A deep low pressure system near the Four corners continued to move east, causing early morning thunderstorms to develop along the Texas Panhandle and into Oklahoma. A cold front was moving southeast across the state and entered our northwestern|counties around sunrise.
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 FWD wrote it up.
A deep low pressure system near the Four corners continued to move east, causing early morning thunderstorms to develop along the Texas Panhandle and into Oklahoma. A cold front was moving southeast across the state and entered our northwestern|counties around sunrise. The strength of the cap was sufficient to hamper any development until mid afternoon. Deep forcing for ascent approached from from the west while remnant boundaries associated with convection over far East Texas and West Louisiana moved in from the east. By 3:30 PM, several parameters came together for the rapid development of severe storms east of Interstate 35/35E. Pre-frontal convection led to the development of supercells, producing numerous tornadoes over a relatively small area. Additional storm development quickly developed along the cold front with several reports of large hail, and eventually producing a brief EF-0 Quasi-Linear Convective System (QLCS) tornado (Tornado #7).
The survey crew teams determined yesterday that there was a nearly 55 mile damage swath, yet found evidence that there were two tornadoes which caused the damage. One tornado began in western Henderson County and moved into central Van Zandt County. This tornado occluded and dissipated, and a second, long track tornado began nearby. This second tornado was the EF-3 which produced damage on the east side of Canton, Fruitvale, Emory, and finally dissipating near Lake Fork. The first tornado had|a track of approximately 12 miles, while the other had a track of nearly 42 miles.
It is known that four people lost their lives due to these tornadoes, and 59 people 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 Fort Worth, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 29, 1:29 PM CST, 1 hour 46 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Fort Worth TX 229 PM CDT Sat Apr 29 2017 .MESOSCALE UPDATE... Latest surface observations show the cold front is located along a line from near Gainesville to Fort Worth then southwest to Hamilton. Ahead of the front, deep southerly flow ahead of the upper low to the west continues to transport moisture northward. A hot and humid airmass is in place with DFW observation coming in at 90/70 last hour. A large swath of low 70s dewpoints are in place east of the cold front. A 1pm supplemental sounding showed that a fairly stout capping inversion remains in place across the region although it has weakened some and been lifted to around 700 mb. 1-minute visible satellite imagery remains rather unimpressive with a generally flat appearance to the cumulus field. This is confirmed with visual observations in Fort Worth. Several attempts at deeper convection have failed indicative of the stronger inhibition. Water vapor imagery does continue to show some better moisture aloft spreading into the region on the nose of a 110 kt upper jet. There has also been an increase in mid level echoes on radar over the last hour. This suggests that some stronger forcing for ascent is spreading into the region ahead of the upper trough. The latest thinking is that deeper convection will likely initiate along the cold front over the next couple of hours when stronger forcing aloft can assist in lifting the stronger capping. This front is likely to be a little farther east than previously forecast with the highest severe weather threat shifting to the east of the I-35/35E corridor. Once storms do develop...they will have the potential to quickly become severe. MLCAPE values are generally between 2500-3000 J/kg east and southeast of the front. Steep mid level lapse rates will support a large hail threat while deep layer shear parallel to the frontal boundary should encourage a linear mode and an increasing damaging wind threat. All of this activity will continue to move east with the front through the late evening hours. Severe weather threat will be highest east of the front. Once the winds have shifted to the northwest and temperatures fall, the severe threat will be considerably lower. Dunn && .AVIATION... /ISSUED 119 PM CDT Sat Apr 29 2017/ /18Z TAFs/ A special midday sounding shows that the capping inversion has weakened and lifted, but the relatively flat CU field downstream of an approaching cold front confirms that this inhibition is still winning the convective battle. Local numerical guidance corroborates the weakening trend of this lid, particularly north of the Metroplex, but additional forcing and/or surface heating will be needed to break through it. Convective initiation is still expected to occur this afternoon along the advancing surface front, which may be in the vicinity of the I-35 corridor when this occurs. Surface temperatures in the mid 80s and dew points near 70F, combined with steepening lapse rates aloft, are yielding MLCAPE values in excess of 3000 J/kg along and east of I-35. This means that once initiation occurs, it will be rapid with intense updrafts that will quickly become severe. The window for thunderstorms at the Metroplex TAF sites will be small, with the frontal boundary now on the doorstep. A switch to north flow may be needed well before the storm potential is east of the Metroplex. Northwest winds in the TEMPO group are designed to cover both convective winds and FROPA. The scenario for Waco will be similar, albeit delayed an hour or two on both ends, and the storm chances will be a bit lower for Central Texas overall. Although the frontal activity will be confined to East Texas this evening, with forcing aloft still upstream, some elevated convection may occur near our TAF sites. However, the chances are too low to be specifically addressed in the TAFs at this time. Better chances will accompany a final spoke of energy that will swing around the base of an upper trough during the early morning hours Sunday. With our without precipitation, there is the potential for some MVFR ceilings deep within the cold air. However, this moisture currently on the high terrain of West Texas may have thinned considerably by the time it reaches North and Central Texas. The current TAFs maintain VFR Sunday morning. In the wake of the departing upper low, deep westerly flow will ensue. Despite a very stable boundary layer, some of this momentum will reach the surface, and Sunday will be marked by gusty west winds. At this time, the crosswind issues appear to be manageable at DFW and Love Field, but this will need to be assessed further with subsequent TAF packages. 