Heat — Morris, Texas

2023-07-30 to 2023-07-31 · Morris, Texas

Wider weather episode

An upper ridge of high pressure became anchored over the Southern Rockies and extended east into the Ozarks and Central Arkansas on July 30th, with the center of the ridge shifting east into the Oklahoma and Texas Panhandles on the 31st. Meanwhile, a weak surface front lifted back north into portions of Eastern Oklahoma and Central Arkansas, with moisture pooling observed near this front over Southeast Oklahoma and into Southwest Arkansas and portions of North Louisiana. Strong sinking motion observed beneath this ridge resulted in compressional warming, with temperatures climbing into the lower 100s across East Texas. Given the limited mixing of dewpoints observed, heat indices ranged from 105 to 110 degrees on the 30th before even more oppressive conditions were observed on the 31st.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1126248. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.