During the month of April, less than 25 percent of normal rainfall occurred in most areas adding to long term deficits. Some Beneficial rain did occur across the southeast Texas Panhandle in March and April leading to some modest improvements in a few areas.
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 AMA wrote it up.
During the month of April, less than 25 percent of normal rainfall occurred in most areas adding to long term deficits. Some Beneficial rain did occur across the southeast Texas Panhandle in March and April leading to some modest improvements in a few areas. Farmers and ranchers especially in Cimarron County in OK and Deaf Smith and Randall County in Texas were still struggling with soil moisture being short to very short in areas of severe to exceptional drought. Winter wheat was in poor to good condition. Some farmers were starting to run pivots in hopes to salvage some winter wheat. Very dry and windy conditions during the month of April left some fields in poor condition. Supplemental feeding continued for cattle with some livestock able to graze wheat not worth harvesting.
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 Mar 31, 11:38 PM CST, 23 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Amarillo TX 1238 AM CDT Thu Apr 1 2021 .AVIATION...06z TAF Cycle... VFR conditions are expected to prevail through the period with very few clouds. Southeasterly winds will become southwesterly later this morning, increasing and becoming gusty by late morning. A few gusts around 30 knots will be likely through this afternoon before tapering off this evening. Ward && .PREV DISCUSSION... /Issued 647 PM CDT Wed Mar 31 2021/ AVIATION... For the 00Z TAFs, winds will become south to southwest, increase and become gusty by late Thursday morning at the terminal sites as the pressure gradient tightens in response to a deepening surface trough of low pressure over eastern Colorado and eastern New Mexico. Little to no cloud cover is also expected during this fcst cycle. 02 PREV DISCUSSION... /Issued 239 PM CDT Wed Mar 31 2021/ SHORT TERM (Today through Thursday night)... No significant weather is expected during this time. Clear skies are expected until tomorrow night when we could see some high clouds start to infiltrate into the region. Tomorrow will be on the breezy side, and this will result in elevated fire weather conditions in the western zones where a combination of receptive fuels and dry conditions will exist. In the upper levels, a cut-off low is present over the Pacific Ocean west of Baja California, while a long wave trough is evident over much of the CONUS. This has resulted in westerly to northwesterly flow aloft over the Panhandles. With no moisture present, this will bring about clear skies through at least the next 24 hours. By tomorrow, the cut-off low will get absorbed into the mean flow, while the long wave trough pushes over the eastern CONUS becoming more amplified. The response at the surface tomorrow will be a lee low developing with increase in the pressure gradient field across the Panhandles. Additionally, low level lapse rates will be conducive for efficient afternoon mixing of stronger wind speeds aloft. All that said, we should have wind speeds of 20-30 mph with gusts around 30-40 mph tomorrow afternoon. Given the RH values around 15-20 percent mid afternoon and the state of the fuels in the west, we will be looking at the threat for elevated fire weather concerns Thursday afternoon. Tomorrow night, Pacific moisture will advect in ahead of the upper disturbance as it enters the Desert Southwest, we will see an increase in high clouds start to infiltrate in Thursday night as we switch to more westerly flow aloft. Guerrero LONG TERM...Friday through Tuesday Upper ridge to build in over the Panhandles Friday as a closed upper low tracks eastward across the southwestern states. The closed upper low weakens into an open wave Friday evening and Friday night and then tracks across the Panhandles and West Texas Saturday. Although some very isolated precip could be possible Friday night, more likely that the precip will remain south of the forecast area as closed upper low redevelops over the Permian Basin by late Saturday. Upper ridge builds back over the Panhandles once again Sunday The upper ridge shifts east away from the Panhandles Monday and Tuesday as Pacific Northwest and western states upper trough approaches the forecast area from the north and west. Lee surface trough develops across eastern Colorado and eastern New Mexico Friday and then deepens by Friday afternoon. Pressure gradient tightens and results in increasing downsloping southwesterly surface winds. Surface trough pushes south and east near the northwest sections of the forecast area Saturday then retreats back over eastern Colorado and eastern New Mexico again by late this weekend and early next week. Pressure gradient tightens up again late this weekend into early next week result in increased downsloping southwesterly winds. Dry conditions expected this weekend into early next week along with above normal temps. Schneider FIRE WEATHER... Friday... Elevated fire weather conditions will be possible across all of the Panhandles Friday with the possibility for critical fire weather over the eastern Oklahoma and the northeast Texas Panhandles. Max RFTIs of 2 to 3 are expected across the Oklahoma Panhandle and the northeastern and eastern Texas Panhandle with generally Max RFTI of 1 across the rest of the area. Minimum afternoon relative humidity values will range from near 16 percent in the far western Oklahoma Panhandle to between 25 to 30 percent across the eastern and southern Texas Panhandle. Fuels are becoming more receptive with the lack of precipitation over the past few or several days and temperatures climbing up into the 70s and 80s. Current thinking is that elevated fire weather conditions most likely for Friday, however cannot rule out critical fire weather conditions for the northeast Texas and eastern Oklahoma Panhandles. Confidence in critical fire weather conditions will certainly increase as fuels continue to dry out and become much more receptive. Elevated to critical fire weather conditions expected to develop once again Monday and Tuesday mainly over the western Oklahoma and the northwestern Texas Panhandles or across all of the western Panhandles. Greatest threat expected to be over the western Oklahoma and northwest Texas Panhandles at this time. Max RFTIs Monday 2 to 4 across the Oklahoma and northeastern/eastern Texas Panhandles and then Max RFTIs on Tuesday ranging from 1 to 3 across the southern and eastern Panhandles to 3 to 5 across the western/northwestern Panhandles. Mainly elevated fire weather conditions are expected early next week with again the possibility for critical across the northwestern/western Panhandles. Schneider && .AMA Watches/Warnings/Advisories... TX...None. OK...None. && 7/99
Hazardous Weather Outlook National Weather Service Amarillo TX 256 PM CDT Wed Mar 31 2021 OKZ001>003-TXZ001>020-317-011200- Cimarron-Texas-Beaver-Dallam-Sherman-Hansford-Ochiltree-Lipscomb- Hartley-Moore-Hutchinson-Roberts-Hemphill-Oldham-Potter-Carson- Gray-Wheeler-Deaf Smith-Randall-Armstrong-Donley-Collingsworth- Palo Duro Canyon- 256 PM CDT Wed Mar 31 2021 This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles. .DAY ONE...Tonight. No hazardous weather is expected. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Thursday through Tuesday. Elevated to critical fire weather conditions are possible for portions of the combined Panhandles Thursday through Tuesday. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... Spotter activation is not anticipated at this time. Area fire managers and emergency officials should be alert for elevated or critical fire weather conditions Thursday through Tuesday. Schneider
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 drought. Local standard time, as filed.
Armstrong County had a small portion of the southwest corner in severe drought (D2) which quickly improved to moderate drought (D1) within the first week of the month.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2021Every state in 2021This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, April 2021
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: 952477.