Abundant low level moisture contributed to widely scattered thunderstorms on the afternoon and evening of the 24th. One of these storms became severe over Floyd and Hale counties, causing extensive crop damage due to hail.
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.
Abundant low level moisture contributed to widely scattered thunderstorms on the afternoon and evening of the 24th. One of these storms became severe over Floyd and Hale counties, causing extensive crop damage due to hail.
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 Jul 24, 2:14 PM CST, 2 hours 16 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 314 PM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 .SHORT TERM... A CONVECTIVELY ACTIVE SHORT TERM PERIOD APPEARS TO BE IN STORE FOR RESIDENTS OF WEST TEXAS...AS BOTH TODAY AND TOMORROW WILL FEATURE CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS. SATELLITE IMAGERY REVEALS THAT WEST TEXAS IS CURRENTLY UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF THE EASTERN PORTION OF A BROAD WESTERN CONUS RIDGE...WITH LONGWAVE TROUGHING ACROSS MUCH OF THE EASTERN CONUS. MEANWHILE...A NOCTURNAL MCS MOVED THROUGH CENTRAL OKLAHOMA LAST NIGHT... AND RAPIDLY DECAYED THIS MORNING ACROSS NORTH TEXAS. OUTFLOW FROM THIS SYSTEM HELPED TO REINFORCE AN OTHERWISE UNREMARKABLE COLD FRONT...AND AS A RESULT... THIS FRONT HAS SURGED ALL THE WAY TO THE EXTREME SOUTHERN SOUTH PLAINS AND INTO THE BIG COUNTRY. WHILE SUBSIDENCE IN THE WAKE OF LAST NIGHTS MCS APPEARS TO HAVE SLIGHTLY STABILIZED THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE ROLLING PLAINS...RICH LOW-LEVEL MOISTURE REMAINS IN THE BULK OF WEST TEXAS...WITH WIDESPREAD MID TO UPPER 60S DEWPOINTS IN PLACE. THIS MOISTURE...IN COMBINATION WITH MODEST FORCING FROM THE BOUNDARY AND STRONG INSOLATION...HAS RESULTED IN THE RAPID DEVELOPMENT OF TCU ACROSS THE SOUTHERN SOUTH PLAINS...WITH SCATTERED SHOWERS AND STORMS ALREADY ONGOING ACROSS PORTIONS OF EASTERN NEW MEXICO AND PERMIAN BASIN. THIS CONVECTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE TO EXPAND IN COVERAGE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON INTO THE LUB CWA...WITH THE GREATEST CHANCES OCCURRING IN THE SOUTHERN SOUTH PLAINS INITIALLY. LATER IN THE EVENING...STORMS WILL ALSO LIKELY DRIFT INTO PORTIONS OF THE WESTERN AND NORTHWESTERN SOUTH PLAINS AS WELL. WHILE INSTABILITY WILL BE MORE THAN SUFFICIENT... WITH CAPE AOA 1000 TO 1500 J/KG...THE PRIMARY LIMITING FACTOR FOR SEVERE WEATHER WILL BE ANEMIC WIND SHEAR UNDERNEATH THE RIDGE. STILL...SOME PULSE-TYPE STORMS MAY HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE SMALL HAIL TO POSSIBLY NICKEL SIZE...AND GUSTY WINDS TO 60 MPH. MOST OF THE ACTIVITY WILL LIKELY BEGIN TO DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET... HOWEVER SOME STORMS ACROSS THE WESTERN SOUTH PLAINS MAY LINGER INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. CHANCES WILL INCREASE FOR SEVERE WEATHER TOMORROW AFTERNOON...AS AN UNSEASONABLY STRONG SHORTWAVE IS PROGGED TO MOVE THROUGH THE TX PANHANDLE FROM THE NORTHWEST DURING THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. ONCE AGAIN...VERY HIGH MOISTURE AND STRONG INSTABILITY WILL BE IN PLACE ACROSS THE REGION...HOWEVER THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE SETUP TODAY AND TOMORROW WILL BE THE INCREASE IN WIND SHEAR AND FORCING ASSOCIATED WITH THE PASSING WAVE. MODEL SOUNDINGS INDICATE AS MUCH AS 40 KTS OF 0-6KM SHEAR WILL BE PRESENT DUE TO THE INCREASED WIND FIELDS...WHICH IS MORE THAN SUFFICIENT FOR ORGANIZED SEVERE UPDRAFTS. GIVEN THE RELATIVE AGREEMENT BETWEEN OPERATIONAL MODELS...OPTED TO INCREASE STORM CHANCES ACROSS AT LEAST THE NORTHERN PORTION