Thunderstorms on April 15th and April 16th provided plenty of beneficial rainfall to the region. Thunderstorms on the evening of April 15th had rainfall rates in excess of 3 inches an hour over portions of Zapata and Jim Hogg counties, while thunderstorms on April 16th provided rain for much of the eastern half of the region.
Every event with a place to put it; 7 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 BRO wrote it up.
Thunderstorms on April 15th and April 16th provided plenty of beneficial rainfall to the region. Thunderstorms on the evening of April 15th had rainfall rates in excess of 3 inches an hour over portions of Zapata and Jim Hogg counties, while thunderstorms on April 16th provided rain for much of the eastern half of the region. McAllen received 1.76 inches of rain, Harlingen received 1.04 inches of rain, and Rio Hondo received as much as 3.7 inches of rain.
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 Brownsville, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 9, 5:19 PM CST, 6 hours 41 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 619 PM CDT MON APR 9 2012 .DISCUSSION...UPDATED FOR LATEST AVIATION DISCUSSION BELOW. && .AVIATION... A LONGWAVE RIDGE AXIS OVER NM THIS AFTERNOON...WILL GRADUALLY SHIFT E THROUGH MID-WEEK. AS THIS OCCURS...WINDS WILL BECOME SE AS SURFACE HIGH PRESSURE MOVES E OF THE REGION. WITH RIDGING...BOTH AT THE SURFACE AND ALOFT...EXPECT MOSTLY VFR FLIGHT CATEGORIES...WITH SCTD AFTERNOON CU AT MOST TERMINALS THROUGH 11/0000 UTC. WIND SPEEDS SHOULD GENERALLY GENERALLY HOVER BETWEEN 5-10 KTS OVERNIGHT...INCREASING TO BETWEEN 10 AND 15 KTS TUESDAY. /BUTTS/ && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 154 PM CDT MON APR 9 2012/ SHORT TERM /TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT/...THE 500 MB RIDGE AXIS WILL DRIFT SLOWLY EASTWARDS AND WILL REMAIN POSITIONED OVER THE SOUTH CENTRAL PLAINS STATES THROUGHOUT THE SHORT TERM PERIOD. THIS WILL KEEP THE MOST SIGNIFICANT MOISTURE SHUNTED TO THE WEST AND NORTH ALONG THE EDGES OF THE RIDGE AXIS WHICH WILL IN TURN MAINTAIN FAIRLY DRY AND STABLE CONDITIONS IN PLACE OVER THE BRO CWA. AS THE MID LEVEL RIDGE AXIS SHIFTS GRADUALLY EASTWARDS THE LOW LEVEL FLOW WILL BECOME MORE S-SE AND WILL BEGIN TO GRADUALLY STRENGTHEN AS A BROAD AND STRONG SURFACE LOW STARTS TO PUSH INTO THE ROCKIES THIS WILL START TO PUSH THE LOW LEVEL DEWPOINTS BACK UP INTO THE UPPER 60S RESULTING IN MORE UNCOMFORTABLE HUMIDITY LEVELS. THE MODEL GUIDANCE IS IN VERY GOOD AGREEMENT IN THE HANDLING OF THE 500 MB PATTERN IN THE SHORT TERM WITH ALL OF THE MODELS WELL REFLECTING THE EXPECTED STRENGTH AND POSITION OF THE RIDGE AXIS. THE MAV AND MET FORECAST TEMPS ARE ALSO IN PRETTY GOOD AGREEMENT WITH NO MAJOR DISAGREEMENTS FOR HIGHS AND LOWS THROUGHOUT THE SHORT TERM. WILL STICK PRETTY CLOSE TO A CONSENSUS OF THE TWO FOR MAXES AND MINS AND WILL GO WITH NIL POPS DUE TO THE PERSISTENT INFLUENCE OF THE MID LEVEL RIDGE. SOME PATCHY FOG WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE NORTHERNMOST REACHES OF THE BRO CWA DUE TO THE COMBINATION OF THE FAIRLY NARROW TEMP/DP SPREAD AND THE EXPECTED LIGHT SURFACE WINDS LATER TONIGHT. LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY/... AT THE ONSET OF THE LONG TERM PERIOD GFS/ECMWF IN GOOD AGREEMENT THAT WE ARE POSITIONED NEAR THE AXIS OF A LONG WAVE RIDGE SANDWICHED BETWEEN A DEPARTING EAST COAST TROUGH...AND A DIGGING WEST COAST TROUGH. THIS TROUGH WILL BE IN THE PROCESS OF GENERATING A SURFACE/LOW LEVEL CYCLONE OVER THE WESTERN PLAINS AND LEE TROUGHING