Powerful storm tears up Highland Lakes
Dozens of first responders and linemen from Pedernales Electric Cooperative worked through the night May 28, 2025, to repair 10 downed powerlines along RR 1431 near Granite Shoals. Photo by Tim Campbell
A short, violent thunderstorm cut through the Highland Lakes on Wednesday, May 28, in the late afternoon and evening. More storms are expected Thursday night into early Friday morning.
During the brief squall, some areas were left relatively unscathed, while others were hit by hail or high winds that caused serious damage and power outages.
“That wind, for about three to five minutes (last night), was ridiculous,” Granite Shoals Fire Chief Tim Campbell told DailyTrib.com.
Official wind gauges from the National Weather Service show speeds of about 23-26 mph at Horseshoe Bay Airpark and Burnet Municipal Airport between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. Wednesday. Granite Shoals likely saw even stronger winds, which were powerful enough to send a trampoline to the top of a power pole, scar trees and rip them out of the ground, and tear down 10 utility poles along RR 1431 just outside of the city.
Dozens of city of Granite Shoals employees, Pedernales Electric Cooperative crew members, Burnet County Sheriff’s Office deputies, and Texas Department of Public Safety state troopers spent Wednesday night and Thursday morning managing the damage in the city and along the highway. RR 1431 was reduced to two lanes of traffic while PEC linemen fixed the downed poles and restored power by early Thursday afternoon.
According to Campbell, nobody was injured in the ordeal, but one vehicle did collide with a downed pole on RR 1431. Another pole then fell on top of the vehicle, entangling it in live powerlines. The driver was trapped for about an hour until PEC crews arrived and cut the lines, allowing rescue crews to free them.
Some parts of Kingsland also experienced high winds, torrential rain, and large hail for about 15 minutes around 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. Sunrise Beach Village had its share of damage, too.
“Last night five of our firefighters worked with chain saws and muscle to clear fallen trees from roads,” reads a Thursday post from the Sunrise Beach Volunteer Fire Department Facebook page.
Bertram and the Burnet area were hit by storms with large hail and rain, depending on location, between 7 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. Marble Falls and Spicewood were spared the worst of the weather with some parts receiving brief heavy rainfall Wednesday night.
The National Weather Service is warning of more bad weather in the area. As of 1:30 p.m. Thursday, the forecast called for 30-60 percent chances of severe thunderstorms and rain from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m. Friday.
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Those PEC crews are always on the ball and getting things squared away after these storms. BIG Thanks to them and of course our First Responders!!