TROUGH NOT CLEARING THE AREA UNTIL AROUND 12Z MONDAY. AS A RESULT...KEPT LOW POPS GOING INTO LATE TONIGHT/EARLY MONDAY OVER SOUTHERN/EASTERN ZONES SIMILAR TO LATEST NAM. LOW CLOUDS WILL LINGER INTO MONDAY MORNING ESPECIALLY OVER SOUTHERN/EASTERN ZONES. PATCHY FOG WILL DEVELOP LATE TONIGHT/EARLY MONDAY ESPECIALLY WHERE ANY BREAKS IN THE CLOUDS OCCUR. PLEASANT SPRING-LIKE WEATHER IS EXPECTED MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH WEDNESDAY WITH SFC HIGH OVERHEAD RESULTING IN CLEAR SKIES...LIGHT WINDS...LOW HUMIDITIES...AND MILD TEMPS. LIGHT ONSHORE WINDS WILL LIKELY AID IN FOG DEVELOPMENT AGAIN MON NIGHT/EARLY TUESDAY. LATEST MEDIUM RANGE MODELS STILL IN AGREEMENT ON A WEAK BACK DOOR TYPE COLD FRONT PUSHING ACROSS SE TX THURSDAY. MOISTURE LEVELS REMAIN PALTRY WITH THE FRONT SO HAVE REMOVED RAIN CHANCES FOR THURSDAY. WILL KEEP 20 POPS GOING FRIDAY/SATURDAY AS LIGHT ONSHORE FLOW ALLOWS SLIGHTLY HIGHER MOISTURE LEVELS (PWS AROUND AN INCH) TO POOL OVER SE TX FAVORING A FEW ISOLATED SHOWERS. TEMPS WILL BE SLIGHTLY COOLER FRIDAY/SATURDAY DUE TO THE CLOUD COVER. 35 MARINE... HIGH PRESSURE HAS SETTLED OVER TEXAS COASTAL PLAINS. WINDS ACROSS MARINE AREA RUNNING AROUND 10 KTS FROM THE NORTH WITH WAVE HEIGHTS 2 TO 3 FEET. NORTH TO NORTHEAST WINDS WILL PREVAIL THROUGH MONDAY. WEAK ONSHORE FLOW EXPECTED LATE TUESDAY. SEAS REMAINING 3 FT AND UNDER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. GFS AND ECMWF INDICATE BACK DOOR FRONT PUSHING THROUGH REGION LATE IN THE WEEK. 37 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... COLLEGE STATION (CLL) 61 48 79 54 82 / 70 10 0 0 0 HOUSTON (IAH) 56 48 75 52 80 / 60 30 10 0 0 GALVESTON (GLS) 56 54 72 60 73 / 80 60 20 0 0 && .HGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. GM...NONE. && DISCUSSION...31
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 456 AM CDT SUN MAR 15 2009 TXZ163-164-176>179-195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-161300- AUSTIN-BRAZORIA-BRAZOS-BURLESON-CHAMBERS-COLORADO-FORT BEND- GALVESTON-GRIMES-HARRIS-HOUSTON-JACKSON-LIBERTY-MADISON-MATAGORDA- MONTGOMERY-POLK-SAN JACINTO-TRINITY-WALKER-WALLER-WASHINGTON- WHARTON- 456 AM CDT SUN MAR 15 2009 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL COMBINE WITH AVAILABLE MOISTURE TO PRODUCE PATCHY RAIN AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SOUTHEAST TEXAS. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL AVERAGE 1/2 TO 3/4 INCH SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 10...AND LESS THAN 1/2 INCH TO THE NORTH OF INTERSTATE 10. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT EXPECTED.
The Houston radar (KHGX), 52 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 16:12 UTC.
1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
A severe thunderstorm produced penny-sized hail in the Piney Point Village area just south of Interstate 10 about half way between Beltway 8 and I-610 W.
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, March 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: 150645.