ALONG THE ROCKIES WHICH SHOULD WORK WITH THE SURFACE RIDGE OVER THE GULF OF MEXICO TO ENHANCE OUR WINDS LOCALLY ON THURSDAY AND LIKELY BOOST OUR SURFACE RELATIVE HUMIDITY SOMEWHAT...BUT DRIER AIR MIXING IN FROM THE EAST...WHICH HAS BEEN UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF STRONG SUBSIDENCE THE LAST FEW DAYS MAY ARREST THE INCREASE IN HUMIDITY SOMEWHAT. THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY THE INITIAL SHORTWAVE TROUGH EJECTS NORTHEASTWARD INTO THE NORTH CENTRAL CONUS ON THE LIP OF A STRONG POLAR JET MAX...AS THE JETMAX GETS OUT FRONT OF THE LONGWAVE TROUGH A CLOSED LOW BEGINS TO FORM AND MOVE SOUTHWARD. THE 12Z GFS SEEMS TO HAVE BACKED OFF WITH HOW AMPLIFIED THE LONGWAVE TROUGH/CLOSED LOW TANDEM BECOMES...AND HOW FAR SOUTH IT TRACKS...BUT THE NET RESULT IS LARGELY THE SAME. LOW LEVEL AND SURFACE CYCLOGENESIS OVER THE SOUTHERN ROCKIES...AND EVENTUALLY IN THE LEE OF THE SIERRA MADRE IS INDICATED BY THE GFS...WHICH KEEPS A STEADY AND SLOWLY INTENSIFYING SURFACE PRESSURE GRADIENT OVER THE REGION. THIS WILL LIKELY LEAD TO SEVERAL DAYS OF PERSISTENT SOUTH TO SOUTHEASTERLY WINDS...ESPECIALLY FROM FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. THE APPROACHING LOWS WORK IN TANDEM WITH SURFACE RIDGING OVER THE EASTERN GULF AND ATLANTIC TO LEAD TO A RELATIVELY LONG LASTING AND EXPANSIVE GULF FETCH WITH WINDS OF 20 TO 30 KNOTS. THIS MAY LEAD TO EXTENDED PERIODS OF HIGH SURF AND POSSIBLY MINOR COASTAL FLOODING AT AREA BEACHES. WAVE GUIDANCE ALSO SUGGESTS THE POSSIBILITY OF LONG PERIOD SWELL MOVING INTO THE COASTAL WATERS WHICH MAY FURTHER ENHANCE MARINE RELATED PROBLEMS AND COASTAL ISSUES. POPS/WX DURING THE EVENT REMAIN TRICKY...SOUTH/SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS ALOFT APPEAR TO BUILD A RATHER FORMIDABLE CAP BY MID WEEK AND THE NEW FORECAST PACKAGE TRIMS POPS FROM EASTERN AREAS AND AREAS FURTHER FROM THE RIVER AND LESS LIKELY TO CATCH A STRAY STORM COMING IN FROM MEXICO. BY SATURDAY AND SUNDAY MID LEVEL IMPULSES COMBINED WITH MARGINALLY FAVORABLE THERMODYNAMICS CALL FOR AT LEAST A SCHC THUNDER POP. THE 12Z ECMWF/GFS ARE IN REASONABLY GOOD AGREEMENT WITH A FULL FRONTAL PASSAGE BY MONDAY AFTERNOON...HAVE SLOWED THAT TIMING SOMEWHAT IN THE GRIDS BUT HAVE SLIGHTLY HIGHER POPS FOR MONDAY ACROSS THE ENTIRE AREA. TEMPERATURES SHOULD REMAIN ABOVE GUIDANCE...CONFIDENCE IS LOWER FOR SUNDAY AND MONDAY WITH INTERACTIONS WITH THE DEVELOPING STORM SYSTEM...BUT FRIDAY AND SATURDAY LOOK TO BE THE WARMEST UPCOMING DAYS FOR NOW...AS THE WIND IS PROJECTED TO BE MORE SOUTHERLY AND DOWNSLOPE INSTEAD OF SOUTHEASTERLY OFF THE GULF. /68/ MARINE... TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT...AS MENTIONED ABOVE THE BIGGEST CHANGE COMING ON ACROSS THE LOWER TX MARINE AREAS WILL BE THE STEADY SHIFT AND GRADUAL INCREASE OF THE SURFACE WINDS AROUND TO A MORE SE DIRECTION TOMORROW AND TOMORROW NIGHT. THIS WILL IN TURN ALLOW THE GULF SWELLS TO START TO GRADUALLY BUILD INTO TUESDAY NIGHT. DESPITE THIS SHIFT AND GRADUAL INCREASE OF THE MARINE WIND FIELDS...NO SCA CONDITIONS AREA EXPECTED THROUGHOUT THE SHORT TERM WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY...MODERATE SOUTHEAST WINDS ARE EXPECTED WEDNESDAY WITH MODERATE SEAS. THURSDAY SOUTHEAST WINDS ARE EXPECTED TO INCREASE WITH SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY WINDS POSSIBLE BY THURSDAY NIGHT WITH SEAS BECOMING ROUGH. SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES WILL LIKELY BE NEEDED FOR WINDS AND SEAS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY WITH A LONG 20 TO 25 KNOT SOUTHEASTERLY FETCH BUILDING OVER THE WESTERN GULF. && .BRO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. GM...NONE. && THIS PRODUCT IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE WEB AT: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RGV
