Thunderstorm Wind — Marion, Texas

2018-03-10 · near Orrs, Marion, Texas

Event narrative

A NWS Storm Survey concluded that a swath of straight line downburst winds estimated between 80-90 mph produced widespread damage across the south side of Lake of the Pines, especially within the Brushy Creek Campground. Numerous trees were snapped or uprooted, with several trees landing on campers, tents, and vehicles. Of the nearly 238 registered campers at the campground, seven were treated for injuries, and one fatality occurred when a tree landed on a tent, killing a 41 year old female inside.

Wider weather episode

A warm front lifted north into Eastern Oklahoma and Western Arkansas during the daytime hours on March 10th, spreading, warmer, humid, and unstable air north across the region. A shortwave trough traversing the Southern Plains during the late afternoon through the overnight hours reinforced a cold front south into Northeast Texas and Southwest Arkansas during the late evening. Steep mid level lapse rates and moderate surface instability was present within a moderately sheared air mass, resulting in numerous severe thunderstorms developing along and just ahead of the front from late evening on the 10th, through the early morning hours on March 11th. Numerous reports of large hail and damage winds were received across much of Northeast Texas, before the storms weakened just prior to daybreak.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (32.7447, -94.5371)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 738754. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.