Blizzard — Deaf Smith, Texas

2024-01-08 · Deaf Smith, Texas

Event narrative

Both westbound US Highway 60 and southbound Highway 385 coming out of Hereford were closed due to poor visibility. Snowfall amounts were the greatest in the southwest part of the county where six to eight inches occurred. Much of the county had two to six inches of snow. Highest sustained winds started at 1427 CST and ended at 1929 CST, with 40mph being the highest sustained speed. Peak wind gusts of 50 to 55mph occurred on the 8th.

Wider weather episode

A strong low pressure system brought severe winds and snow to the combined Panhandles. With sustained winds reaching 35 to 45 mph with gusts up to 74 mph combined with snow, much of the area saw blizzard to near blizzard conditions. The Oklahoma and Texas Departments of Transportation were forced to shutdown roadways as motorists got stranded in the snow with near zero visibility and no way for emergency personnel to reach them. Roads west and north of Amarillo, TX were impacted for much of the afternoon through evening hours of the 8th. Amarillo east and southeastward, while experiencing the same strong winds, only experienced shorter durations of low visibility and less impact from the snow compared to the northwestern Panhandles.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1155320. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.