A blast of very dry air, fed by strong northwest flow at all levels of the atmosphere that originated from the Pacific, rather than the North Pole, surged through the southern Rockies and Sierra Madre Oriental on its way to south Texas and the Rio Grande Valley on January 11th, 2018. Downslope flow during the afternoon of the 11th pushed temperatures well into the 80s, but dropped humidity into the teens as northwest winds picked up to 15 to 25 mph, on average.
The true front arrived by mid to late afternoon across the Rio Grande Plains and South Texas Brush Country ranchlands, then surged into the Rio Grande Valley from sunset through 11 PM. Very strong winds, as high as 60 mph just above the surface, slammed into the region, creating scattered power outages, a number of grass fires, and localized wind damage to trees, power poles, and some roofs. Downed power lines caused numerous small grass fires between Edinburg and Mission, with additional small trees/limbs down in Combes (near Harlingen). At Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport, a blown down line sparked a small wildfire just down the road from the NWS office. Sustained winds of 25 to 35 mph with frequent gusts ranging
from 40 to nearly 55 mph lasted for about three hours in most inland locations, but up to nine hours along the Lower Texas coast, where the moderate gale persisted well into the night of the 11th and into the pre-dawn hours of the 12th
.
Preliminary power outage statistics across the Valley suggested between 3,000 and 5,000 customers lost power during the peak of the gusts, based on preliminary reports from local power providers.

Strong Wind in ZAPATA, TEXAS
From 11-JAN-18 17:00:00 to 11-JAN-18 17:30:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 43.00 EG
Property damage: 25.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

The Emergency Management Coordinator of Zapata County, Texas, reported several large limbs blown down near a house in the city of Zapata, and the canopy of a gas station along US 83 was flipped off its moorings, causing minor damage to vehicles underneath but no injuries.  Peak gusts were estimated at 50 mph; the nearby Zapata County Airport which is a bit wind-protected, reached 40 mph.

Strong Wind in HIDALGO, TEXAS
From 11-JAN-18 19:15:00 to 11-JAN-18 21:15:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 47.00 MG
Property damage: 15.00K
Reported by: AWOS

Peak gusts ranged generally from 39 to 54 mph (peak 11 north of Edinburg at the South Texas International Airport) during the mid evening of January 11. Numerous small structural fires and other small grass fires were reported by Edinburg Fire, and multiple power lines were reported downed in Mission from the same post-frontal surge of northwest winds.

Strong Wind in CAMERON, TEXAS
From 11-JAN-18 19:30:00 to 11-JAN-18 22:30:00 (CST-6)
Magnitude: 47.00 MG
Property damage: 15.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: ASOS

A surge of strong winds behind the dry front late on January 11th produced peak gusts between 44 and 54 mph during the mid evening.  Peak gusts of 53 mph at Harlingen/Valley International Airport (903 PM CT) and 54 mph at Bayview/Cameron County Airport (739 PM) partially contributed to patchy minor damage, including a tree down in Combes; the gusty winds at Brownsville/South Padre Island International Airport (50 mph at 840 PM) sparked a brief fire on the airport grounds when a transformer blew near Iowa Avenue.