373
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$5.5M
Property damage
Hail in Douglas County, Kansas: 373 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 3. That places the county #197 nationally and #50 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Hail in Douglas County, Kansas: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for hail in Douglas County is the 2000s, when 169 of the county's 373 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Douglas County archive, hail makes up 41.7% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #197 for this hazard and #50 within Kansas, putting it in the 93.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for hail in Douglas County with 102 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 27, 2026 | LAWRENCE | 1.25 | $0 |
| Apr 27, 2026 | LAWRENCE | 1.75 | $0 |
| Mar 10, 2026 | EUDORA | 0.88 | $0 |
| Sep 23, 2023 | WORDEN | 1.25 | $0 |
| Sep 23, 2023 | WORDEN | 1 | $0 |
| Sep 16, 2023 | LAKE VIEW | 0.88 | $0 |
| Jul 14, 2023 | LAKE VIEW | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 20, 2023 | LAWRENCE | 1.25 | $0 |
| Apr 20, 2023 | LAWRENCE | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 20, 2023 | MIDLAND | 1.25 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Douglas County
- Thunderstorm Wind 376
- Flash Flood 62
- Tornado 40
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Between 8:50 pm cst and 9:03 pm cst, many reports of hail ranging from 0.75" to 2.50" in diameter were received from the city of Lawrence as a supercell thunderstorm moved through. The largest reported hail fell on the campus of Kansas University. State Farm Insurance reported an expected $1.8 million in auto claims for damaged vehicles; American Family Insurance was expecting up to 600 auto claims and 300 home claims to be filed.
The supercell thunderstorm that moved across parts of northeast Kansas hit the northern half of Douglas County including the city of Lawrence at late afternoon. Numerous and widespread reports of large hail and winds clocked at 66kts caused significant and large scale damage from near Le Compton to Lawrence to Eudora. Many power lines were brought down along with trees and large limbs. Hail damage was common across Lawrence. Torrential rainfall in a short time flooded many roads. In some areas, winds were estimated at 100 mph. The storm briefly stalled across the northwest part of the county before regenerating and moving slow east again.
Hail accumulated to a depth of several inches and drifted in open areas. Heavy rainfall that accompanied the hail caused temporary flooding of streets and poor drainage areas. The hail was quite soft which limited overall damage. Two separate storms containing extensive hail struck the city and surrounding areas. Flooding from heavy rainfall caused widespread travel problems.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many hail events are on record in Douglas County, Kansas?
373 hail events are recorded in Douglas County between 1958 and 2026, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest hail recorded in Douglas County?
The strongest hail on record in Douglas County measured 3.
Where does the hail data for Douglas County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Hail in Douglas County, Kansas.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/kansas/douglas-county/hail/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.