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Largest Hail in Austin History

Posted on May 15th, 2008 by Burton.
Categories: WeatherBlog.

Austin (4″) Round Rock (2 3/4″) 

Some of the strongest supercell storms in recent memory crossed the I-35 corridor last night with record hail, damaging winds, frequent lightning, and much-needed rainfall. No doubt millions of dollars worth of damage came to Austin and Round Rock in one of the worst hail storms in at least 15 years.

Overnight rain totals:
2.92″ Thorndale
2.81″ Bertram
2.79″ Burnet
2.70″ Taylor
2.54″ Marble Falls
2.46″ Llano

Peak wind gusts:
59mph Huston-Tillotson
47mph Downtown Austin
38mph ABIA

We’ll talk more about last night’s storms below but, first, your forecast. A band of brief showers moving east of I-35 will clear out early, and skies will open to sunshine midday. We’ll warm up to upper 70s north and low 80s south as the areawide clean-up takes place.

A cool front moving into the area today brings drier northwest winds, making for a more comfortable morning especially early Friday as some rural temps drop to the 50s. Look for a mix of sun and clouds as we move into the weekend, with daytime highs rebounding back into the upper 80s by Sunday.

Storm Reports… News 8 viewer Mary Roberts measured and photographed a four inch hailstone that fell at 51st and Manor Rd in Austin — it’s the largest measured stone of it’s kind I can find in our weather history books! Storm reports of 3 to 4″ diameter hail came in from Austin to Round Rock, with 1″ diameter hail reported in Cedar Park. Numerous trees and power lines were downed with near 30000 people without power in Austin at one point. And a brief tornado touchdown was reported near the Burnet/Lampasas county line. What a night!

Enjoy your Thursday.

Meteorologist
Burton Fitzsimmons

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Feeling Like Mid-June

Posted on May 9th, 2008 by Burton.
Categories: WeatherBlog.

A spell of hot 90s brings a sweltering start to our Mother’s Day weekend. Two weak fronts will head our way, possibly stirring up a few brief storms prior to a slight Sunday cooldown.

The first cold front nears from the north late this afternoon and may not even completely make it through the area as it runs out of forward speed, possibly acting as the focal point for more clouds and spotty storm development later today — there’s a slim 20% chance. As it appears this first front will now linger in the area, we’ll keep the 20% rain chance in our Saturday forecast, too. But don’t expect much change in temps! We’ll be within a few degrees of the record high for the date: 96 degrees.

Mom’s Day… The second cold front will dive out of the Rockies and move into Central Texas early Sunday morning, we think, with just a brief 20% rain chance early on Mother’s Day. Morning skies should clear as a drier breeze enters from the north. As a result, we’ll see more sun the second half of the weekend, and high temps will likely range from mid to upper 80s. Still above normal!

Rain Needed… As we look closer at next week’s weather, the upper-air pattern becomes favorable for a “cut off” low to develop in the southwest that’ll slowly move up to Texas by midweek. These slow-moving southerly storms sometimes bring several days worth of a rain chance — something we need! Check back here this weekend for updates to the 8-day forecast.

Enjoy your Friday and have a fantastic weekend.

Meteorologist
Burton Fitzsimmons

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Hot Streak Begins

Posted on May 8th, 2008 by Burton.
Categories: WeatherBlog.

Bright, sunny weather will feel downright hot the next several afternoons as we push into the 90s. It’s not exactly seasonal but not too surprising, either, as we look for temps above normal throughout the next 8 days. We’re hopeful an occasional round of rain will grace our skies, too.

So far this year in Austin, our hottest day at 96 came March 14. We’ll be in that exact territory for at least three days, just shy of record levels. Quite a shock to some of our bodies! Prepare now to keep yourself and those around you hydrated, and with plenty of sunscreen nearby.

Yesterday’s dry line cleared our skies midday, followed by the actual cold front last night around sunset. The result this morning is some slightly cooler upper 50s and low 60s (current temps) and notably less humidity. Unfortunately, the south winds come right back at us during the day under mostly sunny skies.

Another weak cold front moves out of the Rockies into Texas, nearing the Austin area Friday evening with a brief 20% rain chance. It offers little if any temperature relief: temps continue nearly 10 degrees above the May norm, with mid 90s Saturday afternoon. Then another weak cold front follows suit early Sunday morning, again with a brief 20% rain chance. It’ll bring slightly cooler temps (highs only nearing 90) for Sunday.

We see another southbound cold front attempting a run on Texas by the middle of next week, so at least there’s a slim chance for some showers and storms. Check back for detailed updates on the 8-day forecast.

Enjoy your Thursday.

Meteorologist
Burton Fitzsimmons

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