Storms bring needed rain to North Texas, disrupt Friday events
.JPG "Haley Parrish, Haley Allen and Callie Hutchinson take cover from a downpour Friday evening at a baseball game between Timberview and Legacy high schools. The game was stopped because of the weather in the top of the fourth inning. The game is to resume Saturday at 2 p.m.")
Thunderstorms inconvenienced concert-goers Friday evening but brought much needed rain to an area parched by long-standing drought.
A line of thunderstorms moved eastward across Tarrant County starting about 7 p.m. Friday, causing the crowd at an American Country Music event to take cover inside Globe Life Park in Arlington.
The storm carried cloud-to-ground lightning and wind gusts of 30 mph to 35 mph, the National Weather Service said.
Shortly before 9 p.m. Friday, Dallas/Fort Worth Airport had recorded .35 inches of rain for the day.
On Saturday, more of the same is possible. Scattered thunderstorms could be triggered by afternoon heat.
“Some thunderstorms may become severe but we’re not expecting any widespread heavy rain,” said Jesse Moore, a National Weather Service meteorologist.
The total rainfall for the year is 1.4 inches above normal in Tarrant County, Moore said.
“Drought continues to be an issue,” Moore said. “We’re happy we are getting some rain now, but we still have to conserve our water.”
The concourse, understandably, is a wee bit packed. #ACMawards50 pic.twitter.com/1oVYx8NIQ9
— Preston Jones (@prestonjones) April 17, 2015There were reports of structure fires that may have been triggered by lightning in the storms.
Earlier Friday, the rain storms caused street flooding in Abilene where as much as 3 inches of rain were reported.
With this weekend’s festivals and big events such as the ACM awards, which kicked off at Globe Life Park Friday night, fans will need to pay attention to the weather.
There will be a gradual clearing as the chances for rain diminish Sunday and Monday. But precipitation chances are expected to grow again on Tuesday, weather service forecasters predict.
Staff writers Bill Hanna and Mitch Mitchell contributed to this report.
"We do plan to have the concert tonight. Please take cover as soon as possible." #ACMawards50
— Preston Jones (@prestonjones) April 17, 2015This story was originally published April 17, 2015 at 10:13 AM with the headline "Storms bring needed rain to North Texas, disrupt Friday events."