Sterling County Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes
Hot Texas Rankings
The chance of earthquake damage in Sterling County is about the same as Texas average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Sterling County is much lower than Texas average and is much lower than the national average.
Earthquake Index, #193
| Sterling County | 0.00 |
| Texas | 0.04 |
| U.S. | 1.81 |
The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.
Volcano Index, #1
| Sterling County | 0.0000 |
| Texas | 0.0000 |
| U.S. | 0.0023 |
The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.
Tornado Index, #229
| Sterling County | 0.00 |
| Texas | 208.58 |
| U.S. | 136.45 |
The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.
Other Weather Extremes Events
A total of 7,512 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Sterling County were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:
| Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count | Type | Count |
| Avalanche: | 0 | Blizzard: | 0 | Cold: | 4 | Dense Fog: | 0 | Drought: | 33 |
| Dust Storm: | 3 | Flood: | 900 | Hail: | 4,499 | Heat: | 1 | Heavy Snow: | 19 |
| High Surf: | 0 | Hurricane: | 0 | Ice Storm: | 11 | Landslide: | 0 | Strong Wind: | 35 |
| Thunderstorm Winds: | 1,906 | Tropical Storm: | 0 | Wildfire: | 7 | Winter Storm: | 12 | Winter Weather: | 22 |
| Other: | 60 | ||||||||
Volcanos Nearby
No volcano is found in or near Sterling County.
Historical Earthquake Events
No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Sterling County.
No historical earthquake events found in or near Sterling County.
Historical Tornado Events
A total of 14 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Sterling County.
| Distance (miles) | Date | Magnitude | Start Lat/Log | End Lat/Log | Length | Width | Fatalities | Injuries | Property Damage | Crop Damage | Affected County |
| 18.6 | 1989-05-14 | 2 | 31°40'N / 100°52'W | 31°40'N / 100°45'W | 6.00 Miles | 600 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Sterling |
| 25.1 | 1953-07-15 | 2 | 31°54'N / 100°38'W | 1.00 Mile | 33 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Coke | |
| 30.7 | 1965-05-25 | 2 | 32°09'N / 100°41'W | 2.00 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 1 | 250K | 0 | Mitchell | |
| 32.1 | 2000-03-22 | 2 | 31°34'N / 101°35'W | 31°38'N / 101°28'W | 6.00 Miles | 300 Yards | 0 | 5 | 200K | 0 | Reagan |
| Brief Description: The tornado knocked a small house off its foundation by about 15 yards with the house pivoting 90 degrees as well. One infant suffered a slight head injury from falling furniture. The tornado continued travelling north-northeast through rural areas, but struck and destroyed a mobile home, injuring two men, one seriously. Lighter damage was scattered along the rest of its path, including utility poles down, parts of roofs damaged, fences and barns damaged, etc. The tornado crossed into Glasscock County at 31.65N/101.50W. This storm was a classic supercell that formed ahead of the training line of storms to the west. | |||||||||||
| 33.1 | 2004-06-11 | 2 | 32°10'N / 100°44'W | 32°12'N / 100°36'W | 10.30 Miles | 200 Yards | 0 | 3 | 250K | 0 | Mitchell |
| Brief Description: A National Weather Service damage survey team concluded that a significant tornado struck rural areas of southeastern Mitchell County during the evening of the 11th. The team examined a damage path marked by shredded vegetation (mostly mesquite trees), downed utility poles, agricultural fences, and a complex of destroyed mobile homes that extended over ten miles in a continuous horseshoe shaped path that crossed State Route 208 twenty miles south-southeast of Colorado City. The tornado developed seventeen miles south-southeast of Colorado City around 2028 CST. Damage indicates the tornado's motion was initially toward the southeast then east as it crossed the heavily traveled State Route 208. Two Texas Tech University students traveling north on 208 (south of the tornado's path) watched as a Ford Expedition drove into the tornadic circulation. The large sports utility vehicle was blown 100 yards off of the highway. Evidence supports the vehicle was rolled a considerable distance by the tornadic winds, but it is unclear whether it became airborne. Three motorists were transferred to local hospitals. One person sustained serious injuries that included a broken back. A detailed damage path analysis and corresponding radar data suggest that the tornado then tracked very slowly east a few miles before curving to the northeast. Similar curved damage paths (turning left of the tornado's original motion) are commonly observed when well-developed tornadoes enter the dissipation stage. The tornado proved to remain very dangerous, however, as eight mobile homes were destroyed by the tornado near the end of its life cycle twenty miles southeast of Colorado City. The light weight and unanchored structures were blown over and shredded by the dissipation stage tornadic winds. The trailers were arranged in a complex and were used to provide shelter