A very warm and moist environment, with less upper level subsidence, allowed for the clustering of thunderstorms that produced afternoon lightning.
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 HGX wrote it up.
A very warm and moist environment, with less upper level subsidence, allowed for the clustering of thunderstorms that produced afternoon lightning.
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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 16, 1:59 PM CST, 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 259 PM CDT WED JUL 16 2014 .DISCUSSION... THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY CONTINUES MAINLY SOUTH OF I-10 THIS AFTERNOON BUT A FEW ISO STORMS HAVE DEVELOPED NEAR KCLL/KUTS. ACTIVITY WILL BE CONFINED TO HIGHER MOISTURE AXIS OF 2 INCH PRECIP WATER STRETCHING FROM THE N GULF THROUGH SE TX NE TOWARD C TX. ACTIVITY SHOULD BE DIURNALLY DRIVEN SO EXPECT WIDELY SCT STORMS TO PERSIST THROUGH THE AFTERNOON AND THEN DISSIPATE WITH LOSS OF HEATING. STORMS ARE PRODUCING RAIN RATES OF 1-2 INCHES AN HOUR WITH GUSTY WINDS/LIGHTNING AS MAIN THREATS. UPPER LEVEL ANALYSIS AND WATER VAPOR IMAGERY SHOW RIDGING OVER WESTERN U.S. WITH A BROAD TROUGH OVER THE GREAT LAKES THROUGH THE SE U.S. NW FLOW ALOFT THROUGH THE PLAINS WILL SUPPORT A SHORTWAVE TROUGH OVER MONTANA/WYOMING TO DROP INTO THE S PLAINS THUR INTO FRI WITH INCREASING LARGE SCALE ASCENT. VERY DEEP MOISTURE WITH PRECIP WATER VALUES AROUND 2.1-2.4 INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE THUR NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY. HIGHER MOISTURE WILL STILL LINGER ACROSS THE AREA INTO SATURDAY. WHILE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL IS EXPECTED OVER N TX...POSSIBLE THAT SOME THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL BE ORGANIZED OVER SE TX AND DO LIKEWISE ESPECIALLY FRI MORNING INTO THE AFTERNOON. THERE ARE STILL TIMING ISSUES SO POPS WERE NOT INCREASED TOO DRAMATICALLY BUT LOOK FOR INCREASED PROBABILITIES WITH FUTURE FORECAST UPDATES. RAINFALL AMOUNTS WILL BE TRICKY AS THERE COULD BE A TIGHT GRADIENT BETWEEN THOSE WHO GET RAINFALL AND THOSE WHO DO NOT. AREAS NORTH OF INTERSTATE 10 WILL HAVE GREATER CHANCES AND AREAS TO THE WEST AND SOUTHWEST OF HOUSTON SHOULD HAVE LOWER CHANCES. OVERALL POSSIBLE THAT SOME AREAS COULD HAVE 1-3 INCHES OF RAINFALL FROM KCLL TO KHOU NORTHEASTWARD. STORM MOTIONS SHOULD BE FAST ENOUGH THAT THE FLOODING THREAT WILL BE LOW TO START. PROBLEMS COULD ARISE WITH TRAINING STORMS OR IF STORMS SLOW DOWN COMPARED TO WHAT IS EXPECTED. THIS IS WHERE 1-3 INCHES OF RAIN COULD TURN TO 5 INCHES OF RAIN AND WILL HAVE TO BE WATCH FOR FLOODING. WITH HIGH MOISTURE LINGERING SATURDAY AND POSSIBLY SLOWER STORM MOTIONS AS UPPER LEVEL SHORT WAVE MOVES EAST...THREAT FOR LOCALIZED FLOODING MAY INCREASE. MODELS DO INDICATE UPPER LEVEL RIDGING BUILDING SUN/MON NEXT WEEK WHICH COULD PUT AN END TO RAIN CHANCES AND SUPPORT MAX TEMPS BACK IN THE MID 90S. QUESTIONABLE IF UPPER 90S COULD BE REACHED FOR THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. TEMPS WILL LARGELY DEPEND ON SOIL MOISTURE WHICH IN TURN WILL DEPEND ON HOW MUCH RAINFALL OCCURS THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF SIGNIFICANT RAINFALL...TWEAKED MAX TEMPS DOWN A COUPLE DEGREES TO HEDGE CLOSER TO GUIDANCE IN ANTICIPATION OF RAINFALL IMPACTING TEMPS NEXT WEEK. SUBSIDENCE WITH THE RIDGE SHOULD END RAIN CHANCES. WHILE THE RIDGE BUILDS AND EXPANDS FOR THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK IT WILL ALSO MOVE OVER THE ROCKIES. A WEAK SHEAR AXIS ALOFT MAY SHIFT OVER THE N GULF COAST WHICH COULD SUPPORT ISO STORMS AGAIN SO MAY SEE 20/30 POPS COME BACK INTO THE FORECAST FOR END OF NEXT WEEK. 39 && .MARINE... LIGHT WINDS CONTINUE OVER THE GULF WATERS BUT THIS WILL BE CHANGING. STORMS OVER THE UPPER TEXAS COASTAL WATERS HAVE DISSIPATED BUT MAY RETURN TOWARD MORNING THOUGH PROBABLY MORE SHOWERS THAN THUNDERSTORMS. LOW LEVEL FLOW ON THE INCREASE THURSDAY AND EXPECT SCEC CONDITIONS THURSDAY NIGHT AND POSSIBLY SCA AS WINDS INCREASE TO 15-20 AND GET GUSTY. SEAS BUILDING TO 4-6 FEET AND PERSISTENT SOUTH TO SOUTHEAST FLOW WILL KEEP THE SEAS ELEVATED THROUGH THE WEEKEND AT 4-6 FEET. FRIDAY 2 AM TO 7 AM AND AGAIN SATURDAY SHOULD BE THE STRONGER WINDS BOTH WHICH MAY REQUIRE SCA. MAY HAVE TO WATCH FOR THE STORM COMPLEX THAT MOVES THROUGH TX FRIDAY TO PUSH OUTFLOW INTO THE GULF WATERS SATURDAY BRINGING MORE SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. 45 && .AVIATION... SLOW MOVING STORMS DOTTING THE NORTHERN AREAS AND MORE ORGANIZED ALONG THE OUTFLOW AND SEABREEZE FROM ARM TO SGR TO IAH. VCSH/VCTS WITH TEMPO CONDITIONS FOR THESE AT IAH/SGR...AND HOU BRIEFLY AS OUTFLOW PUSHES INLAND AWAY FROM HOU. 45 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... COLLEGE STATION (CLL) 75 90 75 88 74 / 20 40 60 60 30 HOUSTON (IAH) 75 90 76 88 75 / 20 30 60 60 40 GALVESTON (GLS) 80 88 80 88 79 / 20 20 40 50 50 && .HGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. GM...NONE. && DISCUSSION...39 MARINE/AVIATION...45
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HOUSTON/GALVESTON TX 516 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2014 TXZ163-164-176>179-195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-171030- AUSTIN-BRAZORIA-BRAZOS-BURLESON-CHAMBERS-COLORADO-FORT BEND- GALVESTON-GRIMES-HARRIS-HOUSTON-JACKSON-LIBERTY-MADISON-MATAGORDA- MONTGOMERY-POLK-SAN JACINTO-TRINITY-WALKER-WALLER-WASHINGTON- WHARTON- 516 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TODAY WITH BEST CHANCES TO THE SOUTHWEST. ISOLATED STRONG STORMS MAY GENERATE STRONG GUSTY WINDS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY THURSDAY NIGHT INTO FRIDAY A STRONG UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL MOVE OVERHEAD AND PRODUCE A GOOD CHANCE OF RAIN. MODELS ARE COMING INTO BETTER AGREEMENT THAT OUR NORTHEASTERN AREAS COULD SEE HEAVY RAIN (HOUSTON COUNTY). RAINFALL TOTALS OF TWO TO FOUR INCHES WILL BE POSSIBLE IN AREAS. ISOLATED STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WITH GUSTY WINDS AND SMALL HAIL ARE ALSO POSSIBLE. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. GMZ330-335-350-355-370-375-171030- GALVESTON BAY-MATAGORDA BAY- WATERS FROM FREEPORT TO THE MATAGORDA SHIP CHANNEL 20 NM TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM FREEPORT TO THE MATAGORDA SHIP CHANNEL OUT 20 NM- WATERS FROM HIGH ISLAND TO FREEPORT 20 TO 60 NM- WATERS FROM HIGH ISLAND TO FREEPORT OUT 20 NM- 516 AM CDT WED JUL 16 2014 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME.
The Houston radar (KHGX), 47 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:41 UTC.
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Four people were sent to the hospital after being struck by lightning near Renwick Drive.
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, July 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: 533028.