In advance of a diffuse dryline located from near Tulia south to Brownfield, moderate instability developed this afternoon underneath weak capping and modest mid-level winds. Thunderstorms had little problem initiating during the heat of the day and several of these became supercells thanks to sufficient directional shear.
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.
In advance of a diffuse dryline located from near Tulia south to Brownfield, moderate instability developed this afternoon underneath weak capping and modest mid-level winds. Thunderstorms had little problem initiating during the heat of the day and several of these became supercells thanks to sufficient directional shear. Initially, the first supercell developed northwest of Silverton and went on to produce very large hail, flooding and at least one funnel. By late afternoon, another prolific supercell erupted farther southwest near Cotton Center and for the next 1.5 hours remained over southern Hale County producing giant hail to softball size, torrential rains estimated up to seven inches, and even multiple funnel clouds. From sunset through late evening, additional supercell storms developed from near Reese Center north to Olton and Memphis; many of which were proficient with large hail and flooding rainfall. Significant areal flooding enveloped a swath of southern Hale County where many roads were inundated by water; some of which remained closed through the late morning hours of the 28th. Similar flooding was reported in Memphis during the overnight hours including water of a few inches deep rushing into some buildings.
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 May 27, 2:17 PM CST, 2 hours 9 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 317 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015 .SHORT TERM... 2 PM SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS A SURFACE TROUGH-DRYLINE FROM THE WESTERN TX PANHANDLE SW INTO ERN NEW MEXICO. A DIFFUSE OUTFLOW BOUNDARY/GRAVITY WAVE IS MOVING WWD ACROSS THE SE TX PANHANDLE AND ROLLING PLAINS...THERE IS A SLIGHTLY MORE EASTERLY COMPONENT TO THE WINDS TO THE EAST OF THIS BOUNDARY. A THETA-E RIDGE RUNS NORTH TO SOUTH FROM THE ERN TX PANHANDLE TO THE CONCHO VALLEY. MLCAPES WITHIN THIS RIDGE ARE ESTIMATED TO BE IN THE 3000-4000 J/KG RANGE. HOWEVER...UPPER-AIR ANALYSIS SHOWS WEAK MID-LVL RIDGING OVER WEST TEXAS...DOWNSTREAM OF ANOTHER SHARP SHORTWAVE TROUGH CENTERED OVER SRN AZ AND MOVING EASTWARD. DESPITE GUIDANCE INDICATIONS THAT CINH HAS BEEN ELIMINATED...WEAK SUBSIDENCE WILL LIKELY CONTINUE ACROSS THE AREA THROUGH EARLY EVENING...AND THIS MAY KEEP T-STORM ACTIVITY ISOLATED. EVEN SO...ANY STORMS THAT DEVELOP WILL BE IN AN ENVIRONMENT FAVORABLE FOR RAPID INTENSIFICATION AND SEVERE WEATHER. AN ISOLATED TORNADO THREAT WILL LIKELY BE CONFINED TO THE FAR SE TX PANHANDLE. TONIGHT...LARGE-SCALE ASCENT WILL BE ON THE INCREASE AS A LEAD WAVE FROM THE UPPER TROUGH APPROACHES. THIS WILL SUPPORT ONGOING T-STORM CHANCES OVERNIGHT...ALTHOUGH THE COVERAGE AND FAVORED MODE OF CONVECTION REMAINS UNCLEAR AT THIS TIME...WITH WIDE VARIANCE SHOWN IN MODEL GUIDANCE. THERE MAY VERY WELL BE ONE OR TWO STORM COMPLEXES MOVING ACROSS WESTERN TEXAS. AND A HEAVY RAIN THREAT MAY ACCOMPANY THESE COMPLEXES IF THEY DEVELOP. UNFORTUNATELY...THIS UNCERTAINTY CARRIES ON INTO THE FORECAST FOR THURSDAY...WHICH WILL BE DEPEND GREATLY ON THE AMOUNT OF ONGOING CONVECTIVE ACTIVITY THURSDAY MORNING. WITH UPPER-TROUGHING STILL PRESENT AND S-SE LOW LEVEL FLOW MAINTAINING A RICH MOISTURE INFLUX...WE WOULD EXPECT DIURNAL HEATING TO BRING ANOTHER SOLID CHANCE OF AFTERNOON AND EVENING STORMS. HOWEVER...CONVECTIVE DEBRIS AND OUTFLOW ARE LIKELY TO COMPLICATE THE FORECAST. GUIDANCE TEMPS DO SHOW SLIGHTLY COOLER TEMPS...MAINLY UPPER 70S AND LOWER 80S...REFLECTING GREATER CLOUD COVER. FOR NOW WE WILL MAINTAIN A HIGH CHANCE POP MENTION AREA-WIDE. .LONG TERM... FORECAST CHANGES IN THE LONG TERM WERE LARGELY COSMETIC AS THE PATTERN IS STILL ON TRACK TO TRANSITION FROM AN UNSETTLED