A cold front which aided in thunderstorm development during the late evening hours on the 30th into the early morning hours of the 31st stalled and retreated during the day on the 31st. This front in addition to a passing upper level disturbance led to additional thunderstorm development during the evening of the 31st.
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.
A cold front which aided in thunderstorm development during the late evening hours on the 30th into the early morning hours of the 31st stalled and retreated during the day on the 31st. This front in addition to a passing upper level disturbance led to additional thunderstorm development during the evening of the 31st. Scattered thunderstorms initially developed over the western and southwestern South Plains while two additional thunderstorm complexes developed over Hall County and over the extreme southwestern Texas Panhandle.
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 31, 5:45 PM CST, 20 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 645 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 .AVIATION... SCATTERED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS EXPECTED TO DEVELOP IN MOIST SOUTHEASTERLY UPSLOPE ENVIRONMENT OVER CENTRAL AND WESTERN SOUTH PLAINS THIS EVENING...AS A DISTURBANCE EDGES THROUGH NORTHEASTERN NEW MEXICO. BULK OF SHORT RANGE GUIDANCE INDICATING CONVECTIVE DEVELOPMENT CLOSE TO OR AT KLBB THIS EVENING...WITH LESS AGREEMENT OVER KCDS. ADDED TEMPO -TSRA AT KLBB. DISTURBANCE WILL PASS LATER TONIGHT...POSSIBILITY SHOWERS COULD EXTEND A SHORT TIME PAST MIDNIGHT TONIGHT...THEN HEIGHTS ALOFT WILL RE-BUILD KILLING SHOWER CHANCES LATER TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY. MODEST LOW LEVEL SOUTHERLY FLOW WILL FOLLOW WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON. RMCQUEEN && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 248 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011/ SHORT TERM... CURRENTLY IN WAIT MODE FOR CONVECTIVE INITIATION. EARLY AFTN TRENDS HAVE BEEN SLOW TO DEVELOP...ALTHOUGH MESONET OBS AND SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWING SOME MOISTURE ADVECTION INTO THE ROLLING PLAINS AND THE EXTREME SRN PART OF THE FCST AREA FROM SOUTH OF BROWNFIELD TOWARD JAYTON. TRENDS ARE GENERALLY ON PAR WITH 12Z MODEL RUNS AND MOST RECENT RUN OF THE RUC. WILL THUS NOT MAKE MUCH IN THE WAY OF CHANGE FROM THE LATE MORNING UPDATE. STILL LOOKING FOR A WEAKENING OF THE CAP AS LOW LEVEL MOISTURE INVADES TO THE NORTH AND NW WITH CONVECTIVE INITIATION MOST LIKELY TO OCCUR BETWEEN 22Z AND 00Z AND ACROSS AREAS SOUTH OF THE WARM FRONT. AN EAST-WEST ORIENTATION SOUTH OF THE BOUNDARY MAY END UP FAVORING PRECIP IN A RELATIVELY NARROW BAND ORIENTED PARALLEL TO THE BOUNDARY. GIVEN DIFFICULTY IN DETERMINING WHERE THAT WILL BE WILL KEEP POPS FROM BEING RAISED ATTM...FAVORING A CONTINUATION OF 30 AND 40 PCT. SVR POTENTIAL TO EXIST MAINLY EARLY IN THE EVENT BEFORE A TRANSITION TO A MULTI-CELLULAR CONVECTIVE SYSTEM. ALTHOUGH HEIGHTS ALOFT NOT PROGGED TO INCREASE WITH ANY SIGNIFICANCE WEDNESDAY...A BUILDING OF THE RIDGE TOWARD THE WEST AND AN INCREASE IN MID LEVEL TEMPS SHOULD BRING A QUICK END TO PRECIP CHANCES. EXCEPTION MAY BE ACROSS THE EXTREME SWRN PANHANDLE NEAR THE NM STATE LINE CLOSER TO THE SFC TROUGH...BUT THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE AFTER 00Z IF AT ALL. TEND TO FAVOR A BLEND OF MOS GUIDANCE FOR HIGHS WHICH WOULD PLACE THE AREA SQUARELY IN THE 90S. LONG TERM... FLOW PATTERN ACROSS THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY WILL REMAIN QUITE STAGNANT FOR THE NEXT WEEK...REALLY UNCHARACTERISTICALLY SO. UPPER LEVEL TROUGHINESS WILL PERSIST ACROSS THE WEST COAST WITH HIGH PRESSURE CENTERED OVER THE WESTERN GULF COAST STATES YIELDING SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW ALOFT FOR US...THE INTENSITY OF WHICH WILL DEPEND ON THE DAILY PROXIMITY TO THE HIGH. MONSOONAL TYPE PATTERN SETS UP ACROSS THE DESERT SOUTHWEST WITH STORMS POSSIBLE OVER CENTRAL AND EASTERN NEW MEXICO. GENERALLY SPEAKING...ACTIVITY SHOULD REMAIN TO OUR WEST CLOSER TO THE DRYLINE. RAIN CHANCES ACROSS THE REST OF THE AREA LOOK PRETTY SLIM AT THIS POINT. OVERALL...THE NEXT SEVEN DAYS LOOK ABOUT LIKE THIS...CLEAR IN THE MORNING...MAYBE SOME AFTERNOON CUMULUS...AND HIGH CLOUDS LATE AFTERNOON OR EVENING FROM STORMS OVER NEW MEXICO PERHAPS APPROACHING OUR NORTHWESTERN ZONES IN THE EVENING. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FRIONA 62 89 63 94 61 / 30 10 20 10 10 TULIA 66 91 65 95 63 / 40 10 10 10 10 PLAINVIEW 67 89 66 95 64 / 40 10 10 10 10 LEVELLAND 67 91 66 94 63 / 40 10 10 10 10 LUBBOCK 68 93 67 95 67 / 40 10 10 0 10 DENVER CITY 66 92 65 95 62 / 30 10 10 10 10 BROWNFIELD 68 91 65 95 64 / 30 10 10 10 10 CHILDRESS 68 95 66 99 67 / 40 10 0 0 0 SPUR 69 93 65 98 66 / 40 10 0 0 0 ASPERMONT 71 95 68 100 69 / 30 10 0 0 0 && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 99/99/05
