An approaching upper level trough brought strong west winds across the area of 25 to 35 MPH with gusts of 40 to 50 MPH. Dry air was in place with minimum relative humidity values in the single digits.
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.
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 MAF wrote it up.
An approaching upper level trough brought strong west winds across the area of 25 to 35 MPH with gusts of 40 to 50 MPH. Dry air was in place with minimum relative humidity values in the single digits. Critical to extremely critical fire weather conditions were present and a Red Flag Warning was issued for the area.
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 Midland/Odessa, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 13, 11:57 PM CST, 3 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIDLAND/ODESSA TX
1257 AM CDT THU APR 14 2011
.DISCUSSION...
SEE 06Z AVIATION DISCUSSION BELOW.
&&
.AVIATION...
VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THROUGH THE NEXT 24 HOURS. MOST AREAS
CAN EXPECT SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS THROUGH THE EARLY MORNING HOURS.
THE EXCEPTION TO THIS WILL BE ACROSS THE PERMIAN BASIN...WHERE A
RETREATING DRYLINE WILL BRING MORE OF A SOUTHERLY WIND. THE
DRYLINE WILL THEN BEGIN TO PUSH EASTWARD AROUND SUNRISE...WITH
GUSTY WEST WINDS SPREADING OVER ALL AREAS BY ROUGHLY 15Z. WINDS
WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE DURING THE AFTERNOON AND MOST SITES CAN
EXPECT SUSTAINED SPEEDS AROUND 25KT WITH GUSTS TO AROUND 35KT
MAINLY AFTER 18Z.
&&
.MAF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
NM...RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 9 PM MDT THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
ZONES... GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS NP/LINCOLN NF/LNZ...SOUTHEAST
PLAINS/BLM ROSWELL/LNZ.
WIND ADVISORY FROM NOON TO 6 PM MDT THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
ZONES... CENTRAL LEA COUNTY...EDDY COUNTY PLAINS...NORTHERN
LEA COUNTY...SOUTHERN LEA COUNTY.
HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 6 PM MDT THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
ZONES... GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS OF EDDY COUNTY.
TX...RED FLAG WARNING FROM NOON TODAY TO 10 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR
THE FOLLOWING ZONES... BIG BEND AREA...PRESIDIO VALLEY...
TERRELL.
RED FLAG WARNING UNTIL 10 PM CDT /9 PM MDT/ THIS EVENING FOR THE
FOLLOWING ZONES... ANDREWS...BORDEN...CRANE...DAVIS/APACHE
MOUNTAINS AREA...DAWSON...ECTOR...GAINES...GLASSCOCK...
GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS...HOWARD...LOVING...MARFA PLATEAU...
MARTIN...MIDLAND...MITCHELL...PECOS...REAGAN...REEVES
COUNTY AND UPPER TRANS PECOS...SCURRY...UPTON...VAN HORN
AND HIGHWAY 54 CORRIDOR...WARD...WINKLER.
WIND ADVISORY FROM 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON TO 7 PM CDT THIS EVENING
FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES... ANDREWS...BORDEN...CRANE...
DAVIS/APACHE MOUNTAINS AREA...DAWSON...ECTOR...GAINES...
GLASSCOCK...HOWARD...LOVING...MARFA PLATEAU...MARTIN...
MIDLAND...MITCHELL...PECOS...REAGAN...REEVES COUNTY AND
UPPER TRANS PECOS...SCURRY...UPTON...VAN HORN AND HIGHWAY
54 CORRIDOR...WARD...WINKLER.
HIGH WIND WARNING UNTIL 6 PM MDT THURSDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING
ZONES... GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS.
&&
06HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIDLAND/ODESSA TX 952 PM CDT WED APR 13 2011 NMZ027>029-033-034-TXZ045>048-050>053-057>063-067>070-074-075- 079>082-258-150300- GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS OF EDDY COUNTY-EDDY COUNTY PLAINS- NORTHERN LEA COUNTY-CENTRAL LEA COUNTY-SOUTHERN LEA COUNTY-GAINES- DAWSON-BORDEN-SCURRY-ANDREWS-MARTIN-HOWARD-MITCHELL- VAN HORN AND HIGHWAY 54 CORRIDOR-REEVES COUNTY AND UPPER TRANS PECOS- LOVING-WINKLER-ECTOR-MIDLAND-GLASSCOCK-WARD-CRANE-UPTON-REAGAN- DAVIS/APACHE MOUNTAINS AREA-PECOS-PRESIDIO VALLEY-MARFA PLATEAU- BIG BEND AREA-TERRELL-GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS- 952 PM CDT WED APR 13 2011 /852 PM MDT WED APR 13 2011/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO...SOUTHWEST TEXAS AND WEST TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT WESTERLY WINDS AND DRY TO VERY DRY CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION THROUGH TONIGHT. A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF THE AREA THROUGH THE NIGHT. HIGH WINDS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS...THEREFORE A HIGH WIND WARNING IS IN EFFECT THERE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY VERY DRY...WINDY AND WARM CONDITIONS THURSDAY WILL RESULT IN DANGEROUS FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS ALL OF SOUTHEAST NEW MEXICO AND WEST TEXAS. SINCE WINDS WILL BE 20 TO 35 MPH SUSTAINED WITH GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH IN MOST AREAS...THURSDAY WILL BE A HIGH IMPACT FIRE WEATHER DAY. A RED FLAG WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE ENTIRE AREA INTO THURSDAY EVENING. A HIGH WIND WARNING WILL CONTINUE FOR THE GUADALUPE MOUNTAINS AND A WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT FOR MOST OF THE REMAINDER OF THE AREA. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED. THIS PRODUCT...ALONG WITH OTHER WATCHES...WARNINGS...ADVISORIES... AND STATEMENTS ISSUED BY THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OFFICE IN MIDLAND CAN BE FOUND ON THE INTERNET AT /LOWER CASE/ HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/MIDLAND
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
A fire, known as the Frying Pan Ranch, burned 80,907 acres in Andrews County. Numerous homes were threatened by this fire, but all structures were reportedly saved.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2011Every state in 2011This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, April 2011
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: 298374.