Tornadoes · United States · Texas · 2012

EF0 tornado, Rangerville, Texas, April 20, 2012

Name: EF0 tornado, Rangerville, Texas, April 20, 2012
Start: 2012-04-20T23:30:00.000Z
End: 2012-04-20T23:31:00.000Z
Location: Rangerville, Texas

This EF0 tornado ran 0.1 miles across Cameron County on April 20, 2012, touching down at 6:30 PM CDT and reaching 10 yards wide. It killed nobody.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

EF065 to 85 mphthis tornado
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
EF186 to 110 mph
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
EF2111 to 135 mph
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
EF3136 to 165 mph
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
EF4166 to 200 mph
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
EF5over 200 mph
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The record

Rating: EF0
Date: April 20, 2012
Touchdown: 6:30 PM CDT (23:30 UTC)
Lifted: 6:31 PM CDT (23:31 UTC)
On the ground: 1 minutes
Path length: 0.1 miles (0.1 km)
Path width: 10 yards (9 m)
Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
County: Cameron County
Touchdown point: 26.120, -97.733
Lift-off point: 26.120, -97.732
Record number: 1204201730-01

What the Weather Service recorded

A rapidly developing disturbance racing through southeast Texas triggered the ��loaded gun�� of an unstable atmosphere during the late afternoon of April 20th, and thunderstorms exploded into the atmosphere well above the freezing layer. Just three weeks after McAllen/Edinburg/Pharr/Mission was slammed by buckets of golf ball to baseball size hail and 70 to 75 mph wind gusts, fast moving intense storms dropped significantly lesser amounts of hail and rain, but large hailstones just the same, ranging from golf ball to as large as grapefruits! Isolated small tornadoes touched down briefly in Raymondville and Rangerville (southwest of Harlingen), with minor damage to trees on one property. Automobiles took the brunt of the damage with these storms. Preliminary damage estimates put the dollar amount around $10 million.

Cameron County emergency manager reported a funnel and touchdown southwest of Highway 77 in Harlingen. Resident at the intersection of Rangerville Road and CR 800 reported split tree blown across road and debris in backyard.

From NOAA NCEI's Storm Events Database, the narrative the local forecast office wrote for Storm Data.

The warnings

0 minutes of warning. NWS BRO issued a tornado warning for this county at 23:30 UTC, 0 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 00:00 UTC.

The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 19:32 UTC and running to 00:48 UTC.

Issued (UTC)	Expired	Product	Office
19:32 UTC	00:48 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Watch	BRO
22:53 UTC	23:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BRO
23:18 UTC	00:00 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BRO
23:30 UTC	00:00 UTC	Tornado Warning	BRO
23:30 UTC	01:30 UTC	Flood Advisory	BRO
23:56 UTC	00:45 UTC	Severe Thunderstorm Warning	BRO
23:57 UTC	00:09 UTC	Tornado Warning	BRO

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.05 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 19:26 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), 12:00Z

11.5 hours before the tornado, 41 km from the path. April 20, 2012.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.

Mixed-layer CAPE: 1336 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -192 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 525 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 742 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 52 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 12 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: 144 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: 151 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: 0.0
Supercell composite: 2.0
0-3 km lapse rate: 3.2 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Brownsville Intl, TX (KBRO), 00:00Z

0.5 hours after it, 41 km from the path. April 21, 2012.

Skew-T log-p

Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.

