Hail in Malvern May 18, 2026
Both radar surfaces caught this storm: NEXRAD logged 10 hail signatures up to 1.25", and the radar-estimated size reached 0.5" aloft.
1.25"
≈ half-dollar · the largest NEXRAD radar signature638
0
none filedThe 4th most severe storm Malvern has seen in the last 12 months
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
- Hail size
- 31 /100
- Homes exposed
- 56 /100
- Ground truth
- 0 /100
Largest hailstone — the top predictor of roof damage.
How many homes sit inside the storm's footprint.
Independent storm reports filed with the NWS.
How Malvern 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.
The point detections NEXRAD recorded overhead. Each signature marks where the radar saw hail aloft — it is a detection, not a stone measured on the ground.
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.
Where May 18, 2026 sits in Malvern's hail record
This was Malvern's 3rd recorded hail day, arriving 1 day after the May 17, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 4th of the 8 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Malvern at 1.25" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.
The May 18, 2026 convective day was bigger than Malvern: the same system put hail over 726 other tracked cities, 102 of them in Iowa. Nearest: Randolph (9 miles southeast, up to 1.5"); Emerson (10 miles east, up to 1.5"); Thurman (13 miles southwest, up to 1.25").
These maps are stills from Malvern's May 18, 2026 storm. In the Overview app the same surfaces are live — radar updating in real time, radar-estimated hail size as it forms, and NWS spotter reports pinned where they're filed — with a radar replay you can scrub back over any past day.
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 Malvern 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.
What 1.25" hail means for Malvern roofs
Quarter-size and larger hail is where asphalt shingle damage starts in earnest: bruised mats and granule loss that homeowners can't see from the ground. Most people inside the footprint won't know their roof was hit until someone inspects it.
$7.7M
Potential roof exposure — 638 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.Track hail over Malvern on the live map
Radar updates in real time, spotter reports appear on the map as they're filed, and the full Malvern storm history — this May 18, 2026 storm included — sits underneath. When you're ready, draw this storm's footprint and pull highly accurate homeowner contact information for every address inside it.
Highly accurate contact information starting at $0.23 per address — every contact included. Digital leads cost $15–$40. Start with a 7-day free trial — no credit card required. See pricing
8 recorded storm days in Malvern, IA
Other storms in Malvern
Jul 2, 2026
0.5"
Jun 30, 2026
Jun 13, 2026
1.25"
Jun 10, 2026
1"
Jun 5, 2026
1.75"
May 17, 2026
1"
May 15, 2026
3.25"