Cold in Oklahoma, May 5, 2013

Name: Cold in Oklahoma, May 5, 2013
Start: 2013-05-05T03:00
End: 2013-05-05T07:00
Location: Oklahoma

May 5, 2013 · NWS AMA · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

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The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS AMA wrote it up.

The residual cold airmass over the Oklahoma Panhandle from a cold frontal passage earlier in the week had begun to modify. This kept overnight low temperatures from cooling as quickly as previous nights. Freezing temperatures were not obtained until the early morning hours on the 5th. These subfreezing temperatures threatened sensitive vegetation during the start of the growing season. Overnight lows ranged from 29 degrees at Kenton (Cimarron County) to 31 degrees at Goodwell (Texas County). Temperatures quickly warmed above freezing during the late morning of the 5rd.

What forecasters said that day

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 Amarillo, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 4, 10:25 PM CST, 4 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 4, 10:25 PM CST, 4 hours 35 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
1125 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013

.AVIATION...
06Z TAF CYCLE
UPPER RIDGE BUILDS IN OVER THE PANHANDLES THROUGH 06Z MONDAY FROM THE
CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES AS A SURFACE RIDGE SLOWLY MOVES EASTWARD
AWAY FROM THE THREE TAF SITES. VFR CONDITIONS WITH MAINLY SCATTERED
TO BROKEN OR OVERCAST HIGH LEVEL CLOUDINESS. LIGHT WINDS...MAINLY
FROM THE NORTH AND NORTHEAST...AROUND 10 KNOTS OR SO OR LESS. THE
WINDS WILL BEGIN TO VEER AROUND TO THE SOUTHEAST AND SOUTH BY SUNDAY
EVENING.

SCHNEIDER

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 951 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013/

UPDATE...
NO CHANGES PLANNED TO THE FREEZE WARNING FOR TONIGHT. WITH THAT BEING
SAID...INCREASING HIGH CLOUDS FROM THE WEST OVERNIGHT COULD
POTENTIALLY HOLD SOME LOCATIONS IN THE WARNING JUST ABOVE FREEZING.
ALSO HAVE SOME CONCERNS THAT A FEW SPOTS MAINLY IN THE NORTH CENTRAL
TX PANHANDLE COULD BRIEFLY HIT FREEZING OR JUST BELOW. HOWEVER...NOT
ENOUGH CONFIDENCE IN THIS TO ADJUST THE WARNING. MADE SOME TWEAKS TO
VARIOUS WEATHER ELEMENTS TO BETTER MATCH CURRENT AND EXPECTED
CONDITIONS FOR THE REST OF THE NIGHT...BUT NOTHING MAJOR.

KB

PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 632 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013/

AVIATION...
00Z TAF CYCLE
AN UPPER RIDGE OVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES WILL BUILD IN
OVER THE PANHANDLES THROUGH 00Z MONDAY. A SURFACE RIDGE WILL BUILD IN
ACROSS THE PANHANDLES TONIGHT BEFORE SLOWLY MOVING OFF TO THE EAST BY
LATE SUNDAY. VFR CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED ALONG WITH LIGHT NORTHERLY
OR NORTHEASTERLY WINDS 5 TO 15 KNOTS OR LESS.

SCHNEIDER

PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 303 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013/

DISCUSSION...
STRONG NORTHERLY WINDS IN THE EASTERN PANHANDLES WILL DECREASE WITH
SUNSET THIS EVENING AS THE PRESSURE GRADIENT WEAKENS. WINDS ARE
EXPECTED TO BE WEAKER ON SUNDAY AS UPPER LOW TO OUR EAST MOVES AWAY
AND PRESSURE GRADIENT WEAKENS FURTHER.

THE PANHANDLES WILL BE STUCK BETWEEN TWO UPPER LOWS THROUGH ABOUT
MID WEEK. HOWEVER...AN UPPER LOW NOW OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC WILL
MOVE EASTWARD QUICKLY ACROSS NORTHWEST MEXICO SUNDAY NIGHT AND THEN
NORTHEAST ACROSS NEW MEXICO AND WEST TEXAS MONDAY AND TUESDAY. AS
THIS UPPER LOW MOVES INTO THE CONFLUENCE FLOW ALOFT OVER THE
SOUTHWEST U.S. IT WILL WEAKEN. BUT...THERE MAY BE JUST ENOUGH LIFT
AND INSTABILITY ASSOCIATED WITH THIS SYSTEM TO PRODUCE SOME SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY.

