Power Outage in Abilene, TX

There were power lines down near Hamby. The time was estimated from radar.

There were 3 inch diameter tree limbs broken and power poles were broken. The report was from mping.

The Hamby FD responding to power poles and power lines down near intersection of Highway 351 and Farm to Market Road 1082.

A Skywarn spotter reported trees blown over onto power lines in Abilene near the intersection of North Treadway Ave and I-20. This caused a power outage.

About a 1/4 inches of ice accumulation was estimated on trees, power lines and objects. |This resulted in power outages, with power lines and tree limbs breaking across Abilene and Taylor County. Schools were closed on October 27, with a 2 hour delay on October 28.

An amateur radio operator reported 1 to 3 inch tree limbs down at Interstate 20 and Old Anson Road. There were also reports of some power outages at Winters Freeway and North 1st Street.

The Abilene Police Department reported power lines down, power lines arcing, and signal light debris on the roadway in Abilene.

The media reported broken tree limbs and a leaning power pole in Abilene.

Abilene Emergency Manager reported two downed trees in the Canterbury Subdivision. The emergency manager also reported the following: multiple tree limbs down in Cal Young Park, a power pole was down north of Cal Young Park, power lines were down on East 11th Street, minor roof damage to Craig Middle School and a partial shed collapse on T and P Lane.

A National Weather Service ASOS measured a non-thunderstorm wind gust of 58 mph. According to Taylor Electric Cooperative, 35 power poles were knocked down by the high winds.

A National Weather Service Cooperative Observer reported large tree limbs and power lines down.

Trained spotters in Abilene reported power poles and large trees were down on the south side of town.

Although a large part of Abilene experienced 60 to 70 mph winds, the location receiving the most significant damage occurred on the south side of town near the mall and the Warwick Apartments. These high winds snapped telephone poles, uprooted large trees, broke tree limbs, knocked down power lines, tore the roof off of an industrial building, removed metal roofing material from an Albertsons Grocery Store and knocked over tractor trailers. The damaging thunderstorm winds broke large glass windows at the Mall in Abilene, at a nearby Albertsons Grocery Store and on a nearby Furniture Row Building. One person was injured at the mall by the falling glass. The winds also blew large pieces of metal off of a storage facility into the front yard of a nearby residence that were about 1 to 2 blocks south of the facility. In addition to a freeway sign that was blown down, fences, power lines and tree limbs were toppled by the high winds across a large part of the City of Abilene.

Numerous power poles were blown down along Elmdale Road.

Power poles and a fireworks stand were blown down at Highway 351 and Interstate 20.

Power poles were blown down by the strong thunderstorm winds.

Several power poles were knocked down in the View area where U.S. Highway 277 intersects County Road 209 and Farm to Market Road 1235.

Power lines were down along Highway 351, between Abilene and Hamby.

There were reports of many large tree limbs, many power lines, and one power pole downed by the damaging wind across Abilene. This left many without power across the city.

At 311 PM CST, the Abilene ASOS measured the peak wind gust from the west at 45 mph. The strongest wind gusting to near 45 mph began just before noon and continued through at least 311 PM when the strongest wind gust was measured. The strong winds blew down a power pole on Grape Street near Lowden. Grape Street was closed during the cleanup.

A fire chief in View, reported several power poles down and a metal roof blown off of a residence. He also reported that Buffalo Gap had power poles down.

Winds were estimated to be around 70 mph on the east side of Abilene. Large diameter trees were snapped and power poles snapped at the intersection of east highway 80 and Judge Ely Blvd. Storage units were also turned over.

The Abilene Police Department reported downed power lines and tree limbs down along the west side of Abilene. The downed power lines also resulted in power outages.

Law Enforcement Officials reported downed power lines.

Six power poles were reported down at the intersection of Rebecca Lane and U.S. Highway 277 on the west side of Abilene. The power poles were blown over from west to east.

Trees and power lines were down in Abilene after a severe thunderstorm moved through the area. Several homes also received roof damage.

Power poles blown down.

Strong thunderstorm winds blew down several power poles just southwest of Abilene.

