Light snow and freezing drizzle occurred on the evening of the third into the morning of the fourth ahead of an upper level trough moving northeast out of northern Mexico. Abundant low level and near surface moisture contributed to freezing drizzle as well as some very light snow amounts from the far southern panhandle into the South Plains and Rolling Plains.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 LUB wrote it up.
Light snow and freezing drizzle occurred on the evening of the third into the morning of the fourth ahead of an upper level trough moving northeast out of northern Mexico. Abundant low level and near surface moisture contributed to freezing drizzle as well as some very light snow amounts from the far southern panhandle into the South Plains and Rolling Plains. Icy roads in Garza County caused a multiple vehicle accident on the northbound side of US Highway 84 at the intersection of FM 399 northwest of Post. One fatality was reported while four others were injured.
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 Feb 3, 5:51 PM CST, 3 hours 9 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 551 PM CST MON FEB 3 2014 .AVIATION... A NIGHT OF IFR OR LIFR CONDITIONS IS ON THE WAY FOR BOTH KLBB AND KCDS TERMINALS. RELATIVELY MOIST UPSLOPE CONDITIONS WILL MAINTAIN A VERY LOW CEILING...FAVORED FORECAST HEIGHTS FROM THE LATEST RAP RUN WHICH WERE SIMILAR TO THE PREVIOUS FORECAST. HOWEVER...WE WILL BE READY TO RESPOND SHOULD THE CEILING AND VISIBILITY LOWER FURTHER WHICH IS POSSIBLE. AN UPPER TROUGH NEARING THE BORDER BETWEEN ARIZONA AND NEW MEXICO WILL MOVE EASTWARD OVERNIGHT AND PASS KLBB NEAR DAYBREAK AND KCDS SHORTLY AFTER. LIGHT SNOW WILL DEVELOP AT BOTH SITES...BUT BANDS OF HEAVIER MIXED SLEET AND SNOW WILL ALSO FORM NEARBY. SHOULD ONE OF THESE BANDS DRIFT CLOSER TO KLBB DURING THE LATE EVENING WE WILL RESPOND WITH LOWER CONDITIONS AT THAT TIME. THE LOW DECK FINALLY SHOULD BREAK BY LATE MORNING AT KLBB BUT WILL STRUGGLE TO FIND OPENINGS AT KCDS UNTIL LATER TOMORROW AFTERNOON. WILL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT POSSIBLE IMPROVING TRENDS FOR KCDS FOR THE 06Z TAF CYCLE. RMCQUEEN && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 419 PM CST MON FEB 3 2014/ SHORT TERM... AN INTERESTING FORECAST THIS EVENING WITH SOME CHANGES IN STORE FOR WEST TEXAS. A POTENT UPPER LEVEL STORM SYSTEM IS PRESENTLY MAKING ITS WAY IN OUR DIRECTION FROM NORTHWESTERN MEXICO. WV IMAGERY SUGGEST THAT NWP IS UNDERESTIMATING THE STRENGTH OF THE SYSTEM WHICH SHOULD BECOME MORE NEGATIVELY TILTED THIS EVENING. CONFIDENCE IS HIGH THAT OUR CWFA WILL SEE SOME FROZEN PRECIPITATION TONIGHT. HOWEVER...THE QUESTION OF EXACTLY WHERE AND HOW MUCH IS MORE NEBULOUS. INTERESTINGLY...THE PLURALITY OF SYNOPTIC MODELS /GEM/GFS/ECM PAINT THE HIGHEST SNOW TOTALS ACROSS THE NORTHEAST. THE MESOSCALE VARIANTS OF THE RUC/NAM/WRF-NMM POINT TOWARD THE CLIMATOLOGICALLY FAVORED NORTHWESTERN ZONES. WE SHOULD START TO SEE THE SNOWFALL START AROUND MID EVENING AND THEN CONTINUE SWEEPING TOWARD THE ENE OVERNIGHT. THE HEAVIEST TOTALS SHOULD REMAIN NORTH OF A LITTLEFIELD TO PADUCAH LINE WHERE 1-2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE THOUGH...GIVEN THE STRENGTH OF Q-VECTOR CONVERGENCE AND FRONTOGENETICAL FORCING...WE CERTAINLY COULD SEE SOME BANDS OF HIGHER AMOUNTS. SOUTH OF THIS LINE...GENERALLY UNDER AN INCH IS EXPECTED. ADDITIONALLY...WE MAY SEE A WINTRY MIX ACROSS THE SRN ROLLING PLAINS THOUGH AMOUNTS SHOULD REMAIN QUITE LIGHT. WE SHOULD SEE CLEARING TO SOME EXTENT AFTER 15Z WITH DECENT WARM- UPS IN AREAS THAT ARE NOT SNOW-PACKED. LONG TERM... AN ACTIVE...COLD PERIOD IS AHEAD FOR WEST TEXAS THIS WEEK...AS A PROGRESSIVE PATTERN WILL CONTINUE TO BRING FAST-MOVING UPPER WAVES INTO THE REGION THROUGH THE WEEKEND. TO BEGIN THE PERIOD...MOST OF THE SNOW FROM TUESDAYS EVENT SHOULD BE MOSTLY WRAPPED UP BY WEDNESDAY EVENING...ALTHOUGH A FEW LIGHT SNOW SHOWERS MAY LINGER ACROSS THE NORTHERN ROLLING PLAINS INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. THE MAIN ITEM OF INTEREST AT THIS POINT WILL BE THE PROGRESSION OF A STRONG COLD FRONT...WHICH WILL BRING ANOTHER BLAST OF VERY COLD AIR INTO THE REGION OVERNIGHT TUESDAY. THIS FRONT WILL LIKELY RESULT IN LOW TEMPERATURES IN LOW TO MID TEENS FOR THE MOST PART... AND WHEN COMBINED WITH GUSTY WINDS BETWEEN 10 AND 20 MILES PER HOUR WIND CHILLS ARE EXPECTED TO FALL TO CLOSE