“Time estimated from radar. (DMX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Hail in Norwalk · Apr 17, 2026
Convective day · Apr 17, 2026 · noon–noon UTC
Severity
The 6th most severe storm Norwalk 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
- 25 /100
- Homes exposed
- 54 /100
- Ground truth
- 17 /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 Norwalk saw the hail — from two instruments
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.
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.
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.
The storm in context
Where Apr 17, 2026 sits in Norwalk's hail record.
This was Norwalk's 2nd recorded hail day, arriving 42 days after the Mar 6, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 6th of the 10 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Norwalk at 1" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.
The Apr 17, 2026 convective day was bigger than Norwalk: the same system put hail over 1,016 other tracked cities, 201 of them in Iowa. Nearest: Pleasant Hill (9 miles northeast, up to 1.5"); Des Moines (9 miles northwest, up to 0.75"); Cumming (10 miles west, up to 1.25").
These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 10 Norwalk 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.
Hail reports
1 reportStorm forensics
How the storm moved
Read from the arrival times and locations of the NOAA ground reports, not a radar-measured storm track.
Reports came from Cumming — beyond Norwalk itself.
Damage-capable hail signal
What 1" hail means for Norwalk roofs.
Quarter-size and larger hail can bruise asphalt mats, remove granules, and dent exposed soft metal. The mapped footprint identifies an inspection priority area — it does not identify which individual roofs, if any, sustained damage.
Radar reading · not confirmed damage
Roofing exposure
What this storm is worth to a roofer.
Potential roof exposure
$5.7M
Potential roof exposure — 475 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
- Illustrative jobs
- 2 jobs
- Illustrative work
- ~$30K
Close just 0.5% of the 475 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
April 2028
Claims from this storm can typically be filed until around April 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 $100 on top of the $150 plan.
Norwalk hail history
Other storms in Norwalk.
Estimated-size surface Sep 8, 2026
1.5"
Estimated-size surface Aug 13, 2026
0.5"
Estimated-size surface Jul 27, 2026
0.75"
Estimated-size surface Jul 20, 2026
1.5"
Estimated-size surface Jul 3, 2026
1"
Estimated-size surface Jul 2, 2026
1.75"
Estimated-size surface Jun 10, 2026
0.75"
Estimated-size surface May 15, 2026
1"
Estimated-size surface Mar 6, 2026
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.
Web trial: 7 days free. Card required. $150/month after the trial unless cancelled.