The lack of rainfall combined with continued record to near-record heat in March worsened drought near the Lower Texas coast to Extreme levels. Grassland was completely dried up (straw colored) while trees such as mesquite and ash re-leafed with the onset of meteorological spring.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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 BRO wrote it up.
The lack of rainfall combined with continued record to near-record heat in March worsened drought near the Lower Texas coast to Extreme levels. Grassland was completely dried up (straw colored) while trees such as mesquite and ash re-leafed with the onset of meteorological spring.
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 Brownsville, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 30, 11:35 PM CST, 25 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion...UPDATED National Weather Service Brownsville TX 1235 AM CDT Tue Mar 31 2020 .DISCUSSION...Updated for latest aviation discussion below. && .AVIATION...Satellite images and surface observations indicate mostly high clouds moving across the CWA late tonight. Expect MVFR conditions to develop across the Rio Grande Valley the rest of tonight into early Tuesday morning as low clouds/fog develop along and ahead of a weak cold front moving through deep south Texas Tues morning. VFR conditions will prevail Tues afternoon as surface high pressure builds into the area in the wake of the front. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 645 PM CDT Mon Mar 30 2020/ DISCUSSION...Updated for latest aviation discussion below. AVIATION...Mainly high clouds prevail across deep south Texas early this evening. Low ceilings are expected to return late this evening or overnight, ahead of an approaching weak cold front. MVFR with intermittent IFR ceilings will be possible late tonight, through about 14-15z Tuesday. The front is expected to move through the area by mid morning. Clouds will clear west to east through the morning behind the front as drier air filters into the region, VFR conditions return by late Tuesday morning. Light to moderate northwest winds Tuesday morning will become north to northeast in the afternoon. PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 320 PM CDT Mon Mar 30 2020/ SHORT TERM (Tonight through Tuesday Night): GOES-16 visible satellite imagery shows a plethora of low and high level clouds cross Deep South Texas. This cloud cover has made it difficult for diurnal heating to occur in spots -- especially across Starr, Zapata, and Jim Hogg Counties, where temperatures are struggling to get out of the 70s as of 2 PM CDT. Meanwhile, where more turbulent mixing has occurred, generally east of US-281/I-69C, temperatures have climbed into the mid-upper 80s. As a warm front continues to lift into central Texas, lows tonight will remain very mild and humid, with upper 60s/lower 70s anticipated again. Recent KCRP doppler radar scans show only a few very light showers remaining across parts of Brooks and Kenedy Counties. Shower chances will end completely over the next hour or two, and rain chances are not likely through the remainder of the short-term period. Surface low pressure will develop in the Texas Panhandle later this afternoon or early evening. This low will move across northern Texas late tonight and into tomorrow morning, dragging a weak cold front across western/central Texas as a result. The front is expected to move through the Northern Ranchlands early tomorrow morning, reaching the lower Rio Grande Valley by late tomorrow morning. Moisture will be limited along and ahead of the front; thus rain chances will be very low. Very dry air will entrain into the region behind the front and clouds will clear (see fire weather discussion below for more information on RH values). This very dry air will help really heat temperatures up tomorrow afternoon, with highs expected to reach the 90s in most locations; some locations may even reach the mid-upper 90s. The cooler and drier airmass will really be felt Tuesday night, with low temperatures anticipated to be 5 to 10 degrees cooler than tonight. LONG TERM (Wednesday through Monday): Shallow 500 mb ridging will build back in place over southern TX starting Wed with several areas of 500 mb PV pushing into the mean ridge position. This will quickly break down the ridge axis on Thur and Fri. Meanwhile, a series of 500 mb short waves will carve out a larger trough axis across the northwestern and northern sections of the lower 48 states later this week. This will push a pretty strong cold front into north TX Thur Night into Fri. Moisture will return over southern TX as this front moves southwards. Neither the GFS and ECMWF models push this front all the way through the RGV and both tend to stall this front right over the region as a stationary front this weekend. This front combined with the decent moisture return will increase the conv potential for the RGV and the northern Ranchlands starting Fri and continuing into the weekend. 