Thunderstorm Wind in Lubbock County, Texas

An official NWS storm damage survey, along with trained spotters, police department officials, the Automated Surface Observing System, and equipment at the NWS, confirmed severe wind gusts ahead of a squall line moving through Lubbock. Gusts up to 72 mph were recorded as the line caused considerable damage and downed numerous trees, snapped almost 100 power poles, blew out several windows, and inflicted substantial damage to roofs, windows, vehicles, and structures. At the Motor Inns of America hotel in north Lubbock, downburst winds completely stripped a large section of the roof from the building forcing residents to evacuate. Fortunately, there were no serious injuries reported. Those buildings that suffered broken windows or damaged roofs also received various degrees of water damage to walls, carpets, and personal belongings. Nearly 30,000 customers lost power in the city of Lubbock.

An area of thunderstorms developed as a result of upslope flow across the higher terrain of New Mexico during the mid to late afternoon hours, before morphing into a well-organized mesoscale convective complex into the late afternoon and evening. This complex raced southeast into the far southwest Texas panhandle and much of the South Plains, producing wind gusts near 90 mph and hail up to the size of baseballs. Several dozen reports of damage were received, including downed trees and power lines as well as broken windshields and damage to structures. By far, the most significant and widespread property damage was focused in northern Lubbock where some buildings lost roofs and thousands of windows were cracked or shattered. An electrical utility company stated that the number and severity of power outages in Lubbock alone had not been this extensive since the city was struck by the 1970 F5 tornado. In the wake of these destructive storms, high winds with frequent gusts of 50 to 70 mph were noted over much of the South Plains for up to an hour in duration. Total damages from this storm could exceed $500 million.