Hodograph

Mixed-layer CAPE: 1916 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN: -5 J/kg
Surface CAPE: 2647 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL: 980 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear: 67 kt
0-1 km bulk shear: 3 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity: -9 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity: -29 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter: -1.1
Supercell composite: -4.5
0-3 km lapse rate: 7.2 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Harlingen International Airport (HRL), 14 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)	Temp (°F)	Dew point (°F)	Wind	Gust (kt)	Pressure (mb)	Weather
21:52 UTC	87	64	140° 5 kt		1006.4
22:52 UTC	82	67	100° 18 kt		1006.1	-RA
23:25 UTC	73.4	69.8	40° 32 kt	38	1007.1	+RA
23:30 UTC	71.6	68	10° 24 kt	38	1009.8	+RA FG
23:41 UTC	66.2	60.8	20° 10 kt	34	1008.8	+RA
23:45 UTC	69.8	59	50° 13 kt	34	1008.5	-RA
23:52 UTC	69	62	30° 14 kt	22	1008.8	-RA
00:52 UTC	70	64	60° 3 kt		1008.8

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.

The radar

The Brownsville radar (KBRO), 39 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 23:30 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)	Report	Where	County	Remark
22:25 UTC	HAIL 2.75	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	PUBLIC REPORTS BASEBALL SIZE HAIL IN MISSION NEAR PALM DRIVE AND 5 MILE WIND EST. TO 50 MPH
22:26 UTC	HAIL 2.5	6 Nnw Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	BEGAN AT 526 PM CONTINUED THROUGH AT LEAST 536 PM.
22:27 UTC	HAIL 1	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	QUARTER SIZE HAIL REPORTED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF TRENTON AND 10 STREET.
22:27 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	GOLFBALL SIZED HAIL REPORTED IN MISSION NORTH OF 107.
22:30 UTC	TSTM WND GST 60	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	REPORTS OF 60 MPH WIND GUSTS AND GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL AT STUART AND 21ST.
22:30 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	REPORTS OF 60 MPH WIND GUSTS AND GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL AT STUART AND 21ST.
22:31 UTC	HAIL 1	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	SKYWARN SPOTTER REPORTS QUARTER SIZE HAIL IN NORTHEAST MCALLEN
22:31 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED NEAR THE INTERSECTION OF BICENTENIAL AND NOLANA.
22:32 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL REPORTED AT 4 MILE AND WARE.
22:34 UTC	HAIL 2.75	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	PUBLIC REPORTED DIME TO BASEBALL SIZE HAIL AT NOLANA AND 23RD.
22:36 UTC	HAIL 4.5	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	SOFTBALL SIZED HAIL REPORTED AT TAYLOR AND 5 MILE ROAD.
22:38 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	GOLF BALL SIZED HAIL REPORTED AT SHARY AND 3 MILE ROAD.
22:39 UTC	HAIL 2.75	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	SKYWARN SPOTTERS REPORT GOLF TO BASEBALL SIZE HAIL ON WARE RD AND QUARTER SIZE ON 23RD AND 5 MILE
22:45 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	Raymondville	Willacy, TX	FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED IN RAYMONDVILLE.
22:45 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Edinburg	Hidalgo, TX	EDINBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT REPORTS GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL FELL IN EDINBURG BETWEEN 530 AND 6 PM CDT AT THE INTERSECTION OF CLOSNER AND CANTON.