TO 5 BELOW...BUT NOT QUITE LOW ENOUGH TO WARRANT AN ADVISORY. AN ADDITION... THIS FRONT MAY GENERATE JUST ENOUGH LIFT TO RESULT IN A FEW SNOW FLURRIES AS WELL WEDNESDAY MORNING...ALTHOUGH ANY SNOW DURING THIS TIME FRAME IS NOT EXPECTED TO BE HEAVY ENOUGH TO ACCUMULATE. THIS ROUND OF COLD AIR IS EXPECTED TO LINGER ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH THURSDAY...WITH HIGH TEMPERATURES BOTH WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY RANGING FROM THE MID TO UPPER 20S ACROSS THE SOUTHERN TIER OF THE CWA...ALL THE WAY DOWN INTO THE UPPER TEENS IN THE NORTHERN TIER. ACCUMULATING SNOW WILL AGAIN BE POSSIBLE BEGINNING WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THE EARLY AFTERNOON THURSDAY...AS A WEAK AND PROGRESSIVE SHORTWAVE IS EXPECTED TO TRAVERSE THE TEXAS PANHANDLE DURING THIS TIMEFRAME. MODELS ARE BEGINNING TO SHOW CONSISTENCY REGARDING THIS FEATURE...AND WHILE THE ITS PROGRESSIVE NATURE WILL KEEP ACCUMULATIONS LIGHT..CONFIDENCE IS INCREASING THAT AT LEAST THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE CWA COULD SEE MEASURABLE BUT LIGHT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS. FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK...CONSIDERABLE DIFFERENCES IN MODEL SOLUTIONS REMAIN...HOWEVER IT APPEARS THAT ANOTHER PROGRESSIVE WAVE AND COLD FRONT WILL IMPACT THE AREA SOMETIME OVER THE WEEKEND...ALONG WITH POTENTIALLY ANOTHER ROUND OF WINTRY WEATHER. TIMING DISCREPANCIES ASIDE...IT DOES APPEAR THAT FRIDAY WILL OFFER A MARGINAL WARM UP...ALBEIT PERHAPS ONLY INTO THE UPPER 30S/LOW 40S...AND A REPRIEVE FROM PRECIPITATION. THE GFS SOLUTION CONTINUES THIS WARM-UP THROUGH SATURDAY...WITH GUSTY DOWNSLOPING WESTERLIES AHEAD OF A MUCH SLOWER FROPA SOLUTION. MEANWHILE... THE LATEST ECMWF SOLUTION PUSHES THIS FRONT THROUGH THE AREA EARLY SATURDAY MORNING...PUTTING A DAMPER ON THE WEEKEND WARM-UP UNTIL EARLY NEXT WEEK. OPTED TO LEAN CLOSER TO THE FASTER ECMWF SOLUTION DURING THIS ITERATION...AND THUS BUMPED SATURDAY HIGHS DOWN A NOTCH OR TWO. BOTH SOLUTIONS...HOWEVER...RESULT IN WINTRY PRECIPITATION ACROSS THE AREA FAVORING OUR NORTHERN AND EASTERN COUNTIES. && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... FRIONA 23 42 12 21 8 / 30 20 10 10 30 TULIA 23 40 10 20 7 / 70 30 10 10 20 PLAINVIEW 24 46 12 21 8 / 50 20 10 10 20 LEVELLAND 26 51 17 26 13 / 20 10 10 10 20 LUBBOCK 26 49 17 24 12 / 20 10 10 10 20 DENVER CITY 29 52 23 30 16 / 20 10 10 10 20 BROWNFIELD 29 53 21 28 15 / 20 10 10 10 20 CHILDRESS 24 41 15 19 9 / 60 40 10 10 20 SPUR 27 45 19 24 12 / 30 10 10 10 20 ASPERMONT 29 54 21 26 14 / 30 10 10 10 20 && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 9 PM THIS EVENING TO 9 AM CST TUESDAY FOR THE FOLLOWING ZONES: TXZ022>026-028>032. && 99/99/05
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 853 PM CST MON FEB 3 2014 TXZ021>044-050300- PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE- FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING- YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL- 853 PM CST MON FEB 3 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT WINTER WEATHER A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 AM TUESDAY FOR ALL OF THE SOUTH PLAINS...FAR SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE AND MUCH OF THE ROLLING PLAINS. PERIODS OF FREEZING DRIZZLE TONIGHT WILL RESULT IN SOME SLICK ROADS BEFORE A ROUND OF SLEET AND SNOW DEVELOPS AROUND MIDNIGHT. THIS PRECIPITATION WILL THEN EXPAND NORTHEAST INTO THE TEXAS PANHANDLE THROUGH EARLY TUESDAY MORNING AND DEPOSIT BETWEEN 1 AND 2 INCHES OF SNOW OVER PORTIONS OF THE ADVISORY AREA. AREAS OF LOCALLY DENSE FOG THROUGH THE NIGHT WILL ALSO CREATE HAZARDOUS TRAVEL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL PASS THROUGH THE AREA TUESDAY NIGHT AND WIND CHILLS BY EARLY WEDNESDAY MORNING COULD FALL AS LOW AS 5 BELOW ZERO. A COLD AND UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN WILL THEN INTENSIFY THROUGH THE WEEK WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR MORE ACCUMULATING SNOW BY LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THE DAY ON THURSDAY...ESPECIALLY NORTH OF LUBBOCK.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Weather, Garza | 2014-02-04 | 46 | Male | Outside/Open Areas | Indirect |
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, February 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: 486644.