CYCLONIC FLOW REGIME TOWARD INCREASINGLY ANTICYCLONIC FLOW BY LATE SUNDAY THROUGH EARLY NEXT WEEK. THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING WILL FEATURE A DEPARTING S/W TROUGH IN SW FLOW ALONG WITH A STEADY DECREASE OF POPS FROM W-E. IGNORING THE RATHER NOISY NAM-WRF AND ITS SUBSEQUENT COLD POOL MESOHIGHS LATE THURSDAY...REMAINING MODELS ARE CONSISTENT IN PROGGING GOOD CONVECTIVE CHANCES MAINLY IN OUR EASTERN ZONES AHEAD OF THE TROUGH...SO LIKELY POPS WERE LEFT INTACT THERE. FRIDAY AFTERNOON SHOULD SEE A TEMPORARY LULL IN PRECIP CHANCES IN BETWEEN THE DEPARTED TROUGH AND ANOTHER WAVE UPSTREAM IN COLORADO. MID-LEVEL WIND FIELDS INDICATE ANTICYCLONIC FLOW DURING THE DAY WHICH MAY VERY WELL SUPPRESS THE DRYLINE FROM CONVECTING...BUT SUFFICIENT INSTABILITY AND WEAK CAPPING COULD EASILY TIP THE SCALES IN FAVOR OF SOME STORMS. BY FAR...A BETTER COVERAGE OF STORMS SEEMS LIKELY FRI NIGHT AS THE AFOREMENTIONED TROUGH APPROACHES COMPLETE WITH A CANADIAN FRONT. VEERING OF UPPER WINDS TO A NWLY COMPONENT SHOULD PROVE FAVORABLE FOR STEERING CONVECTION TOWARD OUR CWA AND DIRECTLY INTO A THETA-E RIDGE. WITH THE DRYLINE LIKELY BACKING TO THE NM STATE LINE OR EVEN FARTHER...POPS WERE BOOSTED AREA WIDE ON THE CAPROCK. POSITION OF THE THETA-E MAX...PWATS AOA 1.5 INCHES AND SLOW STORM MOTIONS OF 15 KNOTS OR LESS ALL POINT TO A HEAVY RAIN AND POTENTIAL FLOOD THREAT. INSERTED LOCALLY +RA IN GRIDS FOR THE TIME BEING. COLD FRONT IS EXPECTED TO CLEAR THE CWA BEFORE NOON SAT FOLLOWED BY MUCH LOWER MIXING RATIOS. DID DRY OUT POPS MORE AGGRESSIVELY FROM N- S THIS DAY AS SURFACE RIDGING APPEARS QUITE STOUT AND UNSUPPORTIVE OF ADDITIONAL PRECIP. EXCEPTION TO THIS COULD UNFOLD IN THE POST- FRONTAL UPSLOPE REGIME OF ERN NM WITH STORMS THREATENING OUR WRN ZONES THROUGH THE EVENING...BUT WITH UPPER RIDGING NOSING INTO THE REGION AND AN ASSOCIATED WEAKENING OF WINDS ALOFT...THE POTENTIAL FOR THESE STORMS TO SURVIVE THEIR JOURNEY E-SE INTO OUR LOCALES DOES NOT APPEAR VERY LIKELY. THEREAFTER...POPS REMAIN DRY AS THE UPPER RIDGE AXIS AMPLIFIES OVER ALL OF THE SOUTHERN GREAT PLAINS. NUDGED MAX TEMPS UP TO NEAR OR ABOVE 90 DEG BY TUE-WED AS THICKNESSES SOAR PARTICULARLY WEST OF THE DRYLINE. && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && 33/93
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 1135 AM CDT WED MAY 27 2015 TXZ021>044-281645- PARMER-CASTRO-SWISHER-BRISCOE-HALL-CHILDRESS-BAILEY-LAMB-HALE- FLOYD-MOTLEY-COTTLE-COCHRAN-HOCKLEY-LUBBOCK-CROSBY-DICKENS-KING- YOAKUM-TERRY-LYNN-GARZA-KENT-STONEWALL- 1135 AM CDT WED MAY 27 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE EXTREME SOUTHERN TEXAS PANHANDLE...SOUTH PLAINS AND ROLLING PLAINS. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP LATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH THIS EVENING AND MAY INCREASE IN COVERAGE TONIGHT. THE THREAT FOR SEVERE STORMS WILL BE GREATEST EAST OF THE INTERSTATE 27 AND US HIGHWAY 87 CORRIDOR. STORMS THAT DEVELOP WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE VERY LARGE HAIL TO THE SIZE OF BASEBALLS...DOWNBURST WIND GUSTS TO 70 MPH...AND ISOLATED TORNADOES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY A CHANCE FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL EXIST AGAIN THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING DEPENDENT ON AIRMASS RECOVERY FROM STORMS EARLY THURSDAY MORNING. STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS MAY DEVELOP FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING BEFORE A COLD FRONT BRINGS INCREASED CHANCES FOR WIDESPREAD SHOWER AND THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY...AS WELL AS A TRANSITION TO MORE OF A HEAVY RAIN THREAT INTO EARLY SATURDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUESTED LATE THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH TONIGHT.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
337 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0328 PM HAIL 16 ENE TULIA 34.63N 101.51W
05/27/2015 E0.50 INCH SWISHER TX PUBLIC
ENDED AT THIS TIME.
