/ Storm field report · Kit Carson

Hail in Burlington · May 17, 2026

NEXRAD logged 17 hail signatures up to 2.25"; the estimated-size surface reached 1.5" aloft. At 2.25" — tennis ball — this is a severe hail signal associated with roof damage. Open it on the live map to see the swath over the streets.

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Peak hail signal 2.25" ≈ tennis ball · the largest NEXRAD radar signature
Homes in the hail footprint 43
Ground reports 1 1 wind
Radar surfaces 2 NEXRAD + estimated size

Convective day · May 17, 2026 · noon–noon UTC

Severity

The 4th most severe storm Burlington has seen in the last 12 months

Composite score · 4.4 / 10
Storm severity score

Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.

4.4 /10
Peak hail signal
56 /100

Largest radar-indicated size — a signal of damage potential, not confirmation.

Homes exposed
33 /100

How many homes sit inside the storm's footprint.

Ground truth
17 /100

Independent storm reports filed with the NWS.

Evidence / storm surfaces

How Burlington saw the hail — from two instruments

May 17, 2026 · Burlington, CO

Two instruments, one storm: NEXRAD logs the point signatures it detected overhead, while the estimated-size surface models how large the hail aloft could have grown. Agreement between them is not guaranteed — the gaps are where the model ran ahead of, or behind, the detections.

NEXRAD radar signatures Surface resolved
NEXRAD radar-signature map of the hail storm over Burlington, CO on May 17, 2026 Radar signature field

NEXRAD's hail signatures for this storm: the spots the radar detected from above. A detection overhead is not the same thing as a confirmed stone below.

Max size 2.25" Detections 17
Radar-estimated hail size Surface resolved
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on May 17, 2026 Estimated size field

Radar-estimated maximum hail size across the swath, modeled from radar aloft. It reflects the biggest stone the storm could support, which may differ from what actually fell.

Max size 1.5"

The storm in context

Where May 17, 2026 sits in Burlington's hail record.

This was Burlington's 4th recorded hail day, arriving 1 day after the May 16, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 4th of the 14 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Burlington at 2.25" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.

The May 17, 2026 convective day was bigger than Burlington: the same system put hail over 894 other tracked cities, 33 of them in Colorado. Nearest: Bethune (9 miles northwest, up to 2.75"); Stratton (19 miles west, up to 3"); Goodland (27 miles east, up to 4").

These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 14 Burlington storm dates on a live map — both surfaces, the reports, and a replay — and the same map is where you draw the swath. This page rebuilds nightly.

Ground reports

What people on the ground reported

1 report filed with the NWS

These are storm reports filed with the National Weather Service and released through the NOAA Storm Prediction Center — public-domain observations from spotters, the public, and NWS surveys. We quote each one exactly as filed.

Wind reports

1 report
Wind gust 65 mph
5 S Burlington Kit Carson County

“ASOS station KITR Burlington Co Airport. (GLD)”

— NOAA / SPC storm report

Severe hail signal

What 2.25" hail means for Burlington roofs.

Two-inch-plus hail is capable of puncturing shingles, breaking skylights or windows, and heavily denting soft materials. The strongest radar bands warrant prompt inspection, but neither the signal nor the footprint confirms damage at a specific address.

Radar reading · not confirmed damage

Roofing exposure

What this storm is worth to a roofer.

43 homes × $12,000 avg. claim

Potential roof exposure

$516K

Potential roof exposure — 43 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.

Claim window

May 2028

Claims from this storm can typically be filed until around May 2028 — the window to reach these homeowners while it's still open. Deadlines vary by policy and state.

Names and phones for every home in the footprint: at most $9 on top of the $150 plan.

Burlington hail history

14 recorded storm days in Burlington, CO
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Aug 19, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Aug 19, 2026

1"
Estimated 1"
1 ground report Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jul 27, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jul 27, 2026

1.25"
Estimated 1.25"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jul 9, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jul 9, 2026

1.75"
Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
1 ground report Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jul 3, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jul 3, 2026

1.75"
Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1.25"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jun 30, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jun 30, 2026

1.75"
Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1.25"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jun 20, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jun 20, 2026

1"
Estimated 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jun 8, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jun 8, 2026

2.5"
Signatures 2.5" Estimated 2.25"
7 ground reports Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jun 1, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jun 1, 2026

2"
Signatures 2" Estimated 1.25"
1 ground report Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on May 31, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

May 31, 2026

1"
Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on May 29, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

May 29, 2026

1.75"
Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
2 ground reports Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on May 16, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

May 16, 2026

2.5"
Signatures 2.5" Estimated 1.5"
4 ground reports Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on May 9, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

May 9, 2026

1"
Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
3 ground reports Open report →
Radar-estimated hail-size map of the storm over Burlington, CO on Jan 26, 2026 Estimated-size surface
Storm date Burlington / CO

Jan 26, 2026

0.75"
Estimated 0.75"
No ground reports filed Open report →

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A storm day here is a convective day — it runs from noon to noon UTC, so late-night hail is grouped with the afternoon storm that spawned it rather than split across two calendar dates. Ground reports are public-domain observations from the NOAA Storm Prediction Center. Radar tells you where to look. Only an inspection confirms damage at an address. Last updated Aug 20, 2026.