A brief tornado blew down a few power poles on the north side of Abilene.

Trees and power lines downed by high winds

A powerful Valentines Snow Storm, with subzero wind chills, low visibilities in blowing and heavy snow swept across a large part of West Central Texas. This heavy snow and blowing snow made travel very difficult over most of the area. This snow stayed on the ground through much of the week, before mostly melting on Saturday, February 20.||Anywhere from 2 to 8 inches fell across the region. There was a 25 to 35 mile swath of heavier snow that extended from Abilene to San Angelo where about 10 inches of snow fell. This snow was quite dry in water content.

Very bitter arctic air with ambient temperatures dropping to near zero or below zero and north winds of 15 to 25 mph with gusts to near 30 mph on February 14, continued into the morning of February 15. These factors resulted in extreme wind chill warning criteria reaching -18 degrees or colder for several hours for the northern areas of West Central Texas. There were a few reports of -20 to -24 degree wind chill readings. Another period of extreme cold occurred late on February 15 and continued into morning of February 16 mainly across the higher elevation areas of the northern portions of West Central Texas where the winds were a little stronger. Wind chill temperatures were estimated for some locations since the wind sensors at several weather stations froze because of ice. There were also widespread power outages during this extreme cold as a result of a failing power grid. Many residents were left with out power Monday through Tuesday and some even longer. These very cold temperatures and widespread power outages resulted in several deaths caused by hypothermia. There was also damage to pipes, public utility systems and water supply systems across the region. Many were left without water for days. Dollar damages will be well into the millions across West Central Texas. The specific and complete information relating to the fatalities and monetary damages will gradually become available.

Cold wind chill temperatures of at least from -10 to -15 degrees impacted a large part of West Central Texas from the early afternoon of the February 14th until the late morning on February 15. Wind chill values were quite low for the Big Country, Sterling City and Coke Counties from the evening of February 15 through noon on February 16. Wind chill temperatures were estimated for some locations since the wind sensors at several weather stations froze because of ice. There were also widespread power outages during this cold outbreak as a result of a failing power grid. Many residents were left without power Monday through Tuesday and some even longer. These very cold temperatures and widespread power outages resulted in several deaths caused by hypothermia. There was also damage to pipes, public utility systems and water supply systems across the region. Many were left without water for days. Dollar damages will be well into the millions across West Central Texas. The specific and complete information relating to the fatalities and monetary damages will gradually become available.

A shallow arctic airmass moved into the West Central Texas on February 9, and continued to slowly move south across the region on February 10. Warm gulf moisture overran the frontal boundary and resulted in periods of widespread freezing drizzle across West Central Texas. ||Roads became covered with an icy glaze, making travel difficult. This ice also caused some power lines to sag in Nolan County. A traffic fatality was reported in Tom Green County on the morning of February 11.

A winter storm dumped heavy snow from Roscoe south to Sterling City, Barnhart and Ozona. This storm also produced a mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow over the remainder of West Central Texas. The freezing rain that fell before the snow was heavy enough to result in scattered tree limb damage and power outages across the area. However, Coleman County was hardest hit by the ice that left many without power. Most of the snow ended south of Interstate 20 before midnight, but some of the snow continued into New Years Day mainly along and north of Interstate 20. The ice and snow also made travel difficult across the area.

A powerful upper low and an Arctic Airmass brought the necessary ingredients to produce a mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow to West Central Texas from October 26 through the morning of October 27. Then, during the early morning hours of October 28, mostly freezing rain and some sleet fell across the Big Country, while freezing drizzle fell across portions of the Concho Valley and the northern Edwards Plateau. Ice accumulations of 1/4 to 1/2 inch in the Big Country resulted in widespread tree limbs and power lines breaking across the Big Country or the area along and north of Interstate 20. This also caused school closures across the Big Country. Roads and bridges were also icy across this area. South of Interstate 20, mostly bridges and overpasses became icy. While many schools closed on October 27, some schools had a two hour delay on October 27 and 28th.