25 && .PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 411 AM CDT Sat Apr 29 2017/ A deep upper level low near the Four Corners appears on satellite to be making a move eastward along the New Mexico-Colorado border. Thunderstorms have been erupting across the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma overnight along and north of a frontal boundary, due to strong forcing associated with the upper low. In fact, intense convection stretches all the way eastward from Oklahoma across Missouri, Illinois and into the Ohio Valley. Locally, the regional RADAR mosaic indicates that the front is now beginning to push southeast, possibly aided by gust fronts from the numerous storms to the northwest. The expectation is that the front will move into the far northwestern counties around sunrise before slowing down as the low level jet begins to mix out. The front may still generate scattered convection this morning across the northwestern third of the forecast area, though it will likely be less intense than the ongoing OK-NW TX activity. This is advertised well by the majority of the hi-res model guidance. One fly in the ointment, however, is the 3 KM NAM which indicates that the storms near the TX Panhandle-OK border will organized into an MCS. The good news is that the 06Z run weakens this feature considerably as it moves into the northwest counties, as opposed to the 00Z run which blasted it all the way through the Metroplex. Since the latter run is the biggest outlier, the current forecast will not reflect that scenario. Nevertheless we will need to keep an eye on the evolution of any upstream storm clusters / cold pools which may develop. After slowing a bit following sunrise, the front will pick up steam again late this morning as the upper low approaches the Texas-New Mexico border. Rain-cooled air may hamper surface heating in the northwest, but the rest of the region will have several hours to destabilize. By early afternoon, several parameters will be in place for the development of strong to severe thunderstorms. A moist and highly unstable airmass, good lift provided by the deep upper level system, and a surface boundary to provide focus for development. Where storms initialize this afternoon will depend on the location of the cold front. Taking a blend of the most recent guidance places the boundary just west of I-35/35W in that 19-20Z hour (when convective initiation is most likely), which is similar to yesterday's forecast and actually near the western edge of the latest Enhanced risk area from SPC. Storms that develop will have a good chance of becoming severe due to the high amounts of instability and shear present. Since shear is mostly unidirectional, the primary severe threat will be large hail and damaging winds. A few tornadoes will still be possible, but if winds become more backed at the surface, a higher tornado threat would exist. Storms should quickly congeal into a squall line early this evening as they push eastward through the forecast area. The severe concern would shift to a damaging wind and possible brief spin-up tornado threat with a gradually lowering large hail threat. In addition, high PWATs suggest that a brief heavy rain and localized flooding threat will also exist along the line, particularly if there are any training segments. The line of storms should reach the southeastern-most counties around midnight and exit to the east shortly thereafter. Additional showers and storms will remain possible area-wide through the overnight hours as the core of the upper low crosses the Southern Plains. Forcing will be strong, but limited moisture and instability will likely preclude any additional severe threat (though some storms may produce frequent lightning and small hail). Cool and dry air can be expected Sunday behind the front with highs in the 60s followed by lows in the 40s Sunday night. Abundant sun and the return of south winds will bring a quick end to the cool snap on Monday and Tuesday. A fast-moving shortwave trough will provide a chance of showers and storms around the middle of next week, followed by upper level ridging and pleasant weather late in the week and into next weekend. 30 && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... Dallas-Ft. Worth 51 67 48 81 59 / 50 5 0 0 0 Waco 50 70 46 82 61 / 50 5 0 0 0 Paris 52 63 44 75 54 / 90 10 0 0 0 Denton 46 65 43 80 56 / 50 5 0 0 0 McKinney 51 65 44 78 57 / 50 5 0 0 0 Dallas 51 68 51 81 60 / 50 5 0 0 0 Terrell 52 67 48 79 58 / 70 10 0 0 0 Corsicana 53 69 50 80 60 / 70 10 0 0 0 Temple 52 71 50 83 61 / 50 5 0 0 0 Mineral Wells 47 67 41 83 55 / 50 5 0 0 0 && .FWD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. &&
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Fort Worth TX 326 PM CDT Sat Apr 29 2017 TXZ091>095-100>107-115>123-129>135-141>148-156>162-174-175-301145- Montague-Cooke-Grayson-Fannin-Lamar-Young-Jack-Wise-Denton-Collin- Hunt-Delta-Hopkins-Stephens-Palo Pinto-Parker-Tarrant-Dallas- Rockwall-Kaufman-Van Zandt-Rains-Eastland-Erath-Hood-Somervell- Johnson-Ellis-Henderson-Comanche-Mills-Hamilton-Bosque-Hill-Navarro- Freestone-Anderson-Lampasas-Coryell-Bell-McLennan-Falls-Limestone- Leon-Milam-Robertson- 326 PM CDT Sat Apr 29 2017 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for North and Central Texas. .DAY ONE...Tonight. Thunderstorms are expected to develop this afternoon and continue to move east tonight. The highest threat for severe weather will be east of the Interstate 35 corridor. The main threats with the storms will be large hail and damaging winds. A tornado or two cannot be ruled out ahead of the cold front. Heavy rainfall may lead to localized flash flooding. The storm threat will diminish from west to east tonight into early Sunday morning with small hail possible with the storms that develop behind the cold front. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Sunday through Friday. A few thunderstorms are possible Sunday morning along and east of a line from Bonham to Terrell to Centerville. Small hail may occur with these storms. Thunderstorm chances will begin early Wednesday as another cold front moves through the region. A threat for severe storms may exist Wednesday afternoon and night, mainly along and east of Interstate 35. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is likely this afternoon and evening mainly east of the Interstate 35 corridor.
Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Fort Worth TX
329 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
TXZ146-292100-
Navarro TX-
329 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR EASTERN NAVARRO COUNTY UNTIL 400
PM CDT...
At 328 PM CDT, National Weather Service meteorologists were tracking
a strong thunderstorm near Navarro, or 13 miles southeast of
Corsicana, moving northeast at 45 mph.
Dime size hail will be possible with this storm.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
This storm may intensify, so closely monitor for additional
information or possible warnings from the National Weather Service.
&&
LAT...LON 3187 9635 3190 9643 3230 9633 3230 9630
3226 9628 3225 9626 3225 9624 3220 9619
3221 9615 3218 9618 3216 9616 3216 9612
3215 9610 3210 9612 3208 9611 3208 9606
3204 9607 3201 9605
TIME...MOT...LOC 2028Z 204DEG 40KT 3197 9628
25Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Fort Worth TX
342 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
TXZ122-123-292115-
Van Zandt TX-Rains TX-
342 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR NORTH CENTRAL VAN ZANDT AND RAINS
COUNTIES UNTIL 415 PM CDT...
At 340 PM CDT, National Weather Service meteorologists are tracking
a strong thunderstorm over Fruitvale, or 11 miles northeast of
Canton, moving north at 35 mph.
Dime size hail will be possible with this storm.
This strong thunderstorm will be near...
western portions of Lake Fork around 410 PM CDT.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
This storm may intensify, so closely monitor for additional
information or possible warnings from the National Weather Service.
&&
LAT...LON 3258 9569 3265 9589 3298 9579 3298 9567
3296 9566 3272 9564 3271 9562
TIME...MOT...LOC 2040Z 200DEG 31KT 3269 9576
25Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Fort Worth TX
346 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
TXZ135-146-292115-
Henderson TX-Navarro TX-
346 PM CDT SAT APR 29 2017
...SIGNIFICANT WEATHER ADVISORY FOR WESTERN HENDERSON AND
NORTHEASTERN NAVARRO COUNTIES UNTIL 415 PM CDT...
At 345 PM CDT, National Weather Service meteorologists were tracking
a strong thunderstorm over Kerens, or 13 miles east of Corsicana,
moving north at 35 mph.
Dime size hail will be possible with this storm.
This strong thunderstorm will be near...
Trinidad around 355 PM CDT.
Tool and Enchanted Oaks around 405 PM CDT.
Gun Barrel City and Seven Points around 410 PM CDT.
Mabank around 415 PM CDT.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
This storm may intensify, so closely monitor for additional
information or possible warnings from the National Weather Service.
&&
LAT...LON 3205 9597 3199 9616 3206 9636 3236 9631
3236 9594
TIME...MOT...LOC 2045Z 194DEG 33KT 3212 9624
25The Dallas/Ft Worth radar (KFWS), 145 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:13 UTC.
12 hail, 10 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Storm spotters and storm chasers observed a brief tornado to the southwest of Grand Saline. Damage to trees was observed by the survey crew from the National Weather Service office.
A resident called to report quarter sized hail.
Quarter sized hail was reported by amateur radio operators.
This brief tornado occurred in nearly the same area of the larger tornado that came through later. This tornado caused damage to trees and barns just southeast of the city center of Canton. The survey crew found evidence of a separate track than the larger tornado, which moved through the area about one hour later.
One inch hail was reported on the southern side of Commerce.
Nickel hail was reported on the southeast side of Eustace.
