Hail in Altoona · Jul 20, 2026
The estimated-size surface reached 1.5" aloft; NEXRAD logged no point detections over Altoona that day. Open it on the live map to see the swath over the streets.
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Convective day · Jul 20, 2026 · noon–noon UTC
Severity
The most severe storm Altoona has seen in the last 12 months
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
- Peak hail signal
- 38 /100
- Homes exposed
- 89 /100
- Ground truth
- 0 /100
Largest radar-indicated size — a signal of damage potential, not confirmation.
How many homes sit inside the storm's footprint.
Independent storm reports filed with the NWS.
Evidence / storm surfaces
How Altoona saw the hail — from two instruments
Each storm gets two readings: the radar signatures NEXRAD recorded as the cells passed overhead, and a modeled estimate of hail size in the air. They are independent surfaces, so a mismatch between them is expected — and worth reading.
Estimated size field Radar-estimated hail size over the swath. The model reports the biggest stone the storm could sustain in the air; what actually fell may have been smaller.
Only the radar-estimated size surface resolved for Jul 20, 2026 — this storm produced no NEXRAD point detections over Altoona, so there is one map to show, not two.
The storm in context
Where Jul 20, 2026 sits in Altoona's hail record.
This was Altoona's 2nd recorded hail day, arriving 17 days after the Jul 3, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 1st of the 2 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Altoona at 1.5" — radar-estimated size aloft.
The Jul 20, 2026 convective day was bigger than Altoona: the same system put hail over 553 other tracked cities, 178 of them in Iowa. Nearest: Pleasant Hill (0 miles north, up to 1.5"); Bondurant (7 miles north, up to 1.5"); Carlisle (7 miles south, up to 0.75").
These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 2 Altoona 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
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.
Nobody on the ground filed a report over Altoona for this date, which says more about who was watching than about the storm: spotter reports only exist where there is an observer. The radar surfaces above carry the evidence for this one.
High damage potential
What 1.5" hail means for Altoona roofs.
Hail around an inch and a half is capable of cracking shingles, stripping granules, and denting gutters, vents, and siding. Risk is usually greatest near the strongest radar signal, but property-level damage still requires an on-site inspection.
Radar reading · not confirmed damage
Roofing exposure
What this storm is worth to a roofer.
Potential roof exposure
$350M
Potential roof exposure — 29,176 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
- Illustrative jobs
- 146 jobs
- Illustrative work
- ~$2.2M
Close just 0.5% of the 29,176 homes in this footprint at the average $15,000 roof job. Illustrative math, not a projection — your results depend on your outreach and how the market responds.
Claim window
July 2028
Claims from this storm can typically be filed until around July 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 $6,127 on top of the $150 plan.
Altoona hail history
Other storms in Altoona.
The next storm won’t wait for you.
Set your territory and alerts today. When hail hits, use Overview to choose your streets and get moving.
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