BlockLees, Texas
11 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1941 and the latest in 1986. It stands in the Garden City North census division. It lies in ZIP code area 79720. The Survey maps it on the Lees quadrangle.
Topographic sheets covering this place
6 surveys from 11 printed sheetsMatched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.
- 1941 USGS Big Spring South quadrangle1:62500, 2 printings
- 1942 USGS Big Spring South quadrangle1:62500
- 1954 USGS Big Spring quadrangle1:250000, 4 printings
- 1958 USGS Big Spring quadrangle1:250000
- 1971 USGS Lees quadrangle1:24000
- 1986 USGS Big Spring quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
49 since 2005Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 49 fires within 5 miles of Lees between 2005 and 2020, burning about 972 acres in total. None started naturally. 4 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.
| Reported cause | Fires |
|---|---|
| Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 18 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 12 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 12 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 4 |
| Smoking | 2 |
| Debris and open burning | 1 |
The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.
| Date | Cause | Size | Reported by | Name on the report |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 September 2019 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 1.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | RR 33 SOUTH OF CR 2 |
| 20 September 2018 | Equipment and vehicle use | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | RR 33 GRASSFIRE |
| 15 September 2007 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 25 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | not named |
| 7 August 2012 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | GLASSCOCK CO LINE |
| 3 August 2018 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 10 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | FM 461 AND S HWY 87 GRASS FIRE |
| 28 August 2011 | Arson/incendiarism | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | BRIAN RD |
| 23 August 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | S 87 AND 461 |
| 17 August 2019 | Power generation/transmission/distribution | 60 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | 461 FIRE |
Storms near this place
30 since 1996Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Lees in 30 storm reports between 1996 and 2025: 21 hail, 6 thunderstorm wind, 2 tornado, 1 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.
| When | Event | Place named | Harm | What the report says |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | $20,000 | Law enforcement reported that 10 power poles had been snapped near Lees by winds produced from thunderstorms in Glasscock County. The wind speed and cost of damage are a rough estimate. |
| May 2016 | Tornado (EF2) | Lees | $15,000 | A thunderstorm moved across Glasscock County and produced a tornado near Lees, TX. This tornado developed at 7:55 pm CDT, approximately four miles southwest of Lees, north of Hillger Road. The tornado, estimated at 200 yards wide, snapped 14 power poles along Hillger Road as it moved slowly southeast. With the poles being snapped approximately five feet off the ground, wind speeds were estimated at about 115 mph, indicating a lower-end EF-2 tornado intensity. There was also a nearby metal building just south of Hillger Road which sustained a loss of metal roof panels due to the tornado. Wind speeds at this location were estimated at 90-100 mph, indicating EF-1 intensity. As it weakened in intensity, this slow moving tornado made an abrupt turn to the northeast and dissipated at 8:07 pm CDT near the intersection of Hillger Road and Ranch Road 33. The cost of damage is a very rough estimate. |
| September 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | $5,000 | A fence was reported blown down with an RV shifted due to strong winds. Wind speeds were estimated to be 80 mph. Property damage cost is an estimation. |
| March 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | $5,000 | A thunderstorm moved across Glasscock County and produced wind damage in the northeast part of the county. Five power poles were blown down along Highway 87. The cost of damage is a very rough estimate. |
| May 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | $1,000 | A NWS cooperative observer reported many limbs broken off trees at her property as well as some tin that was blown off her barn roof. |
| June 2025 | Hail | Lees | - | Ping pong ball-size hail was reported by the public just south of Forsan. The time of occurrence is estimated by radar. |
| April 2025 | Hail | Lees | - | A report from the public shared photos of quarter-sized hail from northeast Glasscock County. The hail was reported to have lasted 13 minutes. Time is estimated from radar. |
| April 2025 | Hail | Lees | - | Public report of golf ball-sized hail off of US Highway 87. Time is estimated from radar. |
| May 2016 | Tornado (EF0) | Lees | - | A thunderstorm moved across Glasscock County and produced a tornado near Lees, TX. This tornado developed around 7:38 pm CDT approximately four miles southeast of Lomax. This short-lived tornado traveled a distance of approximately a half of a mile, dissipating by 7:40 pm CDT. With no damage indicators, this tornado is rated as an EF-0 with an estimated path length of 50 yards. |
| May 2016 | Flash Flood | Lees | - | Heavy rain fell and caused flash flooding six miles northeast of Spraberry, TX. Slow running water was covering roads in multiple locations with some places having at least six to eight inches of water over the roads. |
| April 2009 | Hail | Lees | - | The duration of the hail was estimated based on radar. |
| April 2009 | Hail | Lees | - | The duration of the hail was estimated for this event based on radar data. |
| April 2009 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | - | A trained spotter estimated the winds were gusting near 75 mph. Since there were a limited number of structures and trees near the area, no damage was reported. |
| March 2008 | Hail | Lees | - | Quarter sized hail was reported along Farm to Market Road 33. |
| May 2006 | Hail | Lees | - | Penny to ping-pong ball size hail fell on U.S. Highway 87 east-southeast of Lees. |
| June 2006 | Hail | Lees | - | Soft marble to penny size hail fell in Lees. |
| May 2021 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| September 2016 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| May 2016 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| May 2016 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| October 2014 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| June 2013 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| May 2009 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| March 2004 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| March 2004 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| June 2003 | Thunderstorm Wind | Lees | - | no account filed |
| February 2000 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| April 1999 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
| May 1996 | Hail | Lees | - | no account filed |
Nearest settlements
The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.
| Map | Place | Distance | Sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| Old Houston Place | 12.1 miles | 11 | |
| Garden City | 14.6 miles | 7 | |
| Saint Lawrence | 25.9 miles | 7 | |
| Bigby Corner | 26.9 miles | 7 |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1380816. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.