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 1103 AM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 TXZ021>044-011615- PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE- FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING- YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL- 1103 AM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT CONVECTIVE A CHANCE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXIST ACROSS ALL OF THE SOUTH PLAINS REGION LATE TODAY AND TONIGHT. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP DURING THE 4 TO 7 PM TIMEFRAME. SUFFICIENT INSTABILITY AND SHEAR WILL EXIST TO SUPPORT A THREAT OF LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. ORGANIZED STORMS WHICH MAY PRODUCE HAIL LARGER THAN TWO INCHES IN DIAMETER...AND PERHAPS A BRIEF TORNADO WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE WITH SOME OF THE INITIAL DEVELOPMENT...BUT SUCH STORM ORGANIZATION WILL LIKELY GIVE WAY TO THUNDERSTORM COMPLEXES BY EARLY EVENING. THE PRIMARY THREAT THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS WILL BE HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF GOLFBALLS...DAMAGING WINDS...AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY THE PROBABILITY OF HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUESTED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 619 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 TXZ033-312345- COCHRAN- 619 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR COCHRAN COUNTY... AT 616 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A DEVELOPING THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES SOUTHWEST OF MORTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH. PENNY SIZE HAIL...WINDS UP TO 50 MPH...ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. GUSTY WINDS MAY CAUSE SMALL BRANCHES TO BE BLOWN DOWN...AND LOOSE OBJECTS TO BLOW AROUND. SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE UNTIL THIS STORM HAS PASSED.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 625 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 TXZ039-010000- YOAKUM- 625 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR YOAKUM COUNTY... AT 616 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM 9 MILES SOUTHWEST OF BRONCO...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 25 MPH. THIS STORM SHOULD ENTER YOAKUM COUNTY BY 7 PM THIS EVENING. LOCAL RESIDENTS SHOULD TAKE PROTECTIVE ACTION IN THE EVENT A WARNING IS ISSUED.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
705 PM CDT TUE MAY 31 2011
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0705 PM HAIL 5 SW MORTON 33.67N 102.82W
05/31/2011 E1.00 INCH COCHRAN TX TRAINED SPOTTER
HAIL STILL FALLING AT THIS TIME.
&&
EVENT NUMBER LUB1100127
MCZThe Lubbock radar (KLBB), 94 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:03 UTC.
8 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The Cochran County sheriff's office reported quarter size hail southwest of Morton. No damage was reported.
The Cochran County sheriff's office reported golf ball size hail near Bledsoe. No damage was reported.
Local broadcast media and a trained spotter reported very large hail up to the size of tennis balls south of Morton. No damage was reported.
A Texas Tech University mesonet meteorologist reported pea sized hail covering the ground along with some nickel sized hail.
A trained spotter in Smyer reported very large two inch hail. No damage was reported.
A trained spotter, local broadcast media, and Texas Department of Transportation employees all reported hail ranging from quarter to golf ball size from southwest of Memphis to Memphis. No damage was reported.
The Parmer County emergency manager and the Bovina police department reported nickel to quarter size hail in Bovina. No damage was reported.
The public reported that a barn was destroyed by thunderstorm outflow winds near Claytonville.
The public reported golf ball size hail north of Matador. No damage was reported.
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, May 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: 308175, 308176, 308177, 308178, 308179, 308180, 308185, 308188, 308186.