Rain showers and isolated thunderstorms developed across the western Texas Panhandle during the afternoon and moved quickly eastward slowly intensifying. Strong winds aloft were brought down to the surface with these showers and storms, occasionally gusting to around 60 mph.
Every event with a place to put it; 4 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 AMA wrote it up.
Rain showers and isolated thunderstorms developed across the western Texas Panhandle during the afternoon and moved quickly eastward slowly intensifying. Strong winds aloft were brought down to the surface with these showers and storms, occasionally gusting to around 60 mph. No damage was reported.
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 Amarillo, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 26, 11:23 AM CST, 2 hours 32 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX 1223 PM CDT TUE APR 26 2016 .AVIATION... 18Z ISSUANCE...VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED THROUGH THE PERIOD FOR ALL SITES. SOUTHWEST WINDS WILL BEGIN TO PICK UP AND WILL START GUSTING BETWEEN 20 TO 30 KTS. SOME GUSTS MAY GET CLOSE TO 40KTS SO WILL AMEND IF NECESSARY AS CONFIDENCE IS LOWER ON THIS ATTM. WIND GUSTS SHOULD CALM OVERNIGHT...HOWEVER WINDS WILL STAY AROUND 15KTS WHILE THEY SWING NORTHWESTERLY AS A FRONT COMES THROUGH. NORTHERLY WINDS WILL PICKUP BEHIND THE FRONT AND MAY GUST TOMORROW UP TO 30KTS. BEAT && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 522 AM CDT TUE APR 26 2016/ AVIATION... 12Z TAF CYCLE A CLOSED UPPER LOW OVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN ROCKIES TODAY WILL ALLOW FOR VFR CONDITIONS...MAINLY SCATTERED TO BROKEN HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS AT ALL THREE TAF SITES. LIGHT SOUTH AND SOUTHWEST WINDS 5 TO 15 KNOTS WILL INCREASE BY 19Z TODAY TO AROUND 18 TO 28 KNOTS WITH HIGHER GUSTS AT ALL OF THE TAF SITES. WINDS WILL VEER AROUND TO THE WEST AND NORTHWEST TO NORTH AFTER 06Z TO 08Z WEDNESDAY 10 TO 20 KNOTS AS A COLD FRONT MOVES THROUGH LATE TONIGHT. SCHNEIDER PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 455 AM CDT TUE APR 26 2016/ DISCUSSION... AN UPPER-LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WAS CENTERED OVER EASTERN UTAH AND WESTERN COLORADO THIS MORNING. AS IT TRANSITIONS EASTWARD TODAY...IT WILL SUPPORT SEVERE THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT IN PORTIONS OF OKLAHOMA...KANSAS...AND NEBRASKA. NO SEVERE WEATHER IS EXPECTED IN THE TEXAS OR OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES THOUGH. THIS AREA WILL REMAIN ON THE DRY AND WINDY SIDE OF THE UPPER LOW AND SURFACE DRYLINE. EXPECT SOUTHWEST WINDS OF UP TO 30 TO 35 MPH...AND GUSTS OF 40 TO 50 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE THIS AFTERNOON. SEE FIRE WEATHER SECTION BELOW FOR HOW THIS WILL AFFECT FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS IN THE PANHANDLES. ANOTHER WEAK COLD FRONT WILL THEN SLIP THROUGH THE PANHANDLES OVERNIGHT TONIGHT...THOUGH TEMPS TOMORROW WILL ONLY BE A FEW DEGREES COOLER THAN TODAY. ATTENTION THEN TURNS TO THE NEXT UPPER LOW ROUNDING THE BASE OF A BROAD WESTERN CONUS TROUGH. SUITE OF COMPUTER MODEL GUIDANCE IS IN BETTER AGREEMENT TODAY ON THE TIMING AND LOCATION OF THIS NEXT LOW...THOUGH FORECAST CONFIDENCE IS STILL LOWERED DUE TO THE COMPLEX NATURE OF THIS EVOLVING PATTERN AND LIMITED RUN-TO-RUN CONSISTENCY FROM SOME MODELS. CURRENT EXPECTATION IS FOR THE UPPER LOW TO BE CENTERED OVER WESTERN ARIZONA ON THURSDAY MORNING WITH A DEVELOPING SURFACE LOW OVER WEST TEXAS. EASTERLY UPSLOPE FLOW IN THE LOWER LEVELS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE PANHANDLES IN RESPONSE TO THIS DURING THE DAY THURSDAY AND INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. BY THURSDAY NIGHT...A SOUTHERLY LLJ WILL ALSO BRING A SURGE OF LOW LEVEL MOISTURE AND COULD BE ENOUGH TO DESTABILIZE THE ATMOSPHERE FOR THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT ACROSS THE PANHANDLES. THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL LIKELY CONTINUE ACROSS NORTHERN AND EASTERN PORTIONS OF THE PANHANDLES FRIDAY AS THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM LIFTS INTO KANSAS AND COLORADO. LARGE HAIL AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL BE THE PRIMARY HAZARDS WITH ANY STRONG TO SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THAT DEVELOP DURING THIS TIME. A MORE PRONOUNCED COLD FRONT SHOULD THEN PUSH THROUGH THE AREA FRIDAY NIGHT AND KEEP TEMPERATURES COOLER INTO NEXT WEEK. FOR ANYTHING SATURDAY AND BEYOND...FORECAST MODEL GUIDANCE BEGINS TO DIVERGE...AND THE MODELS IN GENERAL HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME RESOLVING HOW THE BROADER UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL EVOLVE HEADING INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. WITH THE UPPER TROUGH IN THE REGION...FELT THAT IT WAS WISE TO KEEP SLIGHT CHANCE TO LOW END CHANCE