Hail size 1"
5 WNW Terril Dickinson County
“(FSD)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Hail in Milford May 15, 2026
Both radar surfaces caught this storm: NEXRAD logged 9 hail signatures up to 1.25", and the radar-estimated size reached 0.5" aloft.
Largest hailstone
1.25"
≈ half-dollar · the largest NEXRAD radar signature Homes in the hail footprint
242
Ground reports
2
1 hail · 1 windThe 6th most severe storm Milford has seen in the last 12 months
Storm severity score
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
3.6 /10
- Hail size
- 31 /100
- Homes exposed
- 48 /100
- Ground truth
- 33 /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 Milford saw the hail — from two instruments
We map this storm two ways: the NEXRAD radar signatures the storm produced overhead, and the radar-estimated size of the hail in the air. The two surfaces don’t have to match — where they diverge is where estimated size aloft ran ahead of, or behind, what the signatures caught.
NEXRAD radar signatures
NEXRAD radar signatures — the point detections the storm produced overhead. A signature is where the radar saw hail, not a confirmed stone on the ground.
Max size
1.25"
Detections
9
Radar-estimated hail size
Maximum hail size as estimated from radar aloft. Treat it as the storm's ceiling — the largest supportable stone — rather than a ground measurement.
Max size
0.5"
Where May 15, 2026 sits in Milford's hail record
This was Milford's 2nd recorded hail day, arriving 32 days after the Apr 13, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 6th of the 8 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Milford at 1.25" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.
The May 15, 2026 convective day was bigger than Milford: the same system put hail over 444 other tracked cities, 236 of them in Iowa. Nearest: Spirit Lake (16 miles northeast, up to 1.25"); Dickens (17 miles southeast, up to 1.75"); Terril (18 miles east, up to 1.25").
These maps are stills from Milford's May 15, 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.
Hail reports
1 reportWind reports
1 report Wind gust 60 mph
4 ESE Arnolds Park Dickinson County
“Brief 60 mph wind gust... pea hail... and 0.05 inch rain before storm took off to the east. (FSD)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Storm forensics
Read from the arrival times and locations of the NOAA ground reports,
not a radar-measured storm track.
How the storm moved
Reports came from Terril and Arnolds Park — beyond Milford itself.
What 1.25" hail means for Milford 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.
What this storm is worth to a roofer
$2.9M
Potential roof exposure — 242 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
Illustrative jobs
1 job
Illustrative work
~$15K
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.
Track hail over Milford on the live map
Radar updates in real time, spotter reports appear on the map as they're filed, and the full Milford storm history — this May 15, 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
Milford hail history
← All hail in Milford 8 recorded storm days in Milford, IA
Other storms in Milford
Jun 30, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 0.75"
No ground reports filed 
Jun 29, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.75"
2
ground reports 
Jun 27, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
No ground reports filed 
May 25, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
No ground reports filed 
May 18, 2026
2.25" Signatures 2.25" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed 
May 17, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1.5"
1
ground report 
Apr 13, 2026
1.5" Signatures 1.5" Estimated 0.75"
No ground reports filed
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 surfaces are detections and estimates,
not confirmed damage. Last updated Aug 3, 2026.