Power Outage in Raymondville, TX

Frost/Freeze. Temperatures fell below freezing around 6:30 PM on February 14th, and did not rise above freezing until around 2:00PM on the 16th. Due to power outages at the time, observation data was sparse on the morning of the 15th and 16th, but observations from adjacent Cameron, Hidalgo, and Kenedy Counties imply that lows in the lower 20s occurred on both mornings. Implied high temperatures likely only reached between 30-32 degrees on the 15th. This event, primarily the overnight lows from the 14th into the 15th, combined with brisk north winds likely contributed to most of the crop damage in the area, as well as most property damage associated with pipe leaks and bursts.||A period of light sleet mixed with freezing rain occurred for several hours from late on the 14th through very early on the 15th. While there were no direct impacts to property or crops, some elevated roads and bridges were closed through the 15th and into the 16th before temperatures rose well above freezing.

February 14, 2021

Hurricane. Hurricane Hanna moved across the western Gulf of Mexico and made landfall on the mid-Kenedy County coastline at around 5 PM Central Time Saturday, July 25th, carrying sustained 90 mph winds with gusts over 100 mph in a small portion of the inner eye wall. While there aren't many observations in Willacy County during this event, Buoy RSJT2 is just off the coastline in the Laguna Madre just north of Willacy County and can be used as a reasonable proxy. Based on the proxy observations, sustained winds likely reached near hurricane force (71 mph).With observations from RSJT2, along with radar analysis, it is reasonable to assume that portions of Willacy County experienced hurricane-force winds around 14:30 CST to 16:30 CST. ||Substantial and widespread wind damage was noted in and near Raymondville. A damage survey estimated wind gusts in Raymondville to have reached 75 to 80 mph during the period of eyewall passage, though strong tropical storm force gusts continued well into the evening and overnight of July 25/26 as the back side feeder bands continued to pummel the county from Raymondville to Lyford to Lasara and Sebastian. A peak gust of 80 mph was recorded in neighboring Hidalgo County, a few miles southwest of the Hidalgo/Willacy County line, at 1005 PM CST July 25. ||Damage included roof, shingle, and some wall damage to several dozen homes in Raymondville, as well as damage to farm buildings on the east side of town. 100 percent of the county was without power during the peak of the storm, due to dozens of snapped or leaning power poles and downed lines. Thousands of trees/limbs were snapped and dozens uprooted. A stadium light stanchion was ripped out of the ground by an eddy wind at Raymondville High School. Similar but lesser damage was seen in Lyford and Sebastian, where peak winds may have been closer to tropical storm force. Final individual assistance and insured property damage estimates for inland Willacy County were provided at the end of 2020 by NCEI. Local storm data experts partitioned the total damage estimate between the affected counties, and the portion for inland Willacy was $139.65 million. Public assistance damage estimates were $2.59 million. ||Sustained crop damage costs associated with these damaging winds is estimated to be 34.6 million - a combination of citrus and sugar cane.

July 25, 2020

Thunderstorm Wind. A mini-supercell thunderstorm rolled through central and southeastern Willacy County a little more than an hour after sunrise, and produced damaging winds near San Perlita and on nearby ranches around 830 AM CDT. One residence in San Perlita, fully exposed to the northwest, sustained significant damage when its poorly constructed roof lifted off. The residence was a mobile home with a separate addition on a pier/block foundation. Nearby damage was noted along an 5.28 mile stretch of State Highway 186, with more than a dozen wooden power poles broken, uprooted, or leaning. Nearly all of the broken poles showed notable rot at the breakpoint, and others were only anchored in shallow soil. In total, county Emergency Management mentioned a total of 26 poles were damaged. The survey revealed a range of estimated wind speeds from 61 to 70 mph.

April 04, 2020

Thunderstorm Wind. One roof was blown off a residence in Raymondville, and there were several calls to dispatch of trees and power poles down between Raymondville and Lyford.

August 25, 2019

Thunderstorm Wind. Numerous large mesquite and a few large ash tree limbs, including some uprooted trees, were seen on an NWS Storm Survey in western Willacy County from State Highway 186 about 8 miles west of Raymondville through and just south of Lasara along FM-1015. A few power lines were also felled. Wind speed estimated from the damage indicators and radar estimates.

June 24, 2019

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