NOAA Storm Events · May 2018
Hail in May 2018: 2,347 NOAA reports across 42 states
NOAA logged 2,347 hail reports in May 2018, in 843 counties across 42 states. Kansas had the most (436). The largest stone was 4.25 inches (a grapefruit), near De Leon in Comanche County, Texas, on May 25, 2018. The worst day was May 14, 2018, with 254 reports in 16 states.
- Where
- 843 counties in 42 states; Kansas had 19% of the reports
- Largest stone
- 4.25 inches, a grapefruit, in Comanche County, TX (near De Leon), on May 25, 2018
- Worst day
- May 14, 2018: 254 reports in 16 states, 11% of the month
- Days with hail
- 31 of 31 days had at least one report
- under 1 in
- 1 to 1.74 in
- 1.75 to 2.74 in
- 2.75 in and up
Day by day
May 14, 2018 was the worst day with 254 reports. A day with hail averaged 76.
| May 1 | 149 |
|---|---|
| May 2 | 140 |
| May 3 | 19 |
| May 4 | 12 |
| May 5 | 23 |
| May 6 | 29 |
| May 7 | 18 |
| May 8 | 12 |
| May 9 | 27 |
| May 10 | 97 |
| May 11 | 15 |
| May 12 | 35 |
| May 13 | 69 |
| May 14 | 254 |
| May 15 | 153 |
| May 16 | 37 |
| May 17 | 82 |
| May 18 | 75 |
| May 19 | 134 |
| May 20 | 44 |
| May 21 | 53 |
| May 22 | 58 |
| May 23 | 83 |
| May 24 | 34 |
| May 25 | 75 |
| May 26 | 77 |
| May 27 | 97 |
| May 28 | 125 |
| May 29 | 176 |
| May 30 | 42 |
| May 31 | 103 |
Where it hit hardest
Ranked by NOAA hail reports. A report is one spotter or sensor entry for one county and storm, so counts follow where people live as well as where hail fell.
| KS | 436 |
|---|---|
| TX | 270 |
| MO | 159 |
| OK | 154 |
| CO | 131 |
| IA | 117 |
| NE | 112 |
| IL | 104 |
| MT | 77 |
| MN | 74 |
| # | State | Reports | Share | Largest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas | 436 | 18.6% | 4 in |
| 2 | Texas | 270 | 11.5% | 4.25 in |
| 3 | Missouri | 159 | 6.8% | 2.75 in |
| 4 | Oklahoma | 154 | 6.6% | 3.26 in |
| 5 | Colorado | 131 | 5.6% | 2.75 in |
| 6 | Iowa | 117 | 5.0% | 2.25 in |
| 7 | Nebraska | 112 | 4.8% | 4 in |
| 8 | Illinois | 104 | 4.4% | 3 in |
| 9 | Montana | 77 | 3.3% | 2.5 in |
| 10 | Minnesota | 74 | 3.2% | 2 in |
| # | County | Reports | Largest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El Paso County, CO | 27 | 2 in |
| 2 | Story County, IA | 21 | 2.25 in |
| 3 | Cowley County, KS | 19 | 2.5 in |
| 4 | Ford County, KS | 18 | 4 in |
| 5 | Texas County, OK | 18 | 2.5 in |
| 6 | Lipscomb County, TX | 17 | 2.75 in |
| 7 | Douglas County, MO | 16 | 2.5 in |
| 8 | Hansford County, TX | 16 | 3 in |
| 9 | Beaver County, OK | 15 | 2.5 in |
| 10 | Gray County, TX | 15 | 2.75 in |
County names link to the full hail history where we have published that county. The CSV below lists all 843 counties and all 42 states.
How May 2018 compares
| Compared with | Reports | May 2018 was |
|---|---|---|
| April 2018 | 695 | +1,652 (+238%) |
| May 2017 | 2,321 | +26 (+1%) |
| the average May in the other 12 years | 2,091 | +256 (+12%) |
May 2018 was the 5th busiest May of the 13 in the record and the 8th busiest of all 150 months.
| 2014 | 2307 |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 1477 |
| 2016 | 2576 |
| 2017 | 2321 |
| 2018 | 2347 |
| 2019 | 2370 |
| 2020 | 1489 |
| 2021 | 1383 |
| 2022 | 2283 |
| 2023 | 1769 |
| 2024 | 3244 |
| 2025 | 2835 |
| 2026 | 1036 |
Every May in the record, 2014 to 2026. Months after June 2026 are not in NOAA's file yet.
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Download the data
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, hail rows at county level, data through June 2026. Reports are preliminary and unverified: they show that hail was reported in a county, not that a given roof was damaged. Method: how we count. More: State of Hail by year · county hail history · press.
Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, public domain. Counts and tables on this page are free to reuse with credit to PickARoofer under CC BY 4.0.