BlockTulia, Texas
8 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1954 and the latest in 1985. It stands in the Tulia census division. It lies in ZIP code area 79088. The Survey maps it on the Tulia quadrangle. 4,473 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 3,484 feet above sea level.
Population over time
2 figuresTulia fell from 4,967 to 4,473 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.
| Year | People | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 4,967 | |
| 2020 | 4,473 | -494 (-10%) |
Topographic sheets covering this place
4 surveys from 8 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.
- 1954 USGS Plainview quadrangle1:250000, 3 printings
- 1958 USGS Plainview quadrangle1:250000
- 1965 USGS Tulia quadrangle1:24000, 2 printings
- 1985 USGS Tulia quadrangle1:100000, 2 printings
Fires near this place
222 since 2005Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 222 fires within 5 miles of Tulia between 2005 and 2020, burning about 7,972 acres in total. 7 started naturally. 1 was 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 | 145 |
| Debris and open burning | 28 |
| Equipment and vehicle use | 18 |
| Power generation/transmission/distribution | 14 |
| Natural | 7 |
| Misuse of fire by a minor | 5 |
| Smoking | 4 |
| Arson/incendiarism | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2015-43 |
| 8 September 2015 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2015-44 |
| 6 September 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2013-42 |
| 29 September 2009 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2009-70 |
| 25 September 2020 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 5.0 acres | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2020056 |
| 24 September 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2013-52 |
| 24 September 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2013-51 |
| 24 September 2013 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | under an acre | Texas A & M Forest Service | 2013-53 |
Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:
Storms near this place
60 of 150 shownRegional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Tulia in 150 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 87 hail, 46 thunderstorm wind, 9 tornado, 5 flash flood. The reports record 4 injuries. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2007 | Tornado (EF2) | Tulia | 3 hurt, $2,000,000 | A strong tornado delivered a crippling impact on the local economy of Tulia, Texas, when it devastated industrial and residential sections of the small community of 5,000 residents around 19:00 CST on the 21st. A two block wide swath of damage paralleled U.S. Highway 87 in west Tulia for fifteen blocks. Three persons were treated at area hospitals for injuries, almost thirty homes sustained damage or were destroyed along with twenty businesses, and approximately five hundred people were displaced or made homeless.|Local officials and newspaper accounts indicated that several of the businesses that were heavily damaged during the tornado served as staples to the Tulia economy prior to the storm. U.S. President George W. Bush declared Swisher County a federal disaster area on May 1, 2007. |This destructive tornado developed near a power plant at the intersection of Broadway Street and U.S. Highway 87 in west Tulia at 18:57 CST. The tornado moved north and caused extensive damage to a local supermarket at the intersection of U.S. Highway 87 and |Sixth Street. A large portion of the roof was removed on the east side of the structure, and one exterior wall collapsed inward. Smaller sections of two additional exterior walls additionally collapsed. |A local auto dealership, located near the supermarket, also sustained a large amount of structural and inventory damage. Forty-one vehicles were damaged by flying debris, and a motor home on the property was overturned. A large overhead door on the east side of the structure's show room failed, resulting in the failure of the west wall. A large storage container was blown into the southwest corner of the building and caused the partial collapse of the roof.|Several large metal industrial-style buildings sustained major damage due to the failure of large overhead doors and buckling of roof purlins on the south side of the buildings. One such structure collapsed onto a collection of classic cars, and resulted in a $250,000 loss. |Two storm chasers escaped injuries when they were struck by the tornado along the industrial stretch of U.S. Highway 87. Their vehicle was blown into a brick building, and then a tractor-trailer was blown broadside against the chase vehicle.|Damage also was observed to the north and northeast of the industrial area, with severe damage in residential areas including a mobile home community between Eighth and Ninth Streets just west of Highland Elementary School. Five mobile homes were damaged, with two others completely destroyed. |The most significant residential damage occurred in a subdivision along Northwest Ninth Street through Northwest Eleventh Street. Across this area, a number of homes suffered roof losses. Roofs were totally removed from at least two single-family homes on Tenth Street near Airport Road, with partial exterior wall collapses also noted. |The tornado dissipated near the Tulia Municipal Airport at 19:01 CST.|Meteorologists from the National Weather Service in Lubbock, Texas, Texas Tech University, and engineers from numerous private and governmental agencies surveyed the Tulia damage. All indications suggest that the maximum winds with the Tulia tornado were between 125 and 135 mph. This makes the Tulia tornado an EF-2 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita scale for tornado intensity. The total economic loss is estimated at $2.0 million.| |