POPS ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE PANHANDLES THROUGH MONDAY. DO NOT ANTICIPATE EVERY DAY TO BE RAINY...BUT MORE DETAIL WILL BE ADDED AS THE WEATHER PATTERN EVOLVES. NF FIRE WEATHER... DESPITE CRITICAL THRESHOLDS LIKELY BEING MET ACROSS MOST OF THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES TODAY...FINE GRASSY FUELS CONTINUE TO BE AFFECTED BY RECENT WETTING RAINS. THEREFORE GIVEN THE MARGINAL STATUS OF FUELS...HAVE OPTED TO KEEP MENTION OF ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ACROSS THE PANHANDLES TODAY AND ISSUE A RANGELAND FIRE DANGER STATEMENT FOR THE AFTERNOON AND EVENING HOURS. RESIDENTS OF THE PANHANDLES SHOULD STILL EXERCISE CAUTION AND AVOID ACTIVITIES THAT INVOLVE OPEN FLAMES OR CAUSE SPARKS OUTDOORS TODAY. NO ELEVATED OR CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED AFTER TODAY DUE TO INCREASED HUMIDITY AND THE CHANCES FOR RAINFALL. NF PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... AMARILLO TX 78 45 74 44 75 / 0 5 0 0 10 BEAVER OK 82 46 71 42 73 / 10 10 0 0 5 BOISE CITY OK 70 39 67 38 66 / 0 5 0 0 5 BORGER TX 81 49 74 46 76 / 5 5 0 0 10 BOYS RANCH TX 77 45 74 44 76 / 0 5 0 0 10 CANYON TX 79 45 76 44 77 / 0 5 0 0 10 CLARENDON TX 82 49 75 48 77 / 0 5 0 0 20 DALHART TX 73 40 70 41 71 / 0 5 0 0 10 GUYMON OK 77 45 69 41 71 / 5 5 0 0 5 HEREFORD TX 77 44 76 44 78 / 0 0 0 0 10 LIPSCOMB TX 84 48 73 44 75 / 10 10 0 0 5 PAMPA TX 81 47 73 44 75 / 5 5 0 0 10 SHAMROCK TX 86 50 76 48 77 / 5 5 0 0 20 WELLINGTON TX 88 52 79 49 79 / 5 5 0 0 20 && .AMA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...NONE. OK...NONE. && 16/10
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX 500 AM CDT TUE APR 26 2016 OKZ001>003-TXZ001>020-262200- CIMARRON-TEXAS-BEAVER-DALLAM-SHERMAN-HANSFORD-OCHILTREE-LIPSCOMB- HARTLEY-MOORE-HUTCHINSON-ROBERTS-HEMPHILL-OLDHAM-POTTER-CARSON- GRAY-WHEELER-DEAF SMITH-RANDALL-ARMSTRONG-DONLEY-COLLINGSWORTH- 500 AM CDT TUE APR 26 2016 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT. ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED ACROSS ALL OF THE TEXAS AND OKLAHOMA PANHANDLES THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING DUE TO GUSTY SOUTHWEST WINDS AND LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE ACROSS PORTIONS OF THE OKLAHOMA AND TEXAS PANHANDLES THURSDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT. STORMS ON THURSDAY NIGHT AND FRIDAY COULD BECOME SEVERE...WITH LARGE HAIL AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL AS THE PRIMARY HAZARDS. AT THIS TIME...THUNDERSTORMS SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE...THOUGH LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL WILL BE POSSIBLE. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED AT THIS TIME. AREA FIRE MANAGERS AND EMERGENCY OFFICIALS SHOULD BE ALERT FOR ELEVATED FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS THROUGH EARLY THIS EVENING. NF
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE AMARILLO TX
209 PM CDT TUE APR 26 2016
TXZ016-262000-
DEAF SMITH TX-
209 PM CDT TUE APR 26 2016
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR DEAF SMITH COUNTY UNTIL 300 PM
CDT...
AT 208 PM CDT...DOPPLER RADAR WAS TRACKING A STRONG THUNDERSTORM OVER
FRIONA...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 35 MPH.
WIND GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH WILL BE POSSIBLE WITH THIS STORM. BLOWING
DUST AND REDUCED VISIBILITIES ARE POSSIBLE.
LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
HEREFORD...SIMMS...DAWN AND BOOTLEG.
LAT...LON 3515 10304 3491 10217 3478 10217 3475 10221
3475 10304
TIME...MOT...LOC 1908Z 232DEG 32KT 3461 10275
MBThe Amarillo radar (KAMA), 34 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:53 UTC.
4 high wind, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A 58 mph wind gust was measured by a KVII Schoolnet site located 5 miles south of Canyon. This wind gust occurred as rain showers passed bringing down stronger winds aloft to ground level.
A 61 mph wind gust was measured by the automated surface observing station at the Amarillo airport. This wind gust occurred as rain showers passed bringing down stronger winds aloft to ground level.
A 59 mph wind gust was measured by the West Texas Mesonet site located 1 mile southwest of Panhandle. This wind gust occurred as rain showers passed bringing down stronger winds aloft to ground level.
A 58 mph wind gust was measured by the KVII Schoolnet site located 14 miles south-southwest of Pampa.
A 63 mph wind gust was measured by the KVII Schoolnet site located 6 miles southwest of Panhandle. This wind gust occurred as rain showers passed bringing down stronger winds aloft to ground level.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2016Every state in 2016This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, April 2016
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: 635052, 635054, 635056, 635047, 635058.