The combination of the sea breeze, a weak upper level disturbance, leftover energy from an old surface boundary, and ample dry air mixed within an unstable atmosphere helped spark a small but potent thunderstorm in east-central Hidalgo County shortly before 4 pm. This storm quickly produced damage just north of Mercedes and Weslaco before moving west along an outflow, resetting and dropping…
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 BRO wrote it up.
The combination of the sea breeze, a weak upper level disturbance, leftover energy from an old surface boundary, and ample dry air mixed within an unstable atmosphere helped spark a small but potent thunderstorm in east-central Hidalgo County shortly before 4 pm. This storm quickly produced damage just north of Mercedes and Weslaco before moving west along an outflow, resetting and dropping another microburst between Alamo and the east side of Edinburg between 4:20 and 4:30 pm before weakening. Damage included numerous downed tree limbs, some downed lines (and subsequently power outages), and structural damage to mobile homes. Peak measured airport gusts included 50 mph at Weslaco/Mid Valley and 45 mph at McAllen Miller.
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 Aug 13, 1:52 PM CST, 1 hour 2 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 252 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 .SHORT TERM /NOW THROUGH THURSDAY/... REST OF THIS AFTERNOON/EVENING...MAIN ISSUES ARE IN THIS PERIOD. AS MENTIONED EARLIER...THE MORNING WAS QUIET WITH SEA BREEZE NOT ACTIVATING UNTIL AROUND 1 PM THIS AFTERNOON. NOW THAT IT HAS...A COUPLE OF SCENARIOS IN DIFFERENT AREAS TO CONSIDER. FIRST...FOR THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY...BIGGEST STORMS HAVE FIRED WELL SOUTH INTO CENTRAL TAMAULIPAS THIS AFTERNOON WHERE DEEPER MOISTURE IS AVAILABLE. THAT SAID...THE MID LEVEL DRY AIR THAT CRUISED INTO THE BROOKS/KENEDY COUNTY AREA STALLED BEFORE REACHING THE VALLEY...AND LAPS SOUNDINGS INDICATE THE 850-650 MB LAYER MAY HAVE MOISTENED UP JUST ENOUGH EARLY THIS AFTERNOON WHICH MAY BE HELPING THE SOUTHERN END OF THE DEEP SOUTH TEXAS SEA BREEZE TO ALSO FIRE ALONG THE RIVER. GIVEN THE CURRENT TRENDS...HAVE UPPED RAIN CHANCES THROUGH MID AFTERNOON ACROSS WESTERN CAMERON/EASTERN HIDALGO AND CARRIED THE WORDING 'SCATTERED' THROUGH MCALLEN ON INTO STARR AND SOUTHERN ZAPATA BETWEEN 4 AND 7 PM. THE RANCHLANDS ARE ON THE EDGE OF THE DRY/MOIST MID LEVEL AIR...AND THERE'S JUST ENOUGH LEFTOVER LIFT TO KICK OFF ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE SOUTH TEXAS BRUSH COUNTRY EARLY THIS AFTERNOON. THE BIG QUESTION FOR THE EVENING IS...WILL THERE BE ENOUGH ACTIVITY AND CELL MERGERS TO SET OFF ANOTHER ROUND OF LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AND MINOR FLOODING AS WE SAW ALONG US 83 FROM SOUTHWEST STARR THROUGH ZAPATA COUNTY TUESDAY EVENING? WITH OVERALL FORCING DOWN A BIT AND THE OLD LOW LEVEL FRONT DISSIPATED INTO A LIGHT/VARIABLE LOW LEVEL WIND FIELD WITH A NORTH TO SOUTH DRIFT IN STORM MOTION...EXPECT TO SEE SOME POCKETS OF RAIN DUMPS DUE TO THE SLOW MOVEMENT OF STRONGER CELLS BUT COVERAGE WILL PROBABLY BE LESS...AND LESS LINEAR...THAN TUESDAY NIGHT. FOR NOW...HAVE SHIFTED THE SCATTERED AREA INTO STARR/SOUTHERN ZAPATA/SOUTHERN JIM HOGG INTO EARLY EVENING WITH HEAVY RAINFALL