Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Texas, January 21 to 22, 2015

Name: Heavy Snow and Winter Weather in Texas, January 21 to 22, 2015
Start: 2015-01-21T18:00
End: 2015-01-22T15:00
Location: Texas

January 21 to 22, 2015 · NWS LUB · 19 events in 19 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 19 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 19

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 LUB wrote it up.

A pair of upper level disturbances phased together on Wednesday, January 21st across the lower Rockies, serving as the large scale lifting mechanism for precipitation formation. Both of these systems brought an abundant increase in moisture as colder air drifted in from the north. An initial shield of precipitation edged in from the northwest across the far southwest Panhandle ahead of the northern originating disturbance, while a band of showers moved across the Rolling Plains downstream of the southern upper trough. Temperatures during the afternoon of the 21st warmed into the 40s and 50s, keeping precipitation in the liquid state initially before transitioning to snow into the evening as the airmass cooled. Snow, mostly on the light side but with heavier bands from time to time, continued into the evening and overnight hours and through much of the day Thursday January, 22nd across much of the far southern Texas Panhandle and South Plains. In the Rolling Plains and far southeast Panhandle, temperatures remained warm enough to keep precipitation mainly in the form of rain as some light snow mixed in periodically.

Impacts were relatively minor as temperatures generally remained in the mid to upper 20s or warmer while snow fell, allowing for wet to slushy road conditions. However, reports of traffic accidents were received throughout Lubbock as well as along US Highway 84 southeast of Lubbock.

Snowfall amounts ranged from 4 to 7 inches from western to central portions of the southern Texas Panhandle through the northern to central South Plains. Areas farther south and east on the Caprock measured snow mainly in the 1 to 4 inch range while locations in the Rolling Plains and far southeast Panhandle received around 1 inch. Accumulations were held to trace amounts or less into the southeastern Rolling Plains where the majority of precipitation fell as rain.

Snowfall totals from the event are below:

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 Lubbock, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 21, 5:42 PM CST, 18 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 21, 5:42 PM CST, 18 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
542 PM CST WED JAN 21 2015

.AVIATION...
A POTENT WINTER STORM WILL BE MOVING IN DURING THE FIRST HALF OF
THIS TAF PACKAGE. RAIN WILL INCREASE ACROSS ALL SITES THIS EVENING
ALONG WITH GRADUALLY LOWERING CEILINGS. BEST GUESSES ON TRANSITION
TO SNOW IS SLIGHTLY SLOWER THAN PREVIOUS FORECASTS...ABOUT 02Z-04Z
AT KPVW...04Z-06Z AT KLBB...AND 06Z-08Z AT KCDS. THIS WAS OUR
PRIMARY EMPHASIS THIS FORECAST WHILE WE RETAINED PREVIOUS LOWERING
OF CEILING HEIGHTS AND VISIBILITIES. WE STILL EXPECT TO CHANGE TO
HEAVIER SNOW RATES AT SOME POINT EITHER LATER TONIGHT OR ON
THURSDAY AND THIS WILL PROBABLY LEAD TO PERIODS OF LIFR CONDITIONSWHICH
WE WILL ATTEMPT TO ADDRESS FURTHER FOR THE 06Z TAF PACKAGE. ALL
SOLUTIONS KEEP CONDITIONS AT OR BELOW IFR LEVELS FOR THE LATER
PERIODS. RMCQUEEN

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED ISSUED BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX/

..SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM TO IMPACT THE SOUTH PLAINS REGION THIS
EVENING THROUGH THURSDAY...

SHORT TERM...
MESHING OF NORTHERN STREAM UPPER TROUGH DIGGING SOUTH INTO THE
SOUTHERN ROCKIES AND SOUTHERN STREAM SYSTEM MIGRATING ACROSS THE
DESERT SOUTHWEST CONTINUES TO TAKE SHAPE THIS AFTERNOON. A 100+ KNOT
JET STREAK EXTENDING OUT AHEAD OF THE LATTER DISTURBANCE INTO THE
BIG COUNTRY HAS PRODUCED A SHIELD OF SHOWER ACTIVITY WITH THE
WESTERN EXTENT REACHING INTO THE ROLLING PLAINS. FARTHER WEST ACROSS
THE FAR SOUTHWEST PANHANDLE INTO THE SOUTH PLAINS...RADAR RETURNS
CONTINUE TO FILL IN AS LIFT INCREASES AHEAD OF THE NORTHERN
DISTURBANCE. EXPECT THIS ACTIVITY TO REMAIN IN THE LIQUID PHASE
UNTIL SUNSET AS TEMPERATURES HAVE WARMED INTO THE MID 40S/LOW 50S
OWING TO A GOOD DEAL OF EARLY DAY SUNSHINE.