500 mb ridging and drier/more stable air will then start moving into the region next week which will diminish the conv potential. Overall 7 Day QPF amounts over the region today generally range from 0.25 through around 0.75 inches through next Sun. This may help somewhat with the ongoing drought conditions but will definitely not end it. The GFS and ECMWF models are still showing pretty good agreement in the overall pattern through Day 7/8 and will stick close to a model consensus for both temps and pops for this upcoming period. Accordingly, the longer range forecast confidence is above average today. MARINE (Now through Tuesday Night): Seas were near 4.5 feet with southeast winds near 15 knots at buoy020 early this afternoon. Light to moderate southeast to south winds will prevail across the coastal waters this evening and overnight ahead of weak cold front that will pass over the coastal waters mid-late morning tomorrow. Light south winds tonight will shift to the north behind the front tomorrow morning, but remain light. Winds will gradually turn more northeast Tuesday afternoon as strong high pressure settles in over northern Texas. Seas will remain generally low or moderate through the forecast period, around 2 to 4 feet on the Gulf waters and a light to moderate chop on the bay. Small Craft Advisories and SCEC conditions are not anticipated. Wednesday through Saturday Night: Persistent surface ridging over the Gulf Coast and the Gulf of Mexico later this will maintain a fairly steady E-SE low level flow through next Sat. Expect moderate Bay and Gulf conditions to prevail in the longer range period with no strong indications of sustained SCA conditions. Isolated thunderstorms will be the main threat for mariners for both Fri and Sat as the cold front pushes into the region. Fire Weather (Tuesday): A weak and dry cold front is still on track to move through the Rio Grande Valley Tues morning and much drier air will filter into deep south Texas by the afternoon. With temperatures expected to reach the lower-mid 90s across most of the CWA Tues afternoon...relative humidity values will fall below 20 percent across most of region during the afternoon hours. The lowest relative humidity values will occur between noon and 6 PM CDT across Zapata, Jim Hogg, and Starr Counties, with single digit values possible in these counties. Neither elevated nor critical fire weather conditions are expected at this time due to the 20 foot winds forecast to be below 15 miles per hour during this time-frame. However, with fine fuels still cured in most locations west of I- 69C, outdoor burning is still not recommended. A fire danger statement will likely be needed for most of the BRO CWA tomorrow. && .BRO WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... TX...None. GM...None. && This product is also available on the web at: HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/RGV 61/62
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Brownsville TX 350 PM CDT Mon Mar 30 2020 TXZ248>257-351-353-312100- Zapata-Jim Hogg-Brooks-Inland Kenedy-Starr-Southern Hidalgo- Inland Willacy-Inland Cameron-Coastal Willacy-Coastal Cameron- Coastal Kenedy-Northern Hidalgo- 350 PM CDT Mon Mar 30 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of Deep South Texas. .DAY ONE...Tonight The threat of rip currents remains moderate for area beaches. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday A slight threat for fire spread and growth Tuesday afternoon as relative humidity falls between 12 and 25 percent and north winds increase between 10 and 15 mph. Areas along west of Interstate 69 E will see the highest threat. An elevated threat of rip currents along area beaches may be possible at times Wednesday through Sunday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation will not be needed. GMZ130-132-135-150-155-170-175-312100- Laguna Madre from the Port of Brownsville to the Arroyo Colorado- Laguna Madre from the Arroyo Colorado To 5 NM north of Port Mansfield TX- Laguna Madre from 5 nm north of Port Mansfield to Baffin Bay TX- Coastal waters from Port Mansfield to the Rio Grande out 20 nm- Coastal waters from Baffin Bay to Port Mansfield out 20 nm- Waters from Port Mansfield to the Rio Grande extending from 20 to 60 nm- Waters from Baffin Bay to Port Mansfield extending from 20 to 60 nm- 350 PM CDT Mon Mar 30 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of The Gulf of Mexico and The Laguna Madre. .DAY ONE...Tonight No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday No hazardous weather is expected at this time. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation will not be needed.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
2 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Extreme (D3) level drought developed in southeast Cameron County, from west of Brownsville to Rio Hondo and points east, on March 31st due to continued lack of rainfall and record to near-record warm to hot temperatures. Grasslands turned to straw while trees filled out as spring continued.
Extreme (D3) level drought developed in southeast Cameron County, including all populated coastal communities (South Padre, Port Isabel, and Laguna Vista) on March 31st due to continued lack of rainfall and record to near-record warm to hot temperatures. Grasslands turned to straw while trees filled out as spring continued.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2020Every state in 2020This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, March 2020
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: 883562, 883563.