| October 2004 | Lightning | Tulia | 1 hurt | Tulia Police Department reported to the National Weather Service that a person was struck and injured by a lightning strike at the Tulia feed lot and was later hospitalized but recovered. |
| June 1994 | Hail | Tulia | $500,000 | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Tulia | $500,000 | no account filed |
| May 1994 | Hail | Tulia | $500,000 | no account filed |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $350,000 | A large downburst damaged several power poles across northern Swisher County and blew over a semi-trailer on Interstate 27 near Tulia. It was not known if the driver was injured or not. Also, multiple homes in and around Tulia sustained varying degrees of roof and fence damage. Large swaths of crop damage were also noted to area corn and grain fields, mostly from wind blown sand and dirt. |
| July 2011 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $150,000 | The Tulia police department reported that power poles were blown down west of Tulia, causing a power outage in the city of Tulia. The strong winds were accompanied by hail. |
| June 2006 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $150,000 | A severe thunderstorm resulted in a swath of damaging winds from just northeast of Tulia to Vigo Park. The West Texas Mesonet Site near Tulia initially measured a 63 MPH wind gust at 14:05 CST. As the storm and associated severe winds propagated east-northeast, at least twelve utility poles were snapped two miles west of Vigo Park. Two "substantial" barns were destroyed one quarter of a mile west of Vigo Park. |
| June 1995 | Hail | Tulia | $100,000 | no account filed |
| May 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $50,000 | Emergency management reported sporadic damage induced by severe thunderstorm downburst winds in and around Tulia, including roof damage to a couple of structures and several downed trees with a few falling on vehicles. A semi-truck was blown over on Interstate 27 at mile marker 74 with the driver being treated and released from a nearby hospital. Wind speeds reached up to 62 mph as recorded by the Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet station in Tulia. |
| June 2009 | Hail | Tulia | $50,000 | Multiple reports of large hail were received from near Tulia to Vigo Park. Reports indicated that quarter to golfball size hail damaged several vehicles in Tulia between 16:10 CST and 16:25 CST. By 16:37 CST penny size hail was reported in Vigo Park. |
| October 2003 | Hail | Tulia | $50,000 | Storm spotters affiliated with the Tulia PD reported baseball size hail. Two homes had windows broken as a result of the wind-driven hail. Major roof damage also occurred to a number of homes. |
| May 2002 | Hail | Tulia | $50,000 | The Tulia PD reported golfball size hail. |
| May 1999 | Lightning | Tulia | $50,000 | A lightning strike caused extensive damage to a Tulia house. |
| June 1998 | Hail | Tulia | $50,000 | no account filed |
| September 2010 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $30,000 | A severe thunderstorm produced a swath of damaging winds from near Vigo Park to just east of Tulia between 16:30 CST and 16:50 CST. A National Weather Service cooperative observer reported that thunderstorm winds downed four utility poles west of Vigo Park along Farm to Market Road 146 at approximately 16:30 CST. By 16:49 CST, a storm spotter reported that a utility pole had been blown down along U.S. Highway 86 east of Tulia. |
| April 2007 | Hail | Tulia | $30,000 | Skywarn spotters reported very large hail up to the size of tennis balls along Interstate 27 just north-northwest of Tulia. Several vehicles traveling along the interstate were damaged. Also, minor agricultural damage was sustained by young cotton crops. |
| April 2007 | Hail | Tulia | $30,000 | Meteorologists from the National Severe Storms Laboratory reported three inch diameter hail along Interstate 27 north-northwest of Tulia. Very large hail in the Tulia area resulted in damage to vehicles traveling along Interstate 27. In addition, minor damage to young cotton crops was reported. |
| June 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $20,000 | A large downburst toppled multiple trees from Tulia to roughly four miles west of Tulia. Some of these trees damaged power lines, fences and structures. The Swisher County Emergency Manager estimated the high winds lasted up to seven minutes. |
| February 2001 | Hail | Tulia | $20,000 | The Swisher County Sheriff's office reported dime to golfball size hail in town. |
| October 2003 | Tornado (F1) | Tulia | $10,000 | A tornado that was tracked by storm chasers and law enforcement officials snapped several power poles. |
| July 1998 | Hail | Tulia | $10,000 | no account filed |
| September 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $5,000 | Law enforcement officials reported numerous downed power poles along and near Interstate 27, while storm chasers measured a 69 mph wind gust northwest of Tulia. |
| July 2011 | Hail | Tulia | $5,000 | The Tulia police department reported hail ranging from nickel to quarter size in Tulia. The hail was accompanied by severe wind gusts. |
