UNITED STATES — A powerful early-morning storm complex erupted across North Texas on Valentine’s Day, producing more than 3,000 lightning strikes by 8 a.m. and prompting safety concerns across multiple communities west and north of Dallas–Fort Worth.
The most concentrated lightning activity developed in a corridor stretching from Bowie and Jacksboro northeast through Gainesville, Sherman, and Ardmore, with storms clustering along and west of the I-35 corridor.
Lightning Hotspots West and North of Dallas–Fort Worth
Mapping data shows several intense lightning cores, with strike totals surpassing:
- 1,100+ strikes near the Bowie and Jacksboro area
- 600+ strikes around Gainesville
- 700+ strikes near Sherman
Additional lightning activity extended north toward
and across portions of southern Oklahoma, including areas within the Chickasaw Nation. Meanwhile, the immediate Dallas metro — including Plano, McKinney, Irving, and Denton — appeared just east of the most intense lightning clusters during the early-morning hours.
Storms Producing Frequent Cloud-to-Ground Lightning
Forecasters emphasized that lightning can strike miles away from the heaviest rainfall. Even areas not directly under the strongest storm cores may still experience dangerous electrical activity…