22:45 UTC	HAIL 2.75	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	PUBLIC REPORTS OF BASEBALL SIZE HAIL ON 2500 JASMINE
22:45 UTC	TORNADO	1 Se Raymondville	Willacy, TX	BRIEF TOUCHDOWN AND LIFT UP. NO DAMAGE REPORTED.
22:50 UTC	HAIL 1	Pharr	Hidalgo, TX	PUBLIC REPORTS GOLF BALL SIZE HAIL IN SOUTH PHARR
22:50 UTC	HAIL 4.5	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	SOFTBALL SIZED HAIL REPORTED AT MCALLEN HIGH SCHOOL.
22:51 UTC	HAIL 0.75	S Raymondville	Willacy, TX	PENNY SIZED HAIL REPORTED SOUTH OF RAYMONDVILLE.
22:52 UTC	HAIL 1.75	1 Ssw Raymondville	Willacy, TX	REPORTED ALL OVER TOWN. LOCATION OF THIS REPORT AT EOC ON S. 7TH STREET. DURATION OF HAIL TWO MINUTES.
22:54 UTC	HAIL 2	Hidalgo	Hidalgo, TX	LARGE HAIL REPORTED AT MILITARY HWY AND 281.
22:59 UTC	HAIL 1	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	QUARTER SIZED HAIL REPORTED ON W 40TH STREET.
23:01 UTC	HAIL 2.5	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	PUBLIC REPORTS LARGE HAIL IN ALTON JUST NORTH OF MISSION MILE 5 REPORTS NUMEROUS BROKEN CAR WINDSHIELDS
23:05 UTC	HAIL 0.88	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	NICKEL SIZE HAIL REPORTED AT THE HARRY SHIMOTSU ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
23:05 UTC	HAIL 1	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	SKYWARN SPOTTER REPORTS QUARTER SIZE ON SHARY ROAD IN MISSION
23:08 UTC	HAIL 1	Mcallen	Hidalgo, TX	QUARTER SIZED HAIL REPORTED AT CONWAY.
23:10 UTC	HAIL 1.75	Lyford	Willacy, TX	GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL REPORTED ON HIGHWAY 77 NEAR LYFORD.
23:25 UTC	HAIL 1	Mission	Hidalgo, TX	QUARTER SIZE HAIL NEAR CHIMMEY PARK
23:35 UTC	TORNADO	6 Ssw Harlingen	Cameron, TX	REPORT OF FUNNEL AND TOUCH DOWN SOUTHWEST OF HIGHWAY 77 IN HARLINGEN. RESIDENT AT INTERSECTION OF RANGERVILLE ROAD AND CR 800 REPORTED SPLIT TREE BLOWN ACROSS ROAD AND DEBRIS IN BACKYARD.
23:36 UTC	HAIL 0.88	Harlingen	Cameron, TX	NICKEL SIZE HAIL REPORTED AT 2425 ED CAREY ROAD.
23:38 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	2 N San Benito	Cameron, TX	FUNNEL CLOUD REPORTED ON NORTH SIDE OF SAN BENITO.
23:44 UTC	HAIL 1	Harlingen	Cameron, TX	QUARTER SIZED HAIL REPORTED NEAR HARLINGEN HIGH SCHOOL.
23:45 UTC	HAIL 0.88	Los Fresnos	Cameron, TX	SKYWARN SPOTTER REPORTS NICKEL SIZE HAIL
23:45 UTC	HAIL 1	Harlingen	Cameron, TX	QUARTER SIZE REPORTED NEAR THE TREASURE HILLS AREA OF HARLINGEN.
23:48 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	Harlingen	Cameron, TX	PUBLIC REPORTS FUNNEL CLOUD EAST OF HARLINGEN AIRPORT
23:48 UTC	HAIL 1	Los Fresnos	Cameron, TX	QUARTER SIZED HAIL AND WIND GUSTS OF AT LEAST 50 MPH.
23:52 UTC	FUNNEL CLOUD	Harlingen	Cameron, TX	PUBLIC REPORT OF FUNNEL CLOUD NEAR HARLINGEN AIRPORT
00:00 UTC	HAIL 1	1 Sse Brownsville	Cameron, TX	INTERSECTION OF SOUTHMOST AND INTERNATIONAL BLVD. NICKEL TO QUARTER SIZE STONES.
00:10 UTC	HAIL 1	5 Ssw Rancho Viejo	Cameron, TX	MOSTLY NICKEL SIZED BUT SEVERAL STONES OF QUARTER SIZED EMBEDDED.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the track Every 2012 tornado in Texas Every tornado in Texas since 1950 Warnings in force in Texas now The forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of April 20, 2012

1 more were confirmed in the United States that day.

Date	Time	Rating	Where	Path (mi)	Width (yd)	Deaths	Injuries	Damage
April 20	5:45 PM CDT	EF0	Willacy, TX	0.2	10

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.

Sources

NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.