OF THE CWA...WITH CHANCES FARTHER SOUTH REMAINING RELATIVELY CONDITIONAL AS THE STRONGEST FORCING WILL EXIST IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE PASSING WAVE. && .LONG TERM... PRIMARY FOCUS IN THE EXTENDED REVOLVES AROUND PICKING OUT THE BEST CHANCES FOR MOIST CONVECTION AND THE TIMING OF ANY FRONTS. AS THE SHORT TERM SECTION DISCUSSES...THE PROSPECTS FOR SEVERE CONVECTION WILL BE PEAKING LATE TOMORROW AFTERNOON INTO TOMORROW EVENING AS A POTENT SHORTWAVE TROUGH GRAZES THE CWA TO THE NORTH/NORTHEAST. STRONG INSTABILITY AND MUCH IMPROVED WIND SHEAR FROM TODAY MAY SUPPORT AN MCS OR TWO THROUGH TOMORROW NIGHT. IN ADDITION A VERY MOIST ATMOSPHERE WITH PWATS IN EXCESS OF 1.5 INCHES COULD SUPPORT LOCALLY HEAVY RAINS. ALTHOUGH THE BEST LARGE SCALE FORCING WILL LIKELY MOVE BY JUST TO THE NORTHEAST OF THE FA...WE COULD SEE A COMPLEX OF STORMS CLIP AT LEAST THE NORTHEAST ZONES AND HAVE RAISED POPS TO AROUND 50 PERCENT NEAR CHILDRESS WITH THIS IN MIND. CONFIDENCE IN CONVECTION QUICKLY DROPS FARTHER TO THE SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST THOUGH DID MAINTAIN A SLIGHT CHANCE OF STORMS THROUGH THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE FA THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. IN THE WAKE OF THE SHORTWAVE TOMORROW NIGHT NWP HAS NOW TRENDED STRONGER WITH A FROPA ON FRIDAY...WITH INDICATIONS THIS FRONT MAY CLEAR THE SOUTHERN ZONES BY AROUND 18Z. THIS QUICKER FRONT WOULD PROVIDE MODEST COOLING AS WELL AS SHIFT ANY FOCUS FOR STORM CHANCES SOUTHWARD WITH IT. GIVEN THIS DID TREND TEMPERATURES DOWNWARD SEVERAL DEGREES FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND FRIDAY NIGHT AND ALSO CUTOFF MENTIONABLE POPS FOR ALL BUT THE SOUTHERN MOST ZONES FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. IF TRENDS CONTINUE WITH THE QUICKER FRONT EVEN THE SOUTHERN SOUTH AND ROLLING PLAINS MAY BE VOID OF RAIN CHANCES BY FRIDAY AFTERNOON. SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE TEMPERATURES AND DRY WEATHER WILL CONTINUE SATURDAY AS SFC RIDGING CONTROLS THE WEATHER LOCALLY. HOWEVER...BY SATURDAY EVENING/NIGHT WEAK NORTHWESTERLY FLOW ON THE NORTHEAST PERIPHERY OF A SOUTHWESTERN UA RIDGE MAY BE ENOUGH TO BEND THE MONSOONAL MOISTURE PLUME AND MOUNTAIN CONVECTION TOWARD THE FAR NORTHWESTERN ZONES. A RELATIVELY FLAT VERSION OF THE SOUTHWEST UPPER RIDGE WILL THEN EXPAND EASTWARD OVER MUCH OF TEXAS INTO THE EARLY/MIDDLE PARTS OF NEXT WEEK. THIS WILL CAUSE TEMPERATURES TO RECOVER BACK TO OR SLIGHTLY ABOVE AVERAGE. THE ECMWF DOES STILL SUGGEST A WEAK FRONT MAY TRY AND DIP INTO THE CWA BY MIDWEEK AS A DISTURBANCE TRANSLATES BY WELL TO THE NORTH BUT THE GFS IS LESS OPTIMISTIC OF THIS. ATTM HAVE KEEP THE FRONT TO THE NORTH...BUT IF IT DOES MAKE IT IN IT COULD RESULT IN MINOR COOLING AND AN UPTICK IN RAIN CHANCES. BEFORE THEN...WE WILL HAVE TO WATCH AND SEE IF THE MONSOON CAN BEND OVER THE SOUTH PLAINS EARLY NEXT WEEK AND BRIEFLY INCREASE STORM CHANCES AS A SHORTWAVE TROUGH MOVES FROM THE CENTRAL ROCKIES INTO THE CENTRAL PLAINS. IF THIS HAPPENS WE COULD SEE A LOW CHANCE OF STORMS LOCALLY...THOUGH THE BEST FORCING AND PRECIPITATION CHANCES CURRENTLY APPEAR TO BE TO THE NORTH AND SOUTHWEST OF THE AREA. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FRIONA 68 91 66 87 60 / 30 30 30 20 10 TULIA 69 93 66 87 61 / 20 40 40 20 10 PLAINVIEW 70 91 67 88 61 / 20 30 30 20 10 LEVELLAND 71 93 68 91 64 / 20 20 20 20 10 LUBBOCK 71 93 70 91 64 / 20 20 20 20 10 DENVER CITY 72 94 68 94 66 / 30 20 20 20 20 BROWNFIELD 73 96 68 94 66 / 20 20 20 20 10 CHILDRESS 74 95 71 89 66 / 10 40 50 20 10 SPUR 73 95 70 95 67 / 20 20 20 20 10 ASPERMONT 73 96 72 97 69 / 20 20 20 20 20 && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 16/23
