AMARILLO, Texas (KVII) — Record-breaking heat scorched parts of the southern High Plains on Tuesday, shattering daily temperature records across the region and helping aid to what has been one of the warmest meteorological winters on record in Amarillo.
High temperatures surged well into the 80s under sunny skies and gusty winds, toppling both recent and longstanding records in several communities in the Texas and Oklahoma Panhandles and eastern New Mexico.
Amarillo reached 86 degrees Tuesday afternoon, breaking the previous record of 81 degrees set in 1918. Dalhart climbed to 86 degrees, surpassing its old mark of 77 degrees from 1986. Borger hit 85 degrees, beating the 77-degree record set just last year.
In Goodwell, Oklahoma, the high reached 85 degrees, breaking a record of 79 degrees that had stood since 1918. Clovis, New Mexico, rose to 81 degrees, topping the previous 79-degree record from 2009. Clayton, New Mexico, hit 81 degrees, eclipsing the 75-degree record set in 2025…