A National Weather Service damage survey crew found the start of tornado number three began in Henderson County, approximately 3 miles due south of Eustace. This tornado eventually moved into Van Zandt County, where the storm produced EF4 damage. In Henderson County, several homes suffered EF2 damage, along with a considerable amount of tree damage and damage to farm buildings. As the storm moved into Van Zandt County, the tornado grew to a mile wide at the tornado's maximum width. Over 50 homes were either damaged or destroyed, with a continuous path noted between counties.
The Henderson County tornado continued into Van Zandt County. A National Weather Service damage survey crew found the start of tornado number three began in Henderson County, approximately 3 miles due south of Eustace. This tornado eventually moved into Van Zandt County, where the storm produced EF4 damage. In Henderson County, several homes suffered EF2 damage, along with a considerable amount of tree damage and damage to farm buildings. As the storm moved into Van Zandt County, the tornado grew to a mile wide at the tornado's maximum width. Over 50 homes were either damaged or destroyed, with a continuous path noted between counties.
The Bailey volunteer fire department reported ping pong ball sized hail.
This tornado developed northeast of Log Cabin with the first|visible damage associated to snapped trees. As the tornado moved |north/northeast, a tall communications tower was snapped in half. |Eventually, the tornado crossed paths with several homes which led|to complete destruction and many debarked trees. The damage path |continued to the northeast, eventually stopping near the|intersection of Van Zandt County Road 2903 and FM 1256. As this|tornado occluded and dissipated, the next tornado began in the next|few minutes.
This is a continuation of the Henderson County tornado, as it moved into Van Zandt | County.
This tornado developed northeast of Log Cabin with the first visible damage associated to snapped trees. As the tornado moved north/northeast, a tall communications tower was snapped in half. Eventually, the tornado crossed paths with several homes which led to complete destruction and many debarked trees. The damage path continued to the northeast, eventually stopping near the intersection of Van Zandt County Road 2903 and FM 1256. As this tornado occluded and dissipated, the next tornado began in the next few minutes.
This tornado began nearly as the last tornado dissipated to the south and west. The parent supercell cycled another tornado about a mile to the east and northeast of the previous storm. This tornado quickly grew to a large tornado, becoming slightly less than one mile wide at its widest point. The tornado was at the strongest near Interstate 20 and FM 17 just north of Canton. The survey crews found continuous damage between Canton and Fruitvale, and then additional damage as far north as Emory, |and Lake Fork. Several homes, businesses, and farm buildings were damaged or destroyed in the 40 mile continuous damage path. This tornado occurred for over an hour, and spanned most of Van Zandt, and nearly all of Rains Counties during the 80 minute track.
Quarter to ping pong ball sized hail was observed along US 175 on the southeast side of Kaufman.
Residents recorded video of a tornado near FM 1567 and|County Road 1137 shortly after 530 PM. Tornado briefly had multiple|vortices but generally maintained a width of around 100 yards. The|tornado traveled north along County Road 1131 with mainly tree |damage observed. A metal barn was destroyed near CR 1131 and CR |1120. A home was damaged along FM 275 south of I-30 near the end|of the track. The home burned after a large tree limb fell on the |main powerline into the home.
This tornado was a continuation from Van Zandt County. This tornado began nearly as the last tornado dissipated to the south and west. The parent supercell cycled another tornado about a mile to the east and northeast of the previous storm. This tornado quickly grew to a large tornado, becoming slightly less than one mile wide at its widest point. The tornado was at the strongest near Interstate 20 and FM 17 just north of Canton. The survey crews found continuous damage between Canton and Fruitvale, and then additional damage as far north as Emory, and Lake Fork. Several homes, businesses, and farm buildings were damaged or destroyed in the 40 mile continuous damage path. This tornado occurred for over an hour, and spanned most of Van Zandt, and nearly all of Rains Counties during the 80 minute track.
This tornado was observed by residents of southwest Van Zandt County, south of Van Zandt County road 2308. This tornado occurred over open fields and produced tree and ranch land damage.
A report of ping ping pong ball sized hail was reported in Emory.
Reports of slightly larger than quarter sized hail were called into the office.
Trained spotters reported quarter sized hail.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tornado, Van Zandt | 2017-04-29 | 57 | Male | Other | Direct |
| Tornado, Van Zandt | 2017-04-29 | 51 | Male | Permanent Home | Direct |
| Tornado, Van Zandt | 2017-04-29 | 39 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
| Tornado, Van Zandt | 2017-04-29 | 49 | Female | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Texas, 2017Warnings in Texas, April 2017
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: 683244, 692658, 692659, 692660, 683245, 692661, 692669, 692662, 683246, 683249, 692663, 683250, 683252, 683254, 692664, 692665, 683256, 683255, 683257, 692666, 692667, 692668.