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 517 AM CDT MON APR 9 2012 TXZ248>257-101200- ZAPATA-JIM HOGG-BROOKS-KENEDY-STARR-HIDALGO-INLAND WILLACY- INLAND CAMERON-COASTAL WILLACY-COASTAL CAMERON- 517 AM CDT MON APR 9 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. THERE IS A MODERATE RISK FOR RIP CURRENTS AT AREA BEACHES TODAY AND TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. WINDY CONDITION ARE FORECAST FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY FOR DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. WINDS ARE FORECAST TO REACH NEAR 30 MILES PER HOUR EACH DAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. GMZ130-132-135-150-155-170-175-101200- LAGUNA MADRE FROM THE PORT OF BROWNSVILLE TO THE ARROYO COLORADO- LAGUNA MADRE FROM THE ARROYO COLORADO TO 5 NM NORTH OF PORT MANSFIELD TX- LAGUNA MADRE FROM 5 NM NORTH OF PORT MANSFIELD TO BAFFIN BAY TX- COASTAL WATERS FROM PORT MANSFIELD TO THE RIO GRANDE OUT 20 NM- COASTAL WATERS FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT MANSFIELD OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM PORT MANSFIELD TO THE RIO GRANDE EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM BAFFIN BAY TO PORT MANSFIELD EXTENDING FROM 20 TO 60 NM- 517 AM CDT MON APR 9 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO AND THE LAGUNA MADRE. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY. NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
9 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Kenedy County continued to see improvement in drought conditions.The SW corner of the county entered D2 drought conditions, while the rest of the county remained in D3 drought conditions.
Brooks County continued to see improvement in drought conditions. The western half of the county improved to D1 drought, while the eastern half of the county was in D2 drought conditions.
Jim Hogg County continued to see improvement in drought conditions. Much of the county was in D1 drought, with only the far NW corner in D2 drought.
Zapata County continued to see improvement in drought conditions. The southern tip of the county was in D1 drought conditions, the middle of the county in D2 drought conditions, and the NE corner of the county in D3 drought conditions.
Cameron County continued to see improvement in drought conditions over much of the county. The western two thirds of the county entered into D2 drought, while the eastern third remained in D3 drought conditions.
Willacy County continued to see improvement in drought conditions over much of the county. The western two thirds of the county entered into D2 drought, while the eastern third remained in D3 drought conditions.
Coastal Willacy County saw no improvement in drought conditions and remained in D3 drought.
Coastal Cameron County saw no improvement in drought conditions and remained in D3 drought.
Hidalgo County continued to see improvement in drought conditions. Much of the county improved to D1 drought conditions, with only the far eastern edge of the county remaining in D2 drought.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, April 2012
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: 379367, 379368, 379369, 379370, 379386, 379387, 379388, 379389, 379393.