Thunderstorms along a cold front produced damaging winds, resulting in downed trees/branches and structure damage. High wind gusts developed in the wake of the front, contributing to sporadic power outages across portions of Harris county.
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 HGX wrote it up.
Thunderstorms along a cold front produced damaging winds, resulting in downed trees/branches and structure damage. High wind gusts developed in the wake of the front, contributing to sporadic power outages across portions of Harris county.
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 Houston/Galveston, TX wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Mar 4, 5:29 AM CST, 1 hour 16 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Houston/Galveston TX
529 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
...New AVIATION...
.SHORT TERM...
(Today through Wednesday Night)
Issued at 431 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
A robust storm system will be tracking thru the Southern Plains
today. Seeing some WAA type showers developing across the area at the
the present time. This batch of precip should track to the NE in the
next 4 hours or so, then attention turns to the thin band of
showers/storms currently stretching from central Oklahoma to the Big
Bend area closer to the periphery of the mid/upper trof axis. This
activity should be making its way into and across SE Tx in 6am-11am
timeframe. Duration of precip will not be long, and rainfall amounts
will not be much of a concern. But with plentiful shear in place,
there is a non-zero chance a few strong to severe cells could emerge
should be able to tap into the marginal instability we do have.
Chances probably higher N/NE of our CWA, but locations north of
I-10, and moreso east of I-45 will probably be the more favored
location in this neck of the woods. It should be noted that 40-50kt
winds are situated just above the surface, so even "weaker" looking
cells on radar could mix some of this wind to the surface.
After the precip exits to our E/NE late in the morning, clearing,
dry and continued windy conditions will persist into the early
evening. Several global & hires model wind gust swaths show some
peak gusts in the 40-45mph range across a good portion of the region
and a wind Advisory is in effect all day. Going on past similar wind
events, wouldn't be overly surprised to see some very localized
power flickers/outages should these speeds materialize. Would secure
lose objects around the home and be extra cautious driving on north-
south oriented roads. Trajectory of the winds would also support
some haze complements of any West Texas dust that gets stirred up.
Red Flag Warnings will be in effect along/west of I-45 for
potentially dangerous fire weather conditions (more below).
Winds gradually lose their gustiness for a while later this evening,
but we'll see them pick up late tonight and Wednesday morning (not
to the extent of today's) with the passage of a cold front which
will bring temps a bit below seasonal norms. 47
&&
.LONG TERM...
(Thursday through Monday)
Issued at 431 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
Not too much to talk about for Thursday with surface high pressure
remaining overhead leading to mostly sunny skies with daytime
temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s. In the afternoon/evening
hours, you'll begin to notice gradually increasing cloud cover as
moisture begins to increase due to that surface high moving off to
the east. This establishes onshore flow heading into Friday, and
when you pair that with southwesterly flow aloft we'll have quite
the jump in temperatures upcoming. Friday's high temperatures will
be about 10°F warmer than Thursday's as we reach the upper 70s to
low 80s. 850mb temperatures approaching the 90th percentile
(especially near Matagorda Bay) definitely helps our case for
reaching the 80s. Friday is when we see the next upper level trough
on the move through the western CONUS and on the way towards the
Southern Plains where it brings about our next chance of
showers/storms along with another FROPA on Saturday.
As the upper level trough with an embedded upper level low tracks
through the Four Corners region, lee cyclogenesis will result in
surface low pressure developing in the Southern Plains along the Red
River. As this low tracks eastward, it will drag a cold front into
Southeast TX on Saturday. Model guidance also hints at a coastal
trough developing near the Upper TX coastline that adds into the
surge of moisture ahead of the front...but in general expecting the
highest rain chances east of I-45 where there is best overlap in
lift dynamics and moisture availability. It is worth noting that the
evolution of the surface low varies a bit depending on which model
you look at, which does impact FROPA timing and coverage of
showers/storms. At least all are in agreement on a Saturday FROPA
for now though. Cooler, drier air filters in behind the front
leading to widespread low temperatures in the 40s over the weekend.
Sunday looks to be absolutely pleasant with sunny skies and high
temperatures in the 60s.
Onshore flow and ridging aloft become established on Monday leading
to a warming trend into early next week...looks like we'll be
approaching the 80s once again around midweek.
Batiste
&&
.AVIATION...
(12Z TAF Issuance)
Issued at 520 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
Primary concerns this morning are breezy south winds 15-30kt, mix
of MVFR/IFR ceilings, and scattered areas of rain. A thin band of
storms will be moving in from central TX around 13-15z
CLL/UTS...probably decaying somewhat as it pushes further ESE
toward the metro and coastal areas 15-18z. Winds will shift to the
west later this morning in the wake of the precip...and probably
become even gustier. Several models indicate peak wind gusts
35-42kt across a good part of the region. Though skies should
generally clear behind the rain, the strong west winds might
transport some W TX dust into the region producing some hazy
conditions. Winds should generally diminish between 0-3z. Look for
winds to back to the NW late tonight as a cold front passes
through...possibly some gustiness to 25kt Wed morning into early
afternoon. 47
&&
.MARINE...
