234
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$7.0M
Property damage
Hail in Howard County, Nebraska: 234 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 4.25. That places the county #482 nationally and #43 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Hail in Howard County, Nebraska: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for hail in Howard County is the 2000s, when 76 of the county's 234 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 Howard County archive, hail makes up 56.5% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #482 for this hazard and #43 within Nebraska, putting it in the 84.5 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for hail in Howard County with 63 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 2, 2025 | ST PAUL | 0.88 | $0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | FARWELL | 1 | $0 |
| Aug 29, 2024 | ST PAUL | 1 | $0 |
| Apr 26, 2024 | COTESFIELD | 1.75 | $200K |
| Jul 23, 2022 | CUSHING | 0.88 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2022 | ELBA | 1 | $25K |
| Jul 17, 2022 | FARWELL | 1.75 | $1.0M |
| Jul 17, 2022 | ELBA | 2.75 | $500K |
| Jun 5, 2022 | CUSHING | 1 | $0 |
| May 30, 2022 | CUSHING | 0.75 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Howard County
- Thunderstorm Wind 96
- Tornado 45
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Hail ranging from the size of quarters to at least the size of baseballs was reported in and around St. Paul. There were numerous reports of vehicle damage, along with window, siding, and gutter damage to homes. A local greenhouse had 21 roof panels destroyed.
Hail up to the size of golf balls was reported in Farwell by an NWS Employee. Emergency management later reported that a swath approximately three miles wide running from the Farwell area to west of Dannebrog suffered widespread crop damage and broken windows and siding.
The combination of hail up to the size of golf balls and wind gusts of 60-75 MPH resulted in damage across central/southern Howard County. Most of the hail reports were dime to quarter size, with one report of golf ball hail north of Dannebrog, but a common theme was the copious amounts of hail. In a few spots, hail drifts were ankle-knee high. There were many reports of significant crop damage extending from around Farwell southeastward into the St. Paul and St. Libory areas. One spotter reported at least 1000 acres were destroyed just in their local area, with corn knocked down to just knee-high. Several irrigation pivots were tipped over, large tree limbs downed, and grain bins damaged, including one east-southeast of Farwell that was blown off its foundation. Emergency management reported that at least 12 power poles were damaged or snapped. At a residence 2 miles east-southeast of Farwell, a carport was destroyed and a barn door was ripped off (in addition to tree damage).
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many hail events are on record in Howard County, Nebraska?
234 hail events are recorded in Howard County between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest hail recorded in Howard County?
The strongest hail on record in Howard County measured 4.25.
Where does the hail data for Howard 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 Howard County, Nebraska.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/nebraska/howard-county/hail/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.