COOLING WILL ENSUE THIS EVENING AS COLD AIR ADVECTION FILTERS SOUTH
INTO THE REGION ALONG WITH CONTINUED COLUMN MOISTENING...
TRANSITIONING PRECIPITATION TYPE FROM RAIN TO SNOW. SHOULD SEE
THIS TAKE PLACE EARLY THIS EVENING IN THE FAR SOUTHWEST PANHANDLE
AND ADJACENT SOUTH PLAINS...WITH MOST LOCATIONS WEST OF THE
CAPROCK ESCARPMENT SEEING PREDOMINANTLY SNOW COME MIDNIGHT.
SOUTHEASTERN PORTIONS OF THE SOUTH PLAINS INTO THE ROLLING PLAINS
SHOULD SEE MAINLY LIQUID INTO THE OVERNIGHT HOURS...WITH ONLY
SOUTHEAST SECTIONS OF THE ROLLING PLAINS MAINTAINING A RAIN/SNOW
MIX AT DAYBREAK. STILL SOME QUESTION AS TO WHETHER AREAS EAST OF
ASPERMONT TO ABOUT GUTHRIE WILL COOL QUITE ENOUGH TO SEE MUCH
SNOW...BUT COMBINATION OF CONTINUED COLD AIR ADVECTION AND WET
BULB COOLING SHOULD LIKELY BE ENOUGH WHEN COMBINED WITH STRONG
LIFT AND SATURATION WITHIN THE DENDRITIC GROWTH LAYER TO ALLOW
FROZEN HYDROMETEORS TO REACH THE GROUND.

A RAIN/SNOW MIX SHOULD CONTINUE EAST OF THE CAPROCK ESCARPMENT
THURSDAY AS DIURNAL HEATING ATTEMPTS TO WARM TEMPERATURES INTO THE
LOW-MID 30S...WHILE ALL SNOW FALLS TO THE WEST THROUGHOUT THE
REMAINDER OF THE DAY. AXIS OF THE UPPER TROUGH WILL THEN MOVE
OVERHEAD THURSDAY EVENING INTO FRIDAY MORNING AS WRAP-AROUND SNOW
DEPARTS FROM NORTHWEST TO SOUTHEAST BY RUSH HOUR.

TOTAL SNOWFALL ACCUMULATIONS LOOK TO RANGE FROM 6 TO 8 INCHES IN THE
FAR SOUTHWEST PANHANDLE AND NORTHERN SOUTH PLAINS...3 TO 7 INCHES
FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE SOUTH PLAINS...AND 1 TO 3 INCHES ACROSS THE
ROLLING PLAINS AND FAR SOUTHEASTERN PANHANDLE. A FEW LOCATIONS...
ESPECIALLY IN PARMER COUNTY...MAY VERY WELL SEE LOCALIZED HIGHER
AMOUNTS. THESE TOTALS WILL BE HIGHLY DEPENDENT ON THE EXACT
TRANSITION TIME TO SNOW THIS EVENING/TONIGHT...AS WELL AS
INTENSITY OF THE UPPER DISTURBANCE IN REGARDS TO DEFORMATION
BANDING LATE THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY. WILL UPGRADE WINTER STORM WATCH
TO A WARNING FOR ALL LOCATIONS WEST OF THE CAPROCK ESCARPMENT AND
ISSUE A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR ALL COUNTIES TO THE
EAST...VALID FROM 6 PM THIS EVENING UNTIL MIDNIGHT THURSDAY NIGHT.

LONG TERM...
THE WEATHER FROM FRIDAY THROUGH TUESDAY WILL BE RATHER BENIGN.
UPPER PATTERN ACROSS THE CONUS TO BE FAIRLY AMPLIFIED BUT RATHER
STAGNANT THROUGH THE PERIOD. A TROUGH WILL DOMINATE THE ERN CONUS
WITH A BLOCKING TYPE RIDGE DEVELOPING OVER THE WEST. A LOW IS
PROGGED TO CUT OFF SOUTH OF THE RIDGE OVER THE ERN PACIFIC OFF THE
COAST OF BAJA CALIF. THAT UPPER FLOW SHOULD KEEP LOW LEVEL FROM
THE WEST TO NORTH THROUGH THE PERIOD. A FAIRLY WIDE RANGE OF
SOLUTIONS ON HOW THE CUTOFF LOW OPENS AND EJECTS...BUT EVEN THE
MORE ERN SOLUTIONS KEEP PRECIP TO OUR WEST. ANY SNOW FIELD/WET
GROUND MAY AFFECT TEMPS THROUGH THE WEEKEND...SO HAVE CONTINUED
PREVIOUS TREND OF UNDERCUTTING GUIDANCE THOSE AREAS IN PARTICULAR.
MILDER TEMPS EXPECTED EARLY NEXT WEEK IN LINE WITH GUIDANCE.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
FRIONA        24  26   8  34  13 / 100 100  30   0   0
TULIA         27  28  12  35  21 / 100 100  30  10   0
PLAINVIEW     27  28  15  36  22 / 100 100  30  10   0
LEVELLAND     28  28  15  38  21 / 100 100  60  10   0
LUBBOCK       29  29  17  38  22 / 100 100  60  10   0
DENVER CITY   28  29  18  38  24 / 100 100  60  10   0
BROWNFIELD    28  29  18  39  22 / 100 100  60  10   0
CHILDRESS     31  33  22  44  28 / 100 100  20  10   0
SPUR          30  30  22  43  26 / 100 100  60  10   0
ASPERMONT     32  37  26  46  27 / 100 100  60  10   0

