Hail — Ward, Texas

2016-09-16 · near Grandfalls, Ward, Texas

Wider weather episode

There was an upper level trough over much of the northern and western half of the nation which resulted in west to southwest winds aloft over West Texas. An upper level disturbance moved over the region where there was abundant moisture and instability in place. There was a cold front that moved southward toward West Texas from the Texas panhandle. A surface boundary was also in place across the Permian Basin. An area of intense winds aloft moved over the area and aided in lift. These conditions allowed for thunderstorms to develop across West Texas, and there was good wind shear present which contributed to these storms becoming severe with large hail, damaging winds, and a brief tornado. The abundant moisture combined with recent rainfall also resulted in flash flooding across the Western Low Rolling Plains.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (31.3395, -102.8554)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 657242. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.