WORDING DUE TO SLOW MOVEMENT. WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED TO SEE A FEW FLOOD ADVISORIES FOR FASTER FLOWING ARROYOS BUT FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS NOT AS LIKELY THIS GO-ROUND. OVERNIGHT...THE ACTION SHOULD WANE/DISSIPATE SOME 3 HOURS EARLIER THAN ON TUESDAY BASED ON THE EARLIER START...AND HAVE ONLY CARRIED ISOLATED THROUGH 10 PM ALONG THE RIVER IN STARR/ZAPATA FOR NOW. OTHERWISE...EXPECT CLEARING SKIES AND LIGHT WINDS ACROSS THE REGION WITH TEMPERATURES BY DAYBREAK THURSDAY SIMILAR TO THIS MORNING...PERHAPS A DEGREE HIGHER IN RURAL AREAS. THURSDAY...ALL MODELS INDICATE MORE NOTABLE DRYING IN THE 850-600 MB LAYER THAT HOLDS THROUGH THE DAY. STILL...WITH LOW LEVEL WINDS JUST LIGHT ENOUGH AND PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES AROUND OR ABOVE 1.75 INCHES...CANNOT RULE OUT SOME SEA BREEZE SLAP AND DASH THUNDER DURING THE AFTERNOON. EXPECT THE AREA TO BE LIMITED...CLOSER TO THE RIVER AS THE NORTHERN TIER SHOULD STAY DRY. TEMPERATURES SHOULD BE SIMILAR TO RECENT DAYS...SO NO CHANGE TO THE MID 90S NEAR THE COAST/LOWER 100S WESTERN RANCHLANDS AND MID/UPPER VALLEY WITH HEAT INDEX VALUES IN CHECK BY FALLING DEWPOINTS INTO THE 60-65 RANGE. DOG DAYS INDEED. THURSDAY NIGHT...QUIET BUT WITH A SLIGHT FRESHENING OF THE SOUTHEAST BREEZE AS SURFACE TROUGH DIPS INTO THE PANHANDLE AND WEST TEXAS. THIS...ALONG WITH PERHAPS MORE CIRRUS APPEARING BETWEEN THE SOUTHWEST U.S. RIDGE AND EASTERN U.S. TROUGH SHOULD ALLOW SLIGHTLY HIGHER LATE NIGHT TEMPERATURES BUT THAT'S ABOUT IT FOR SENSIBLE WEATHER CHANGES...EXCEPT TO LEAVE SKY COVER AS 'PARTLY CLOUDY' OWING TO UNCERTAINTY IN AMOUNT/THICKNESS OF THE CIRRUS. .LONG TERM /FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...HOT AND MAINLY DRY CONDITIONS EXPECTED IN THE LONG TERM AS HIGH PRESSURE BUILDS BACK IN THE MID LEVELS AND MEAN PWATS FALL TO AROUND 1.5 INCHES AND CAPPING DEVELOPS IN THE MID LEVELS. WINDS WILL PICK UP THROUGH MUCH OF THE LONG TERM AS WELL DUE TO DEVELOPING SURFACE LEE TROUGHING TO OUR NORTHWEST AS TWO SHORTWAVES MOVE OVER THE RIDGE AND DOWN ACROSS THE MIDWEST AND INTERACTS WITH HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS THE GULF. MUCH OF THE LONG TERM REMAINS CONSISTENT WITH PREVIOUS FORECASTS...THE FURNACE IS LIT FOR THE LONG TERM WITH HIGHS IN THE 100S ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA WITH BREEZY SOUTHEAST WINDS OFFERING NO RELIEF IN SIGHT. && .MARINE...NOW THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT...QUIET CONDITIONS CONTINUE TO DOMINATE AND SEE LITTLE CHANGE THROUGH THE PERIOD. OFFSHORE WAVES FELL BELOW 1 FOOT TODAY...VIRTUALLY FLAT...AND WITH LIGHT WINDS OVERNIGHT OUTSIDE OF ANY SPOTTY CONVECTION SEE NO CHANGE. THE LIGHT WINDS...10 KNOTS OR LESS...WILL CONTINUE THURSDAY BUT VEER AROUND TO THE SOUTH. WINDS A BIT HIGHER ON LAGUNA MADRE BUT STILL OVERTAKEN BY SEA BREEZE EAST/SOUTHEAST FLOW AFTER 2 PM OR SO. A GENERAL SOUTHEAST FLOW OVERNIGHT THURSDAY...PERHAPS TOUCHING 15 KNOTS AROUND MIDNIGHT BUT ONLY ENOUGH TO RAISE WAVES/SEAS TO 2 FEET. CONVECTION WILL FAVOR THE POST MIDNIGHT THROUGH EARLY DAYBREAK HOURS IN THE GULF MAINLY BEYOND 20 NM OUT...THEN DISSIPATE DURING AFTERNOON/EVENING BEFORE A POSSIBLE REDEVELOPMENT LATE THURSDAY NIGHT WITH JUST ENOUGH DEEP LAYER MOISTURE TO KEEP THINGS HONEST. FRIDAY THROUGH SUNDAY...LOW PRESSURE WILL STRENGTHEN ACROSS THE SOUTHERN PLAINS THIS PERIOD AND SURFACE WINDS WILL RATCHET ACCORDINGLY AS HIGH PRESSURE ACROSS THE GULF WILL INTERACT WITH AFOREMENTIONED LOW PRESSURE. SMALL CRAFT SHOULD EXERCISE CAUTION BEGINNING LATE FRIDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH THE WEEKEND. WAVE HEIGHTS WILL APPROACH 6 FEET AND WINDS NEARING 20 KNOTS OVER THE WEEKEND. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... BAYVIEW/PORT ISABEL 79 94 80 96 / 10 10 10 10 BROWNSVILLE 76 96 78 96 / 10 20 10 10 HARLINGEN 75 97 77 99 / 10 20 10 10 MCALLEN 77 102 78 102 / 10 20 10 10 RIO GRANDE CITY 79 102 78 103 / 10 10 10 0 SOUTH PADRE ISLAND 79 88 81 87 / 10 10 10 10 && .BRO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. GM...NONE. && THIS PRODUCT IS ALSO AVAILABLE ON THE WEB AT: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RGV SHORT TERM...52 LONG TERM...55 GRAPHICS/UPPER-AIR...BIRCHFIELD
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 302 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 TXZ248>257-141130- ZAPATA-JIM HOGG-BROOKS-KENEDY-STARR-HIDALGO-INLAND WILLACY- INLAND CAMERON-COASTAL WILLACY-COASTAL CAMERON- 302 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP AND MOVE THROUGH THE MID AND UPPER RIO GRANDE VALLEY UNTIL AROUND 6 PM...THEN CONTINUE INTO THE RIO GRANDE PLAINS AFTER 6 PM. OTHER ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL EASE INTO THE RANCHLANDS OF BROOKS...JIM HOGG...AND PERHAPS NORTHERN ZAPATA COUNTY BETWEEN 4 AND 6 PM. THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY FOR CELLS TO MERGE AGAIN THIS EVENING...MAINLY BETWEEN 5 AND 7 PM...SOMEWHERE BETWEEN SOUTHERN JIM HOGG AND SOUTHWEST BROOKS...NORTHWEST HIDALGO...AND STARR COUNTY. SHOULD THIS OCCUR...THE PRIMARY THREAT WOULD BE HEAVY RAINFALL WHICH COULD CAUSE MINOR FLOODING OF POOR DRAINAGE LOCATIONS AS WELL AS FAST MOVING WATER THROUGH ARROYOS AND CREEKS...THOUGH OVERTOPPING IS NOT EXPECTED. OTHER POTENTIAL HAZARDS INCLUDE FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. CONDITIONS SHOULD IMPROVE ACROSS THE RIO GRANDE VALLEY BEFORE SUNSET...AND BETWEEN SUNSET AND 10 PM ACROSS THE RIO GRANDE PLAINS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. THURSDAY: ISOLATED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED ALONG THE SEA BREEZE...DEVELOPING IN INLAND CAMERON/WILLACY COUNTY DURING THE EARLY AFTERNOON AND EASING INTO HIDALGO COUNTY BY LATE AFTERNOON. COVERAGE IS EXPECTED TO BE LESS THAN TODAY AS DRIER MID LEVEL AIR IS EXPECTED TO INCREASE. POTENTIAL THREATS INCLUDE OCCASIONAL CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING AND BRIEF DOWNPOURS. FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY: HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTERS ESPECIALLY ACROSS JIM HOGG...ZAPATA...AND STARR COUNTY MAY NEED TO SELF ACTIVATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH EVENING. GMZ130-132-135-150-155-170-175-141130- 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- 302 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE GULF OF MEXICO AND THE LAGUNA MADRE. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT. ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO REDEVELOP ACROSS THE WATERS MAINLY BEYOND 20 NM OUT AFTER MIDNIGHT. POTENTIAL THREATS INCLUDE OCCASIONAL CLOUD TO WATER LIGHTNING...BRIEF DOWNPOURS REDUCING VISIBILITY TO 3 NAUTICAL MILES OR LESS...AND WIND GUSTS TO 25 KNOTS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. THURSDAY: EARLY MORNING ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DISSIPATE SOON AFTER SUNRISE. THURSDAY NIGHT: ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED MAINLY SOUTH OF PORT MANSFIELD AFTER MIDNIGHT. OCCASIONAL CLOUD TO WATER LIGHTNING...BRIEF DOWNPOURS REDUCING VISIBILITY TO 3 NAUTICAL MILES...AND A WIND GUST TO 25 KNOTS ARE POSSIBLE. FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY: WIND GUSTS TO 20 KNOTS FRIDAY AND SATURDAY ACROSS THE LAGUNA MADRE EACH AFTERNOON...OTHERWISE HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED. 52/BSG
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX
1133 AM CDT WED AUG 13 2014
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1000 PM HEAVY RAIN LOPENO 26.71N 99.11W
08/12/2014 M3.25 INCH ZAPATA TX LAW ENFORCEMENT
ZAPATA COUNTY SHERIFFS DEPUTY REPORTED 3 INCHES OF
WATER CROSSING US 83 NEAR LOPENO. NEARBY ARROYOS WERE
ALSO FLOWING BUT BELOW BANKFULL AND WERE STILL FLOWING
AT 7 AM AUGUST 13.
&&
EVENT NUMBER BRO1400045
BSGSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BROWNSVILLE TX 347 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 TXZ253-132115- HIDALGO- 347 PM CDT WED AUG 13 2014 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR... EASTERN HIDALGO COUNTY IN DEEP SOUTH TEXAS. UNTIL 415 PM CDT... AT 346 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE METEOROLOGISTS DETECTED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM...OVER EDCOUCH...MOVING WEST AT 10 MPH. THIS STORM IS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING... PEA TO DIME SIZED HAIL. TORRENTIAL RAINFALL RATES OF ONE TO TWO INCHES PER HOUR. LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE... LAGUNA SECA. MILA DOCE. EDCOUCH. ELSA. IF THIS STORM MAINTAINS CURRENT INTENSITY SEVERE WEATHER... INCLUDING DAMAGING WINDS OR LARGE HAIL IS POSSIBLE. MONITOR NOAA WEATHER RADIO...LOCAL MEDIA...OR WEATHER.GOV FOR LATER STATEMENTS AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS. && 59
The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 60 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:54 UTC.
6 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Two poorly constructed mobile homes were destroyed. One home had the roof removed and walls were collapsed.
Emergency manager reported two mobile homes with damage. One home had slid off the foundation and the second with part of roof torn off near the intersection of Mile 4 W and Mile 11 N road. Several tree limbs were knocked down onto power lines nearby along Mile 10 N road.
A large tree was uprooted.
Dime to penny size hail was reported between Donna and Alamo.
Hidalgo County Sheriff's office reported several spots of trees and power lines down in and around Donna, Alamo, and San Juan.
A tree fell on a church near Lopezville and a mobile home had a roof overhang removed.
A tree, 8 inches in diameter, was uprooted in Pharr near the intersection of W. Bell and Dahlia, just south of Expressway 83 (IH-2).
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, August 2014
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: 541387, 540974, 541389, 541381, 541390, 541391, 541392.