&&

.LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST THURSDAY NIGHT FOR
TXZ025-026-031-032-037-038-043-044.

WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL MIDNIGHT CST THURSDAY NIGHT FOR
TXZ021>024-027>030-033>036-039>042.

&&

99/99/05

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 21, 2:48 PM CST, 3 hours 12 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
ISSUED BY NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
248 PM CST WED JAN 21 2015

TXZ021>044-222100-
PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE-
FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING-
YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL-
248 PM CST WED JAN 21 2015

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS
PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

WINTER WEATHER

RAIN IS EXPECTED TO SPREAD ACROSS THE SOUTH PLAINS AREA THIS
EVENING...THEN CHANGE TO SNOW BY EARLY EVENING ACROSS THE FAR
SOUTHWESTERN PANHANDLE AND AS LATE AS THE EARLY MORNING HOURS
THURSDAY ACROSS THE SOUTHERN ROLLING PLAINS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY

SNOWFALL AMOUNTS ON THE CAPROCK OF 3 TO 5 INCHES WILL BE COMMON
WITH LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS...ESPECIALLY IN THE FAR SOUTHWESTERN
PANHANDLE AND NORTHERN SOUTH PLAINS...THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. AMOUNTS
OF 1 TO 3 INCHES ARE EXPECTED FROM THE EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN
PANHANDLE THROUGH THE ROLLING PLAINS.

A WINTER STORM WARNING FOR HEAVY SNOW IS IN EFFECT THROUGH
THURSDAY EVENING FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHWESTERN PANHANDLE AND ALL OF
THE SOUTH PLAINS. A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW IS IN EFFECT
FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN PANHANDLE AND THE ROLLING PLAINS.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

PLEASE RELAY SNOWFALL REPORTS TO THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN
LUBBOCK.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

11 winter weather, 8 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Parmer

When: January 21, 6:00 PM CST to January 22, 11:30 AM CST
Where: Parmer forecast zone
Reported by: Law Enforcement
Coordinates: 34.530, -102.784 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Castro

When: January 21, 6:00 PM CST to January 22, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Castro forecast zone
Reported by: Law Enforcement
Coordinates: 34.530, -102.262 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Bailey

When: January 21, 6:00 PM CST to January 22, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Bailey forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.069, -102.830 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Swisher

When: January 21, 7:00 PM CST to January 22, 1:00 PM CST
Where: Swisher forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.530, -101.735 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Briscoe

When: January 21, 7:00 PM CST to January 22, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Briscoe forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.530, -101.209 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Lamb

When: January 21, 7:00 PM CST to January 22, 1:00 PM CST
Where: Lamb forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.069, -102.352 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hale

When: January 21, 7:30 PM CST to January 22, 2:30 PM CST
Where: Hale forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.071, -101.827 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Heavy Snow, Hockley

When: January 21, 8:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Hockley forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.608, -102.343 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Lubbock

When: January 21, 8:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Lubbock forecast zone
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 33.610, -101.820 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Cochran

When: January 21, 8:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Cochran forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.604, -102.828 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Yoakum

When: January 21, 9:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Yoakum forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.173, -102.828 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Terry

When: January 21, 9:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Terry forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.174, -102.335 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Lynn

When: January 21, 9:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Lynn forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.177, -101.816 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Floyd

When: January 21, 11:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Floyd forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.072, -101.303 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Motley

When: January 21, 11:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Motley forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.074, -100.780 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Hall

When: January 21, 11:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Hall forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.531, -100.681 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Crosby

When: January 21, 11:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Crosby forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.615, -101.300 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Garza

When: January 21, 11:00 PM CST to January 22, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Garza forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 33.180, -101.298 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Winter Weather, Childress

When: January 22, 12:00 AM CST to 3:00 PM CST
Where: Childress forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 34.529, -100.208 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Texas in 2015 Every state in 2015 This day in weather history Warnings in Texas, January 2015

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: 549830, 549833, 549838, 549835, 549837, 549840, 549841, 549843, 551291, 551292, 551297, 551298, 551299, 551293, 551294, 551295, 551300, 551301, 551296.