&&
EVENT NUMBER LUB1500218
LUBSPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
344 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015
TXZ024-272100-
BRISCOE TX-
344 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR NORTHWESTERN BRISCOE COUNTY UNTIL
400 PM CDT...
AT 344 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM 9
MILES SOUTHEAST OF WAYSIDE...OR 16 MILES NORTHWEST OF SILVERTON...
MOVING NORTHEAST AT 20 MPH.
NICKEL SIZE HAIL...WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO
GROUND LIGHTNING WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM.
THIS STORM WILL REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF NORTHWESTERN
BRISCOE COUNTY.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING IS OCCURRING WITH THIS STORM.
LIGHTNING CAN STRIKE 15 MILES AWAY FROM A THUNDERSTORM. SEEK A SAFE
SHELTER INSIDE A BUILDING OR VEHICLE.
&&
LAT...LON 3461 10123 3459 10142 3462 10147 3475 10147
3475 10097
TIME...MOT...LOC 2044Z 244DEG 17KT 3469 10142
CWASPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX 401 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015 TXZ023-024-272115- SWISHER TX-BRISCOE TX- 401 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015 ...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR NORTHEASTERN SWISHER AND NORTHWESTERN BRISCOE COUNTIES UNTIL 415 PM CDT... AT 401 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR WAYSIDE...OR 19 MILES NORTHWEST OF SILVERTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 15 MPH. NICKEL SIZE HAIL...WIND GUSTS OF 50 TO 55 MPH...AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. THIS STORM WILL REMAIN OVER MAINLY RURAL AREAS OF NORTHEASTERN SWISHER AND NORTHWESTERN BRISCOE COUNTIES. THIS STORM MAY INTENSIFY...SO BE CERTAIN TO MONITOR LOCAL RADIO AND TV STATIONS...AS WELL AS LOCAL CABLE TV OUTLETS...FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND POSSIBLE WARNINGS FROM THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE. LAT...LON 3460 10147 3463 10161 3475 10170 3475 10113 TIME...MOT...LOC 2101Z 238DEG 12KT 3473 10146 CWA
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE LUBBOCK TX
427 PM CDT WED MAY 27 2015
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0420 PM FUNNEL CLOUD 18 ENE TULIA 34.64N 101.48W
05/27/2015 SWISHER TX TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
EVENT NUMBER LUB1500219
LUBThe Amarillo radar (KAMA), 64 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:25 UTC.
5 hail, 2 flood, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
An off-duty NWS employee estimated hail just over two inches in diameter on the ground, but not falling at the time. Damage was unknown.
A nearly stationary supercell produced a severe hail swath ranging in size from quarters to softballs. Several dozen vehicles traveling along Interstate 27 between Abernathy and the Hale Center rest stop suffered varying degrees of damage; the worst of which involved losing nearly all windows.
An off-duty weather observer reported copious amounts of small hail covering his lawn with a few hailstones estimated up to baseball size. Damage was not known.
Hail ranging from quarter to golf ball size fell in Memphis for about 20 minutes. Damage consisted primarily of dented vehicles.
An off-duty NWS employee reported quarter size hail on Farm-to-Market Road 2528 about three miles north of the town of County Line. No damage occurred.
Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, May 2015
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: 568541, 568542, 568551, 568547, 568552, 568555, 568557, 568559.