Hail in Lea County, New Mexico

Hail September 17, 2016 · Lea County, New Mexico

2.5 in

Hail diameter

$3.5M

Damage as recorded

Where the report was made, with tornadoes recorded within 15 miles over the years.

What the National Weather Service wrote

A thunderstorm moved across Lea County and produced tennis ball sized hail in Jal. The hail caused widespread damage to homes and vehicles. The cost of damage is a rough estimate.

The wider storm

An upper level disturbance moved over the area, and a lingering frontal boundary was across parts of southeast New Mexico and the Permian Basin. Upper level lift associated with an area of intense winds aloft moved over the region. There was good wind shear, moisture, and instability across West Texas and southeast New Mexico. Two other boundaries were moving toward the area and possibly collided with the initial boundary. These conditions combined to create good lift in the atmosphere which resulted in widespread thunderstorms with large hail across southeast New Mexico and the Permian Basin. The wind shear created spin in the atmosphere which allowed for tornadoes to develop in the Permian Basin and southeast New Mexico.

Began near Jal (32.1200, -103.1800).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

1 more tornado the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

EF0 Eddy County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 659501. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

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