| October 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $1,000 | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet station. These wind gusts also blew over a few trees in town. |
| July 1996 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | $1,000 | no account filed |
| April 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1920 CST through 1940 CST. A peak wind gust of 76 mph was measured at 1940 CST. |
| June 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1416 CST through 1420 CST. A peak gust of 58 mph was measured at 1416 and 1420 CST. The strong winds picked up a shed and dropped into a nearby home. |
| June 2025 | Hail | Tulia | - | Local broadcast media relayed a report of golf ball size hail in the city of Tulia. Numerous windows to residences and businesses were blown out due to wind driven hail. |
| November 2025 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1533 CST through 1535 CST. A peak wind gust of 62 mph was measured at 1534 CST. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A farmer located northeast of Tulia reported damage to a metal barn with an awning torn off the building. Additionally, numerous tree branches of unknown size were broken off. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Local broadcast media relayed pictures of damage to homes to the north and northwest of Tulia associated with a strong downburst. Additionally, numerous large tree branches were broken off. |
| June 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1943 CST through 1944 CST. A peak wind gust of 64 mph was measured at 1943 CST. |
| September 2024 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1832 CST through 1834 CST. A peak wind gust of 73 mph was measured at 1833 CST. |
| April 2023 | Hail | Tulia | - | Several storm chasers and the sheriff's office for Swisher County reported a swath of large hail from approximately ten miles northwest of Tulia into the city of Tulia and just to the south of Tulia. The largest hail size reported was baseball size hail from just south of Tulia. No damage was reported. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured intermittent wind gusts of 58 mph between 1713 CST and 1732 CST. |
| July 2023 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 0455 CST through 0457 CST. A peak wind gust of 64 mph was measured at 0456 CST. |
| May 2022 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured severe wind gusts from 1753 CST through 1829 CST. A peak wind gust of 79 mph was measured at 1758 CST and again at 1806 to 1807 CST. Additionally, a large tree was blown over on the south side of Tulia. |
| May 2022 | Hail | Tulia | - | A photograph on social media showed golf ball size hail in Tulia. |
| August 2021 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured a wind gust to 67 mph. |
| May 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured a wind gust to 60 mph. |
| August 2020 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured a wind gust to 66 mph. |
| March 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet. |
| April 2019 | Hail | Tulia | - | No damage was reported. |
| May 2019 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet. |
| May 2019 | Hail | Tulia | - | Damage was not known. |
| August 2018 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet. |
| August 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet near Tulia. |
| August 2017 | Heavy Rain | Tulia | - | Backbuilding thunderstorms produced 3.45 inches of rain as measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet located near Tulia. Radar estimated just over four inches of rain a short distance north of this mesonet. |
| October 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia recorded a wind gust to 67 mph. |
| July 2017 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet northeast of Tulia. |
| April 2016 | Hail | Tulia | - | The Tulia Police Department reported quarter size hail in Tulia. No damage was reported. |
| July 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | A Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet site near Tulia measured a wind gust to 65 mph. |
| August 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by the Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet station. |
| November 2015 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet station. |
| June 2014 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet station. |
| September 2013 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | The Texas Tech University West Texas Mesonet station near Tulia recorded a 69 mph wind gust. |
| June 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech West Texas Mesonet site. |
| June 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech West Texas Mesonet site. |
| June 2012 | Thunderstorm Wind | Tulia | - | Measured by a Texas Tech University West Texas mesonet. |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eunice | 4.5 miles | 7 | |
| Kaffir | 7.5 miles | 7 | |
| Lakeview | 8.6 miles | 7 | |
| Kress | 11.7 miles | 7 | |
| Center Plains | 13.1 miles | 7 | |
| Claytonville | 14.7 miles | 7 | |
| Happy | 15.2 miles | 7 | |
| Vigo Park | 16.1 miles | 7 |
Elsewhere
Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.
| Wikipedia article on Tulia | An encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied. |
| Wikidata item Q974357 | The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0). |
Provenance
This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 1370199. 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.