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 1006 AM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 TXZ021>044-251515- PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE- FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING- YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL- 1006 AM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT CONVECTIVE ISOLATED TO WIDELY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE BY MID AFTERNOON...PRIMARILY SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 114... AS AN OUTFLOW ENHANCED COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO PROGRESS INTO THE SOUTHERN SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS THIS AFTERNOON. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING SMALL HAIL TO NICKEL SIZE...IN ADDITION TO GUSTY WINDS TO 60 MPH AND BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS. LATER IN THE EVENING...ADDITIONAL STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS MOST OF THE SOUTH PLAINS... AS STORMS ACROSS EASTERN NEW MEXICO SLOWLY DRIFT TOWARD THE EAST AND INTO WEST TEXAS. THESE STORMS WILL WILL ALSO PRESENT THE POSSIBILITY OF SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE AGAIN THURSDAY...WITH THE GREATEST CHANCES EXISTING ACROSS THE NORTHERN SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS...IN ADDITION TO THE SOUTHERN ROLLING PLAINS. A FEW STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE... ALTHOUGH A WIDESPREAD SEVERE THREAT IS NOT ANTICIPATED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 444 PM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 TXZ029-030-242200- FLOYD-HALE- 444 PM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR HALE AND FLOYD COUNTIES... AT 443 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 12 MILES NORTHWEST OF FLOYDADA...MOVING WEST AT 20 MPH. PEA SIZE HAIL...WINDS SPEEDS UP TO 40 MPH...OCCASIONAL CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS...ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. GUSTY WINDS MAY CAUSE SMALL OBJECTS SUCH AS TRASH BINS TO BLOW AROUND. STAY AWAY FROM HIGH OBJECTS OUTDOORS SUCH AS TREES. SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE UNTIL THIS STORM HAS PASSED. LAT...LON 3395 10175 3429 10174 3425 10117 3394 10118 TIME...MOT...LOC 2144Z 095DEG 16KT 3410 10151 JDV
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 459 PM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 TXZ029-030-242215- FLOYD-HALE- 459 PM CDT WED JUL 24 2013 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR HALE AND FLOYD COUNTIES... AT 456 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF FLOYDADA...MOVING WEST AT 15 MPH. NICKEL SIZE HAIL...WINDS SPEEDS UP TO 40 MPH...CONTINUOUS CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING...BRIEF HEAVY DOWNPOURS...ARE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. GUSTY WINDS MAY CAUSE SMALL OBJECTS SUCH AS TRASH BINS TO BLOW AROUND. STAY AWAY FROM HIGH OBJECTS OUTDOORS SUCH AS TREES. SEEK SHELTER IN A STURDY STRUCTURE UNTIL THIS STORM HAS PASSED. LAT...LON 3395 10175 3429 10174 3426 10132 3395 10131 TIME...MOT...LOC 2159Z 110DEG 12KT 3411 10146 JDV
The Lubbock radar (KLBB), 60 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:30 UTC.
1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
A Skywarn spotter reported half dollar size hail in Aiken. The hail was also reported to have damaged cotton fields in the area.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2013Every state in 2013This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, July 2013
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: 456221.