for groups of hunters that frequent the ranch property. They were not occupied when the tornado struck. In summary, a significant round of severe thunderstorms affected parts of west Texas during the afternoon and evening of the 11th. At least two supercell storms produced giant hail and one strong tornado over the region. A supercell thunderstorm tracked across Terrell County in the west Texas Lower Trans Pecos region during the late afternoon hours. Multiple reports of large hail including two different instances of tennis ball sized stones were received as this storm tracked east along U.S. Highway 90 between Sanderson and Dryden. A second area of convection erupted over the eastern Permian Basin by late afternoon and continued into the evening hours. A severe storm associated with this activity produced half-dollar size hail in the Westbrook community. An isolated classic supercell evolved from this complex of storms and took on a distinctly deviant southeastward storm motion. This storm took on radar characteristics consistent with a classic tornadic supercell. Hail up to the size of golfballs was observed southeast of Colorado City as the storm evolved into its tornadic phase. A long-lived significant tornado tracked across mainly rural areas of Mitchell County just after sunset. The tornado resulted in three injuries when it crossed State Route 208 and blew a vehicle off of the highway. Severe rear flank downdraft winds also resulted in widespread wind damage south of the tornado's path. | |||||||||||
| 34.8 | 1982-05-27 | 2 | 32°10'N / 100°52'W | 32°25'N / 100°44'W | 15.00 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mitchell |
| 38.7 | 1953-05-11 | 4 | 31°32'N / 100°35'W | 31°32'N / 100°25'W | 9.90 Miles | 880 Yards | 13 | 159 | 2.5M | 0 | Tom Green |
| 42.1 | 1964-07-27 | 2 | 31°16'N / 100°48'W | 1.00 Mile | 20 Yards | 0 | 1 | 0K | 0 | Irion | |
| 43.6 | 1952-04-30 | 3 | 31°27'N / 100°28'W | 0.50 Mile | 100 Yards | 0 | 6 | 250K | 0 | Tom Green | |
| 44.8 | 2009-04-16 | 2 | 32°18'N / 101°34'W | 32°25'N / 101°27'W | 11.00 Miles | 450 Yards | 0 | 0 | 83K | 0K | Howard |
| Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: At 1953 CST, a trained weather spotter reported a tornado about 5 miles northwest of Big Spring. The NWS Storm Survey confirmed two snapped power poles, minor tree damage and an empty oil pump storage tank knocked over near this location. The tornado then tracked north northeastward and bent an 80 foot aluminum radio tower in half towards the east and snapped two additional power poles due to damaging northerly winds on its northwest flank; this occurred sometime around 2000 CST. At 2005 CST, another trained spotter reported a tornado near the town of Fairview, TX. The damage survey concluded this was a valid report, as the tornado began to turn right snapping multiple power poles and damaging a 12???X10??? storage shed anchored 2-3 feet in the ground along the way. The storage shed was tossed east northeast approximately 30 yards, indicating the tornado passed north of the residence. As the tornado continued eastward just north of Farm to Market Road 2230 east of Fairview, a significant line of power pole damage (2 miles) was observed. There were a total of 28 poles snapped towards the south around 2015 CST. Twenty of these were distribution poles and 8 of these were larger transmission poles. The tornado then possibly weakened and turned left to the northeast. On its way, it damaged another storage shed and a home's north side windows approximately 4 miles northeast of Fairview. The last approximated time for tornadic wind damage was around 2030 CST. The path recorded for this event is not the exact path the tornado actually took. Please see attached image. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A mid to upper level closed low was located over southwest Utah the day of the event. Near the surface, a quasi dryline was located from a line near the mountains of west Texas to the eastern NM/TX border. Dewpoints in the low to mid 50 F range resulted in moderate surface based instability east of the dryline during the early evening hours. The upper dynamics combined with the surface convergence along the dryline led to the development of severe weather as the deep layer shear increased with the approach of the aforementioned feature. There was also a brief window for tornadic storms as low level profiles became increasingly backed east of the dryline as height falls increased ahead of the upper trough just west of the region. A tornado watch was issued from 1642-2400 local. | |||||||||||
| 45.0 | 1971-06-21 | 2 | 31°16'N / 100°41'W | 0.10 Mile | 200 Yards | 0 | 0 | 0K | 0 | Irion | |
| 45.5 | 1982-05-27 | 2 | 32°25'N / 100°44'W | 32°26'N / 100°41'W | 3.00 Miles | 30 Yards | 0 | 0 | 250K | 0 | Mitchell |
| 45.8 | 1964-06-20 | 2 | 32°15'N / 101°40'W | 0.80 Mile | 23 Yards | 0 | 0 | 3K | 0 | Howard | |
| 48.9 | 1969-06-12 | 2 | 32°04'N / 100°16'W | 0.50 Mile | 50 Yards | 0 | 0 | 25K | 0 | Coke | |
* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.