Event narrative (NOAA)
An artic airmass spilled southward out of the central plains and into the lower Mississippi Valley. This cold surface airmass was overrun by a warm and humid airmass which combined with a strong upper level storm system across west Texas. The result was a mixture of freezing rain, sleet and snow north of a Quitman to Linden Texas line, while further south, precipitation was in the form of freezing rain. Ice accumulations of two to 6 inches were common across the northern third of northeast Texas with accumulations on one to two inches further south. Over 235,000 people were without power from several hours to several weeks from snapped power lines. Upwards of 29 transmission lines atop "H" shaped steel towers were snapped due to the weight of the ice. Numerous traffic accidents were
Other notable ice storm events in Texas
Source: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database. Deaths and injuries are those NOAA classifies as direct. Damage is the reporting office's estimate at the time and is not inflation-adjusted. This is a catalogue record, not a forecast.