Issued at 431 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
A Gale Warning has been issued for all of the Gulf waters and
Galveston Bay through this afternoon as winds steadily increase
ahead of (and briefly after) the passage of a cold front. Winds will
not be sustained at Gale force, but there will be frequent gusts to
Gale during this timeframe. Winds will transition from southeasterly
this morning to southwesterly later this morning ahead of the front
and westerly behind the front this afternoon. These elevated winds
will lead to seas peaking in the 8-10 ft range with the potential
for brief periods of higher seas in the farshore waters. Another
consequence of the elevated winds is the potential for minor coastal
flooding along Gulf-facing beaches during high tide today. Water
levels are expected to reach 1.0-1.5 ft above MHHW at high tide
today. As a result, a Coastal Flood Advisory remains in effect
through this evening for the barrier islands.
Showers/storms will accompany the cold front as it pushes through
this afternoon with moderate westerly winds prevailing in its wake.
Winds transition to northwesterly overnight and prevail into
Wednesday afternoon. There still remains some potential for low
water in the bays this evening and Wednesday evening during low tide
with water levels approaching -0.5 ft below MLLW. Small Craft
Advisories will go into effect following the Gale Warning through
Wednesday afternoon. Winds and seas gradually subside late
Wednesday. Onshore flow returns on Thursday into Saturday when our
next cold front pushes offshore and brings in the next period of
moderate to strong offshore flow into Sunday.
Batiste
&&
.FIRE WEATHER...
Issued at 431 AM CST Tue Mar 4 2025
Have decided to go with a Red Flag Warning today along/west of I-45
with much drier air (RH's in teens/20s) and windy conditions
emerging this afternoon. Fuel moisture and some morning rain will be
limiting factors, but conditions are favorable for rapid spreading
should something ignite. Highest concern areas will be in the Brazos
Valley and areas around the Matagorda Bay area. 47
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
College Station (CLL) 77 47 64 40 / 80 0 0 0
Houston (IAH) 82 50 68 42 / 70 0 0 0
Galveston (GLS) 79 54 68 51 / 70 0 0 0
&&
.HGX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
TX...Wind Advisory until 6 PM CST this evening for TXZ163-164-176>179-
195>200-210>214-226-227-235>238-300-313-335>338-436>439.
Red Flag Warning from 10 AM this morning to 7 PM CST this
evening for TXZ176-177-195>199-210>213-226-227-235>238-313-
335>338-436>438.
Coastal Flood Advisory until 9 PM CST this evening for
TXZ436>439.
GM...Small Craft Advisory until 6 PM CST this evening for GMZ330.
Gale Warning until 6 PM CST this evening for GMZ335-350-355-370-
375.
Small Craft Advisory from 6 PM this evening to noon CST
Wednesday for GMZ335-350-355-370-375.
&&The Ft Hood radar (KGRK), 92 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:45 UTC.
5 thunderstorm wind, 4 high wind, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
Broadcast media reported damage in Somerville around the school campus. One home sustained major damage from a fallen tree. One vehicle was damaged by a fallen tree. No injuries were reported. Wind gusts were estimated at 70 MPH.
Broadcast media shared a video from a member of the public, showing a funnel cloud near North Zulch.
Mesonet station 1757W at Texas A&M Kyle Field measured a 60 MPH wind gust.
TEEX Employee/Retired NWS Employee sent pictures of wind damage to a metal barn on Pine Tree Road near FM 974. Est peak wind speed of 65 mph.
Broadcast media reported structure damage along FM 230 in Houston county.
Mesonet station HCFT2 at Harris County Flood Control at B measured a 79 MPH wind gust.
Law enforcement reported downed trees and branches on powerlines across the area from Spring Branch, Stafford and Midtown. These resulted in sporadic power outages across the area. Wind gusts were estimated at 61 MPH.
It is entirely possible that some of this damage was caused by a line of thunderstorms which moved through the area earlier in the day. While law enforcement could not clarify when specifically the damage occurred, these reports of power outages seemingly aligned with the wake-low winds gusts which occurred later in the day.
Mesonet station WNJ30 at Johnson Space Center measured a 58 MPH non-thunderstorm wind gust.
Mesonet station CW2840 Houston near the Woodlands measured a 58 MPH non-thunderstorm wind gust.
Mesonet station 1757W at Texas A&M Kyle Field measured a non-thunderstorm wind gust of 61 MPH.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Texas in 2025Every state in 2025This day in weather historyWarnings in Texas, March 2025
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: 1235563, 1235561, 1235568, 1235567, 1235558, 1235565, 1235573, 1235574, 1235570, 1235569.