Severe thunderstorm warnings were in place for parts of Texas and Oklahoma from the National Weather Service (NWS) early on Tuesday, with meteorologists highlighting the potential effects from hail and lightning.
Why It Matters
Severe weather can cause hazardous flooding, road closures, power outages and possible property damage.
Those in impacted areas should stay informed through weather updates and be prepared to respond swiftly to emergency alerts.
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What To Know
The NWS forecast office for Fort Worth-Dallas warned that a powerful storm system was expected to bring thunderstorms to parts of the area late Monday night through Tuesday morning.
It said the main threats would be damaging straight-line winds and brief tornadoes. There was also a possibility of isolated patches of large hail, particularly around any storms that form ahead of or before the main line.
Residents in affected areas should prepared for potential disruptions to the Tuesday morning commute, it said.
As of early Tuesday morning, there were severe thunderstorm warnings, which the NWS issues “when severe thunderstorms are occurring or imminent,” in effect across the Fort Worth-Dallas area and extended northwards into south central Oklahoma.
Texas counties under the warning included Montague, Cooke, Grayson, Wise, Denton, Parker, Tarrant, Dallas, Hamilton, Coryell, Lampasas and Mills.
In Oklahoma, the NWS said warnings were in place in Johnston Garvin, Love, Carter, Pontotoc, Marshall and Murray Counties.
Penny-sized hail and 60 mph wind gusts were expected. The service warned residents to expect damage to roofs, siding, and trees.
Tornado watches—issued when severe thunderstorms and tornadoes are possible in and near the watch area—were also in place for northeast Texas and southeast Oklahoma.
What People Are Saying
AccuWeather meteorologist Brandon Buckingham told Newsweek: “Areas of far eastern Texas can still feature a risk for severe thunderstorms until early afternoon, but the majority of the risk will focus across the lower Mississippi Valley and the South through the rest of today and into tonight as the line of storms races eastward.”
The NWS forecast office, Norman, Oklahoma said on X, formerly Twitter, Tuesday: “12:07 a.m.—Line of strong/severe storms continues to move across portions of OK and north TX. Hail, strong wind gusts, and potentially a few tornadoes will be possible with at least parts of this line as it moves east.”
NBC meteorologist Kevan Smith said on X: “10:18 p.m. Monday: Stay WEATHER AWARE for Tuesday morning as a line of thunderstorms move across North Texas. Damaging winds, large hail and a few tornadoes are possible.”
Fox 35 meteorologist Noah Bergren said on X: “The models were correct and BOOM the bomb-cyclone has gotten underway with blossoming severe storms in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. The lightning is actually ridiculous with over 4,000 individual bolts estimated in the past half hour. Tornado Warnings have now come out. Nocturnal tornado risk OKC to Dallas heading into daybreak Tuesday local time.”
What Happens Next
At the time of writing, the latest severe thunderstorm warnings were in place until 5:45 a.m. CST.
Tornado watches for the areas around Fort Worth and Dallas would remain in effect until 11 a.m., the NWS said.
The weather service regularly issues forecast updates on its website.
Update 3/4/2025, 12:55 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Brandon Buckingham.