An isolated thunderstorm most likely resulted in a microburst that damaged several power poles near Tuscola.

A powerful upper level storm system brought heavy snow and strong winds to portions of West Central Texas. The snow fell over a large part of the area. Snowfall amounts ranged from a tenth of an inch of snow to almost 5 inches in Abilene. The strong winds resulted in drifting of snow over a foot deep in places. Several folks commented, saying, it took nearly a week for all the snow to melt. Unofficially, there were higher snowfall amounts in the higher elevations. As a result of a tight pressure gradient, strong northeast winds of 40 to 50 mph with higher gusts to near 60 mph blew from the evening of the 26th to the early morning hours of the 27th, knocking down over 300 power poles and power lines across portions of the Big Country.

The interaction of a cold front and a strong upper level disturbance with a moist and unstable airmass resulted in the development of several long track supercell thunderstorms that affected a large part of West Central Texas. These storms resulted in several reports of large hail and damaging winds along the path of these powerful thunderstorms.

A strong surface low pressure system and a strong Pacific Cold Front resulted in a gusty west and southwest winds across the Big Country. A few power poles were blown down by the strong winds in Abilene and Sweetwater.

A deepening surface low, a frigid arctic front, and a digging upper level jet stream interacted with gulf moisture to produce a variety of weather like thunder snow, thunder sleet, freezing rain, pea size hail, and locally heavy rainfall across a large part of West Central Texas. ||This winter storm resulted in power outages and numerous school closings. Schools were closed for several days in the Abilene area. Roads were very hazardous for several days and made it difficult for travel between February 1 and the 4th. The high winds also produced near whiteout conditions during the early morning hours. Because of the prolonged bitter cold temperatures, there were many reports of busted water pipes across the region.

A powerful upper level storm system brought blizzard conditions to the Big Country, the region located along and north of Interstate 20. The combination of wind gusts to 50 mph and heavy snow resulted in visibilities less than 1/4 of mile across the eastern two-thirds of the Big Country.

A cluster of thunderstorms developed across Northwest Texas in a very unstable atmosphere. The storms moved southeast along a stalled out surface frontal boundary draped across central portions of the Big Country. Severe thunderstorm winds knocked down several power poles in the towns of Stamford and Baird. A wind gust of 60 mph was measured at Sweetwater Avenger Airport, with gusts of 62 mph measured at Abilene Regional Airport and 68 mph measured at Dyess Airforce Base. These thunderstorms also caused flash flooding just southwest of Stamford, briefly closing highways 277, 92, 1636, and 2834.

A frontal boundary draped across West Central Texas, combined with an upper level storm system approaching from the west and a surface dryline triggered thunderstorms across the western Concho Valley and Big Country. As one supercell tracked east into Nolan county, storm spotters reported brief tornadoes. This storm continued east dropping hail the size of golf balls. Baseball size hail was reproted just southeast of Abilene near the town of Potosi. This storm continued to produce baseball size hail as it continued east into Callahan county. Another supercell developed just west of San Angelo dropping quarter size hail in Knickerbocker and at San Angelo Mathis Field. As this storm moved east, hail increased to golf ball size across Concho County. Wind gusts to 69 mph were recorded at the Brady Airport before equipment lost power. There was widespread tree and power line damage in Brady. A National Weather Service Storm Survey revealed an EF0 tornado caused damage to storage buildings, trees, and vegetation on the southeast side of Brady Lake.

Numerous strong to severe thunderstorms developed along and north of Interstate 20 in a region of very unstable air and strong wind shear as a strong upper level disturbance approached from the southwest. Two supercell thunderstorms developed along the dryline, then moved east into the Big Country where the first report of a brief tornado touched down south of the town of Rotan. These storms continued to move east towards the U.S. Highway 277 corridor where one of the supercells rapidly intensified just west of Anson. Straight line winds associated with a powerful rear flank downdraft caused widespread damage across Anson and surrounding rural areas. Many power poles were snapped just north of Anson on U.S. Highway 277. Many trees were either uprooted or had their branches snapped by the severe thunderstorm wind gusts. High winds caused roof damage, destroyed outbuildings, and overturned tractor trailers. Winds were estimated at 70 to 90 mph. An EF0 tornado with winds estimated at 65 to 85 mph caused damage to power poles 5 miles north of Anson and caused some roof damage to a home 5 miles west-southwest of Avoca. This severe thunderstorm weakened slightly as it moved east before strengthening once again just east of Albany where more wind damage was reported as well as another report of a tornado by storm chasers. Widespread hail damaged crops, homes, and automobiles, with sizes ranging from quarter to baseball size. There was also reports of flash flooding in the town of Lueders.

