National Weather Service United States Department of Commerce

Powerful Storms to Impact the Western U.S. and Northern Plains

A strong, long-duration atmospheric river will bring excessive rainfall, flash flooding, and very strong winds to southwest Oregon and northwest California through Thursday. A High Risk (level 4 of 4) of Excessive Rainfall has been issued. A storm system over the northern Plains will produce locally heavy snow in North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota. Read More >

PUBLIC INFORMATION STATEMENT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SAN ANGELO TX
904 PM CST THU MAR 1 2001

...ABILENE RECORDED ITS 10TH WETTEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD...

FEBRUARY WAS WETTER AND SLIGHTLY WARMER THAN NORMAL ACROSS WEST 
CENTRAL TEXAS.

AT ABILENE REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE MONTH 
WAS 48.5 DEGREES. THIS WAS 1.1 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL AVERAGE 
TEMPERATURE OF 47.4 DEGREES. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR FEBRUARY WAS 
2.70 INCHES. THIS WAS 1.54 INCHES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 1.16 INCHES. 
THIS MARKS THE 10TH WETTEST FEBRUARY ON RECORD FOR ABILENE. 

AT SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT...THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE FOR THE 
MONTH WAS 50.5 DEGREES. THIS WAS 2.1 DEGREES ABOVE THE NORMAL AVERAGE
TEMPERATURE OF 48.4 DEGREES. TOTAL PRECIPITATION FOR FEBRUARY WAS
2.17 INCHES. THIS WAS 1.10 INCHES ABOVE THE NORMAL OF 1.07 INCHES. 
   
...FEBRUARY 2001 WEATHER HIGHLIGHTS...

SCATTERED STRONG TO SEVERE STORMS OCCURRED ON THE NIGHT OF THE 8TH
AS A STRONG LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM MOVED INTO NORTHWEST TEXAS. A LINE
OF THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPED OVER WEST TEXAS ALONG A COLD FRONT AND 
QUICKLY MOVED EAST ACROSS THE BIG COUNTRY...CONCHO VALLEY...AND 
HEARTLAND. WIND GUSTS OF 55 TO 65 MPH WERE REPORTED AT SEVERAL  
LOCATIONS...ALONG WITH DOWNED TREE LIMBS. THE ABILENE REGIONAL 
AIRPORT RECORDED A PEAK WIND GUST OF 52 MPH...WITH 56 MPH RECORDED 
AT THE SAN ANGELO REGIONAL AIRPORT. IN ADDITION TO THE STRONG WINDS...
DIME SIZE HAIL WAS REPORTED IN WINTERS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS WERE 
GENERALLY LESS THAN ONE HALF INCH.  

WIDESPREAD SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRED ON THE EVENING AND
EARLY NIGHTTIME HOURS OF THE 15TH...AS A POTENT UPPER LEVEL 
DISTURBANCE MOVED FROM NEW MEXICO INTO TEXAS. DIME SIZE HAIL FELL
AT SAN ANGELO...JUNCTION AND SWEETWATER. WHILE ONE QUARTER TO ONE 
HALF INCH OF RAIN FELL OVER MUCH OF THE REGION...SOME LOCATIONS 
RECEIVED 1 TO 2.5 INCH AMOUNTS.   

A STRONG UPPER LEVEL WEATHER SYSTEM BROUGHT SHOWERS...STORMS...AND
GUSTY WINDS TO WEST CENTRAL TEXAS LATE IN THE MONTH. 

NUMEROUS SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS OCCURRED OVER WEST CENTRAL TEXAS
ON THE 23RD...AS THE UPPER LEVEL WEATHER SYSTEM APPROACHED WEST
TEXAS. THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL OF 1 TO 1.5 INCHES FELL OVER THE
CONCHO VALLEY...WITH SAN ANGELO RECEIVING 1.21 INCHES. AMOUNTS OF 
ONE HALF TO ONE INCH WERE COMMON ALONG A 30 MILE WIDE BAND EXTENDING
FROM OZONA TO BALLINGER TO CLYDE. 

ON THE FOLLOWING DAY (24TH) DURING THE EARLY MORNING HOURS...
SCATTERED STRONG STORMS OCCURRED OVER THE EASTERN CONCHO VALLEY AND
HEARTLAND ALONG COLD FRONT WHICH MOVED EAST ACROSS THE REGION. A 
SEVERE STORM STRUCK BROWNWOOD...CAUSING WIND DAMAGE AND OVERTURNING
A MOBILE HOME...WHICH RESULTED IN A FATALITY. 

STRONG GUSTY WINDS OCCURRED DURING THE DAY OF THE 24TH AS THE UPPER 
SYSTEM DEPARTED FROM THE REGION. A PEAK WIND GUST OF 46 MPH WAS 
RECORDED AT BOTH ABILENE AND SAN ANGELO.   

A STRONG COLD FRONT BROUGHT MUCH COLDER AIR TO WEST CENTRAL TEXAS
TOWARD THE END OF THE MONTH. A SEVERE STORM WHICH DEVELOPED NEAR
THE COLD FRONT PRODUCED DIME TO GOLFBALL SIZE HAIL JUST SOUTH OF 
ROBERT LEE ON THE EVENING OF THE 27TH. TEMPERATURES WHICH WERE IN THE 
60S AND 70S ON THE 27TH HOVERED AROUND THE FREEZING MARK ON THE 28TH. 
PATCHY FREEZING DRIZZLE OCCURRED OVER THE BIG COUNTRY AND CONCHO 
VALLEY ON THE 28TH. THIS CAUSED SLICK SPOTS ON AREA ROADS ACROSS THE 
BIG COUNTRY WHICH RESULTED IN NUMEROUS TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS.