Texas Winter 2016-2017

[Texas Snowman]

@NWSFortWorth - 1237am-VERY strong winds with circulation near Thorndale. Get to shelter NOW! #ctxwx

[Cerlin]

Just looking at the radar...this is a huge freaking storm.

It spams from Monterry Mexico to the north border of Kansas. That's a lot of miles.

[JDawg512]

I went out to watch the storm come in just after southern and southeast Travis County was placed under a tornado warning. My location, literally 4 or 5 blocks outside of the tornado warning boundary was close enough that I figured what the hell, I'll go out and watch what happens.

So went and sat out in the front where there's some cover. It was very still, no wind at all and everything just seemed frozen in place. Wicked sounding rumbles of thunder that sent chivers down my spine. I've heard lots of thunder over the years but the way the sound seemed with this thunder, it seemed lower, deeper and I could even use the term guttural. It's hard to explain but hopefully some of y'all will know what I mean.

After about 5 to 10 min roughly, I decided to walk into the back yard because I have good view of the south/southeastern sky. The storm was just beginning to move in and there was a quick uptick in lightning flashes. Still no wind for I would say 2 or 3 minutes but then it suddenly picked up instantly.

Rain began coming down and was blowing sideways so I was about to walk towards the house when I noticed a huge sagging wallcloud coming into view to the south. It had a pronounced curved outline and was racing across It looked huge very dark compared to the surrounding sky, almost black. Lighting was silhouetting the feature from behind it. Then there was a bright green flash and I saw several consecutive flashes which from what I could tell looked like power flashes at the base near the ground but distant enough that the tree line was obscuring the view. The low dark blob then rapidly moved at an angle and by that time was southeast to east/southeast. I saw another bright green flash before the feature went out of view.

Then the wind really started picking up. The trees where whipping around from one direction to another. These weren't straight line winds by any means because they kept changing directions. We have a large above ground swimming pool that has a screen dome cover to keep leaves out and it also blocks UVA/UVB rays so we don't get burned while swimming. What got me really worried next was when I saw the net cover being lifted straight up as if It was just being pulled from above. That thing almost blew right off but luckily the braces that the net's connected to held but I have never seen anything like that before and we've had that pool cover for about 12 years. It's been through many storms with some high winds but this is the first time it look like it was going to get sucked up into the sky. I can honestly say that the winds tonight were like nothing that I've seen in years. Just the shifting movement and the way the trees moved about was very different than your typical strong wind gusts. Then within a couple of min, it's hard for me to gauge exactly cause it seemed like it kept going and going and there I was soaking wet standing in what could have been a dangerous situation but I was just fixated on what was happening I didn't want to get indoors. So much seemed to be going on but as quickly as it all happened and after one really bright green (and I mean really green) flash, the winds calmed down and it started to rain harder with increasing lighting so I went in after that.

I'm not sure how well that's gonna read for y'all but I tried to explain as best I could. I was unable to record footage. It was exhilarating being in it. I can't say I saw anything more than a wall cloud. There were several power flashes, will need to check reports to see if there was anything that might have caused damage in southeast Austin. I haven't checked yet but it was an amazing experience that despite the danger I put myself in, I can honestly say it was worth it to see what I saw. I hope everyone stays safe tonight. I'm exhausted. Have a great night.

[JDawg512]

By the way I'm roughly 4.5 miles northwest of Old Lockhart Road. That's exactly where that black blob was headed through. I'm telling y'all it was fast, whatever it was it raced across my vantage point within maybe 30 seconds or so.

[JDawg512]

Starting to see storms redeveloping and training over Travis County. I guess everyone else is asleep right now.
I don't know if it will cause flooding issues but stay safe if anyone has to drive early in the morning.

[JDawg512]

Okay I'm out, barely able to stay awake. I've had too much excitement for one night.

[weatherdude1108]

I fell asleep after storms shifted east of my area around 12:45 am.. Loud clap of thunder then woke us up around 4:30 am. Raining steadily.

[weatherdude1108]

I went out to watch the storm come in just after southern and southeast Travis County was placed under a tornado warning. My location, literally 4 or 5 blocks outside of the tornado warning boundary was close enough that I figured what the hell, I'll go out and watch what happens.

So went and sat out in the front where there's some cover. It was very still, no wind at all and everything just seemed frozen in place. Wicked sounding rumbles of thunder that sent chivers down my spine. I've heard lots of thunder over the years but the way the sound seemed with this thunder, it seemed lower, deeper and I could even use the term guttural. It's hard to explain but hopefully some of y'all will know what I mean.

After about 5 to 10 min roughly, I decided to walk into the back yard because I have good view of the south/southeastern sky. The storm was just beginning to move in and there was a quick uptick in lightning flashes. Still no wind for I would say 2 or 3 minutes but then it suddenly picked up instantly.

Rain began coming down and was blowing sideways so I was about to walk towards the house when I noticed a huge sagging wallcloud coming into view to the south. It had a pronounced curved outline and was racing across It looked huge very dark compared to the surrounding sky, almost black. Lighting was silhouetting the feature from behind it. Then there was a bright green flash and I saw several consecutive flashes which from what I could tell looked like power flashes at the base near the ground but distant enough that the tree line was obscuring the view. The low dark blob then rapidly moved at an angle and by that time was southeast to east/southeast. I saw another bright green flash before the feature went out of view.

Then the wind really started picking up. The trees where whipping around from one direction to another. These weren't straight line winds by any means because they kept changing directions. We have a large above ground swimming pool that has a screen dome cover to keep leaves out and it also blocks UVA/UVB rays so we don't get burned while swimming. What got me really worried next was when I saw the net cover being lifted straight up as if It was just being pulled from above. That thing almost blew right off but luckily the braces that the net's connected to held but I have never seen anything like that before and we've had that pool cover for about 12 years. It's been through many storms with some high winds but this is the first time it look like it was going to get sucked up into the sky. I can honestly say that the winds tonight were like nothing that I've seen in years. Just the shifting movement and the way the trees moved about was very different than your typical strong wind gusts. Then within a couple of min, it's hard for me to gauge exactly cause it seemed like it kept going and going and there I was soaking wet standing in what could have been a dangerous situation but I was just fixated on what was happening I didn't want to get indoors. So much seemed to be going on but as quickly as it all happened and after one really bright green (and I mean really green) flash, the winds calmed down and it started to rain harder with increasing lighting so I went in after that.

I'm not sure how well that's gonna read for y'all but I tried to explain as best I could. I was unable to record footage. It was exhilarating being in it. I can't say I saw anything more than a wall cloud. There were several power flashes, will need to check reports to see if there was anything that might have caused damage in southeast Austin. I haven't checked yet but it was an amazing experience that despite the danger I put myself in, I can honestly say it was worth it to see what I saw. I hope everyone stays safe tonight. I'm exhausted. Have a great night.

Wow JDawg512!! Sounds wild! Crazy stuff! Great writeup!

[Portastorm]

I live a bit northwest of where JDawg is ... and I can assure you that he is not exaggerating in the least. The winds last night were wild. I expect to see a lot of limbs down when daylight arrives.

Great write up and what an exciting night for you!

[CentralTxAggie]

Got to work here in Kyle on Kyle Parkway, a few pieces of metal roof in parking lot are loose/dangling, but nothing major. Didn't see much else, but was still dark though. Prayers for those affected in San Antonio.

[Ntxw]

Amazing write up Jdawg I'm glad you were safe through that and wishing the best for the San Antonio folks this morning. Houston is getting a lot of rain this morning.

I have been through a few of those same situations described up here that were later designated EF1 or EF0. The abrubt unusual shifting of the wind you described is right on. And if the power flashes were consistent several seconds or minutes apart with a blue-green hue then it's likely you may have seen a tornado in the distance rather than straight line winds. Of course you will know for sure once the NWS does it's surveys which I am sure they will.

DFW meanwhile only picked up about half an inch of rain.

[srainhoutx]

EWX confirms a tornado did touch down in the Quarry/Linda Drive area near 281 in San Antonio overnight. The survey team is looking at the damage to estimate the strength of that tornado.

[aggiecutter]

San Antonio Tornado damage path:

[bubba hotep]

It's hard to believe DFW won't get at least one more freeze out of this coming period.

[TheProfessor]

I see the 6z GFS is trying to annoy me. Not only does it get cold again, but the 6z run drops over a foot of snow for people 30 miles North of me. Still 180+ hours out so if it happens gonna need a southeast shift to occur otherwise this is going to be painful.

[Shoshana]

Wow. I was asleep and half heard thunder but we all (including the dog!) slept thru everything. Including a tornado warning for NE Travis County.

Sounds like it was an exciting night all around, guess I should have tried harder to stay up and watch...

[JDawg512]

Good afternoon all. What a night! I'm saddened by what I'm seeing with the damage in SA. Had a bad feeling about it when I saw the velocity and base velocity as the storm was moving through there.

Saw some video of damage in Creedmoore, up along 183, far southeast Austin and southeast Travis, northern Hays. The exact directions that I have a good view of the sky from my vantage point. Seeing reports of damage in Williamson County including a train that got knocked off the tracks. Was looking at an article on KXANs site saying NWS has sent crews to determine if the damage was caused by a tornado.

After re-reading my post, I can tell how much of an adrenaline rush that I had cause it's pretty sloppy lol. Now that I'm calmed down I can add some details.

I mentioned that I didn't record video but left out the reason. Was on video stream with my cousin in California. She is as much of a weather fanatic as I am and since she doesn't get to experience powerful storms like the ones we get, I frequently have her on video chat so she can watch when storms hit. She was able to see the feature clearly through the stream including the green flashes as well as what I assume were power flashes. I was on FB messenger using the video call feature and as far as I know there isn't a way to record the video. I should have instead used Facebook itself to record the feed or Periscope on Twitter but didn't think about it plus it all happened so fast there wouldn't have been a point to try.

I did check the time from the last time I checked before it began and even though it seemed much longer, the entire event only lasted for about 2 to 2 and a half minutes. The large sagging feature was probably in view for roughly 30 seconds if even that. It raced across at an incredible speed. I've seen fast moving clouds but this thing was hauling ass. (forgive my expression but it's really the best way to describe it...)

I can honestly say that last night was the first time it's felt even remotely similar to 1984 when my fascination with weather first began because of a glancing tornado. I still live in the same home that I grew up in. That event was much worse as far as impacting us. Our car was pushed off the driveway and into the side yard. We had an overhang over the front door which ripped right off the house and into the trees in the side yard. Had severe roof damage. I was only 4 years old but I remember vividly everything that happened. We used to have one of those metal storm doors where you could lift up or down the windows to let the air in through the screen. I remember my mother and I standing there looking out through the storm door and I was mesmerized watching our Live Oak and the other trees twisting and bending around. Huge tree branches were flying though the air. There were a bunch of those round metal trash cans that I'm sure those of us old enough remember before the rubber bins and they were blowing across the yard and down the street like they were paper. My mom closed the main door and we went to the closet in the center of the house with our big St. Bernard named Lisa, used to ride on her back like a horse lol, but I digress. I distinctly remember the sound of grinding metal. It was pitch black and besides the grinding metal sound, there were several loud bumps and bangs and then everything went quiet. We walked down the hallway back to the front door. My mother opened it and we looked out to see the car and the overhang in the side yard and a bunch of debris everywhere. 4 years old and I remember it like it was yesterday. Ever since then I've loved thunderstorms and extreme weather. I was scared but at the same time was completely mezmorized and fascinated by it.

I've seen a lot of strong storms and wind since then but nothing on that level. Last night was really the first experience since 1984 that came close to it in terms of watching the way the trees move and just the energy and emotions that I had. Of course being outside in it was unique cause I normally don't do that. I don't recommended doing it either. Was really not the best idea but I was fixated on what I saw and wanted my cousin to see it through the stream.

Interesting side note, she mentioned the signal got distorted around the time when I was watching the pool net dome cover being pulled up kinda like when you take off a t-shirt. The bottom of the dome just started lifting straight up with the edges folding. I actually had to brace myself against the side of the house for a second there. I'm so glad the braces held because it's a 30 foot diameter pool so the cover is even larger and would not have been good if that thing became airborne. Well I've spent a good hour writing this post. Need to take care of some errands. Have a good afternoon.

[weatherdude1108]

We got about 1.4 inches from last night's chaotic storms.

[bubba hotep]

Things look pretty boring for the next week. The only thing going on will be the "DFW 80 Watch" with one more 80 degree day breaking the record.

[Yukon Cornelius]

Any news or word on that cold that the models were showing last week?