A strong low pressure system moving across north Texas and Oklahoma produced an intense synoptic scale wind event across much of West Central Texas. In the wake of a passage of a dryline, sustained winds were recorded in the 40 to 55 miles per hour range with gusts approaching 60 miles per hour across much of west central Texas. In addition the winds kicked up dust across the Texas south plains and into the Big Country that reduced visibilities to less than one quarter of a mile at times. Also a few wild fires resulted from the strong winds as well at Sterling City and Mulberry Canyon located just southwest of Abilene. There were scattered reports of wind damage across West Central Texas as the high winds knocked out power in parts of Abilene, produced roof damage, and also blew down some trees across the area.

Right on the heels of the Ice Storm that affected the region a few days before, another surge of arctic air moved into West Central Texas on Monday the 15th. With the active sub-tropical jet overhead, and disturbances moving through the jet, snow began to fall Tuesday morning Janurary 16th across the Northern Edwards Plateau and along the I10 corridor. The snow spread north and east into the Concho Valley including San Angelo. The snow continued to spread northeast across the Northwest Hill Country and into Coleman and Brownwood by Tuesday afternoon. The snow eventually spread across the I20 corridor across the southern Big Country early Wednesday morning. The Snow began to taper off early Wednesday morning across the area from northwest to southeast. The heaviest snowfall amounts were noted along and south of Interstate 10 where 4 to 8 inches of snow were reported. Further north, snowfall amounts ranged from a trace to an inch along Interstate 20. One to three inches of snow were measured between the I20 and the I10 corridors. This heavy snow closed Interstate 10 for two days between Junction and Ozona. Further north, many roads were ice and snow covered and many school districts either delayed or closed schools on the Wednesday the 17th. Ozona Emergency Management opened a shelter at the Ozona Convention Center for stranded motorists. The ice and snow also caused a few power outages across Sweetwater.

An arctic cold front moved through West Central Texas on Friday the 12th. Light freezing rain and drizzle developed behind the front as temperatures quickly dropped to below freezing. The freezing rain event gradually moved to the south and overspread all of West Central Texas by Sunday the 14th. Ice accumulations of up to two inches were reported along and north of I20 with one quarter to one half inch reported between Highway 87 and I20 across the Heartland and Northern Concho Valley. Around one quarter of an inch was reported between the I10 corridor and Highway 87. A few power outages were reported across the western Big Country. Numerous traffic accidents were reported across the area. As the ice storm gradually started to wind down Sunday evening, the weight of the ice caused an Abilene television transmitter tower to collapse. This tower collapse also destroyed a NWS weather radio anntena that was mounted on this tower.

Power lines were reported downed in Abilene.

A winter storm dumped heavy amounts of snow across the central and western sections of West Central Texas during the late night hours of the 7th and morning hours of the 8th. Amounts of 4 to 6 inches were common west of an Eldorado to San Angelo to Abilene to Haskell line, with higher amounts across Nolan and Fisher counties. A report of 10 inches was recieved just southeast of Sweetwater, with 7 inches reported in Sweetwater and 8 inches in Sylvester. Since many trees still had all of their leaves, the heavy snowfall caused many branches to break. The heavy snow and falling tree branches caused power lines to snap, with about ten thousand customers suffering some disruption of electricity during the storm.

Severe thuunderstorms rolled across the Big Country during the early morning hours of the 2nd. Dime to quarter size hail was reported, along with damaging winds that knocked down trees and power lines.