THE WESTERN UPPER LEVEL LOW WILL SLOWLY WORK ITS WAY NORTHEAST FROM
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA THROUGH THE 4 CORNERS REGION BY EARLY THURSDAY.
THIS TRACK WILL LIKELY DRY SLOT THE PANHANDLES TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH
THURSDAY. THIS IS WHERE THE MODELS START TO DIVERGE...SO CONFIDENCE
ON ANY PRECIPITATION FOR THE AREA REMAINS LOW FROM THURSDAY AND
BEYOND. THE MAIN PIECE OF THE 4 CORNERS UPPER LEVEL LOW IS EXPECTED
TO ROTATE BACK SOUTHWESTWARD AND THEN EAST ALONG THE MEXICAN BORDER
INTO FAR WEST TEXAS BY NEXT WEEKEND. THIS TRACK WOULD PROBABLY FAVOR
A BETTER CHANCE OF RAIN TO THE SOUTH OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE.

FIRE WEATHER...
THE ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS OVER THE CENTRAL AND EASTERN
OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE AND THE EASTERN TEXAS PANHANDLE WILL COME TO AN
END WITH THE SETTING SUN THIS EVENING AS WINDS DECREASE AND THE
RELATIVE HUMIDITY INCREASES. WINDS WILL BE LIGHTER ON SUNDAY AND
RAIN CHANCES RETURN ON MONDAY...SO NO ELEVATED OR CRITICAL FIRE
WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED THE REST OF THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY
NEXT WEEK.

&&

.AMA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
TX...FREEZE WARNING UNTIL 9 AM CDT SUNDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES:
     DALLAM...DEAF SMITH...HARTLEY...OLDHAM...SHERMAN.

OK...FREEZE WARNING UNTIL 9 AM CDT SUNDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES:
     CIMARRON...TEXAS.

&&

11/08

Hazardous weather outlook, May 4, 8:04 PM CST, 6 hours 56 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
904 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013

OKZ001>003-TXZ001>020-051100-
CIMARRON-TEXAS-BEAVER-DALLAM-SHERMAN-HANSFORD-OCHILTREE-LIPSCOMB-
HARTLEY-MOORE-HUTCHINSON-ROBERTS-HEMPHILL-OLDHAM-POTTER-CARSON-
GRAY-WHEELER-DEAF SMITH-RANDALL-ARMSTRONG-DONLEY-COLLINGSWORTH-
904 PM CDT SAT MAY 4 2013

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA
PANHANDLES.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

A FREEZE WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR WESTERN PORTIONS OF THE PANHANDLES
WHERE LOW TEMPERATURES OF 29 TO 32 DEGREES ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT.
ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE PANHANDLES...LOW TEMPERATURES ARE
FORECAST TO REMAIN JUST ABOVE FREEZING.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.

THE FREEZE WARNING CONTINUES THROUGH 9 AM CDT SUNDAY MORNING.

ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE ACROSS THE OKLAHOMA PANHANDLE
AND MUCH OF THE TEXAS PANHANDLE MONDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH TUESDAY. IF
STORMS DEVELOP...THEY ARE EXPECTED TO REMAIN BELOW SEVERE LEVELS AT
THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.

KB

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Cimarron

When: May 5, 3:00 AM CST to 7:00 AM CST
Where: Cimarron forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 36.748, -102.518 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

An overnight low of 29 degrees was reported in Kenton.

Cold/Wind Chill, Texas

When: May 5, 3:00 AM CST to 7:00 AM CST
Where: Texas forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 36.748, -101.490 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

An overnight low of 31 degrees was reported in Goodwell.

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill: Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Oklahoma in 2013 Every state in 2013 This day in weather history Warnings in Oklahoma, May 2013

Sources

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: 454026, 454027.