Thunderstorm Wind in Cameron County, Texas

A cluster of potent thunderstorms developed in northeastern Mexico and moved north into Cameron County early Sunday morning. Within this cluster of storms, a strong linear downburst crossed South Padre Island from 1:24 AM CST to 1:40 AM CST. The South Padre Island Police Department reported downed power lines in between the paralleling Padre Blvd and Laguna Blvd on South Padre Island, and at one point all of South Padre Island had lost power due to 31 transmission poles that were taken down by the wind.

An upper level disturbance that moved over northeast Mexico with remnant tropical moisture from the eastern Pacific Tropical Storm Priscilla produced a short period of potent thunderstorms that developed in northeast Mexico and moved quickly through Cameron County from the late evening of October 20th into the pre-dawn hours of October 21st. Individual cells raced northward at 30 mph, with wind gusts between 30 and 40 mph, from just before midnight through 3 or 4 AM. An organized stronger cluster developed a little after 2 AM, and peaked in intensity just after 230 AM. During the intensification process the cluster became a rotating thunderstorms, with a radar-indicated tornadic circulation near Boca Chica Beach. Farther north, two downburst signatures were noted, including a pulse microburst near Bayview and a more linear downburst signature that crossed South Padre Island. During the peak of the storms in Cameron County, more than 16 thousand AEP Texas utility customers lost power, and at one point all of South Padre Island had lost power due to 31 transmission poles that were taken down by the wind.