A short wave trough approaching the area on the afternoon of the 11th combined with a moderately unstable atmosphere to produce scattered severe thunderstorms on the South Plains. The strongest storms began near the Texas/New Mexico state line and moved east-southeastward producing severe hail and destructive winds.
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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.
A short wave trough approaching the area on the afternoon of the 11th combined with a moderately unstable atmosphere to produce scattered severe thunderstorms on the South Plains. The strongest storms began near the Texas/New Mexico state line and moved east-southeastward producing severe hail and destructive winds. Up to golf ball size hail was reported in Hockley County. As the cluster of thunderstorms moved over southern Lubbock County, a re-intensification occurred and produced storm damage from Woodrow (Lubbock County) to New Home (Lynn County). Based on the damage, wind gusts were estimated at 70 mph.
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 11, 6:00 PM CST, 55 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Lubbock TX 700 PM CDT Mon May 11 2020 .AVIATION... Main concern this evening is on thunderstorm impacts at the terminals. Isolated convection has already affected KPVW and KCDS early this evening, but more widespread convection developing in eastern New Mexico will likely sweep through most/all of the terminals later this evening. Strong/severe outflow winds and pockets of hail will accompany this evening's activity as it moves southeastward. The main round of storms should be shifting south and east of the terminals around or after midnight though a few showers could linger into the early morning hours. A weak frontal boundary will sag southward overnight, with MVFR to IFR cigs likely developing north of the boundary. KCDS and KPVW will have the best chance of these sub-VFR conditions, though they could also affect KLBB. Another round of convection is possible Tuesday afternoon/evening, which will be addressed in future TAF issuances. && .PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 320 PM CDT Mon May 11 2020/ SHORT TERM... We continue to take a wait and see approach to how things will unfold this afternoon into tonight. 18Z surface analysis shows low- level moisture continues to increase across the region on strong south to southeasterly flow. Area of elevated showers has developed across the western South Plains and will continue to move east through the afternoon. This may impact storm chances by cooling the boundary layer across the northern south plains but also increasing the amount of moisture through the sub-cloud layer. Models have missed for the most part the current bout of precipitation which brings into question whether they will have a good handle on how things will develop this afternoon. The overall picture remains fairly unchanged with 1000-1500 J/kg MLCAPE expected along the TX/NM state line where storms are expected to initiate. Starting off as isolated storms, these will have the best chance for producing hail and damaging wind before developing into a line that moves east through the evening. There still remains a narrow window where there could be an isolated tornado, mainly early on in the storms development AND if any storm can deviate to the right of a mean southeasterly storm motion. Severe weather will transition more to a wind threat with time as the line becomes better organized across the Rolling Plains. Storms should clear the Rolling Plains in the early morning hours on Tuesday with potentially some low to mid-level cloud cover hanging around through Tuesday morning. Behind the departing shortwave and storms, a weak cold front will push into the northern Rolling Plains around sunrise eventually stalling out roughly along a Happy to Jayton line by Tuesday afternoon. The dryline will mix a bit further east into the western South Plains setting up a potential triple point anywhere from the northern South Plains into NE New Mexico. Models are starting to show hints at the potential for another round of storms Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday night but soundings also show a stronger cap in place across the Caprock. The NAM and ARW do break the cap up around Plainview while the TTU-WRF shows a brief storm near Muleshoe. We will have to see how conditions develop tomorrow but we are forecast to be 8-10 degrees warmer than today which may help overcome any cap. Started pulling slight chance PoPs further west and later shifts may need to also push PoPs west again if signal is still there for storm potential on the Caprock tomorrow afternoon. Jordan LONG TERM... Chances for dryline convection, especially east of the Escarpment will increase for tomorrow, Wednesday and possibly Thursday as well. The upper level flow pattern is compressed with a number of progressive disturbances embedded, transecting across our area through the end of the week and into the weekend. Any storms that initiate tomorrow afternoon/evening will struggle to persist after midnight. The dryline is expected to position itself approximately along the I27/87 corridor. Deepest moisture will be off the Caprock where surface dewpoints approach 60 tomorrow and are firmly in the 50s on Wednesday and Thursday. CAPE values east of any developing dryline the next few days will be between 1500/2500 J/kg with weak divergent flow aloft. Bulk shear will be on the low end for severe, between 30-40kts but certainly suitable for the climatological peak of our severe weather season. The SPC has much of the Rolling Plains in a 'Marginal Risk' tomorrow with an even larger area of 'Slight Risk' extending west over the South Plains on Thursday in the Day 3 outlook. A much sharper trough over the west will interrupt the more progressive pattern by the end of the weekend and into next week. Of interest in the longterm is a retrograding upper level low over the deep south at the beginning of next week that positions itself over east Texas and Louisiana. This should help maintain elevated boundary layer moisture over much of Texas and possibly mitigate what could be elevated fire weather concerns of a building ridge overhead. The reason for the odd retrograding low over the deep south is what may be our first southern atlantic tropical system of the season off the Florida coast. Although temperatures are expected to be slightly above normal, the increased moisture is holding off any extreme heat in the extended forecast. && .LUB WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... None. && 14/55/23
Hazardous Weather Outlook...UPDATED National Weather Service Lubbock TX 1131 AM CDT Mon May 11 2020 TXZ021>044-121645- Parmer-Castro-Swisher-Briscoe-Hall-Childress-Bailey-Lamb-Hale-Floyd- Motley-Cottle-Cochran-Hockley-Lubbock-Crosby-Dickens-King-Yoakum- Terry-Lynn-Garza-Kent-Stonewall- 1131 AM CDT Mon May 11 2020 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the South Plains, Rolling Plains and the far Southern Texas Panhandle. .DAY ONE...This afternoon and tonight. Scattered thunderstorms are expected to develop near or just east of the Texas, New Mexico state line this afternoon and move east through sunset. Initially, these storms will be capable of producing wind gusts to 70 mph and hail to ping pong ball size. The tornado threat is low but an isolated tornado may be possible with the initial storm development. Storms will continue to move east southeast and eventually develop into a line around sunset near the edge of the Caprock. As the storms move into the Rolling Plains, the threat will transition to more of a wind threat with gusts up to 70 mph with isolated reports of hail up to quarter size. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday. Periods of thunderstorms will be possible this week into the weekend across the region. From Wednesday through Saturday, temperatures will warm and moisture will increase, creating an environment more favorable for severe weather. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation may be needed. Please relay any information about severe weather to the NWS while following local, state, and CDC guidelines.
The Lubbock radar (KLBB), 87 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:53 UTC.
3 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Morton measured a wind gust to 59 mph.
Local broadcast media relayed a report of quarter size hail east of Vigo Park in Briscoe County.
Several funnel clouds were reported just south of Anton.
The Hockley County Sheriff's Office reported golf ball size hail in Levelland. No damage was reported.
Social media posts depicted minor thunderstorm wind damage around Woodrow to near New Home in Lynn County.
Social media posts depicted minor thunderstorm wind damage around Woodrow to near New Home in Lynn County.
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, May 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: 882956, 882959, 882963, 882975, 882973, 882978, 882980.