Hail in West Branch Apr 15, 2026
The radar-estimated size surface caught this storm, reaching 0.5" aloft. NEXRAD logged no point detections over West Branch this day.
0.5"
≈ pea to penny · radar-estimated size aloft29
0
none filedThe 6th most severe storm West Branch 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
- 13 /100
- Homes exposed
- 30 /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 West Branch saw the hail — from two instruments
The maps here read the same storm from two angles — point detections from NEXRAD, and modeled hail size aloft. Where the two disagree is informative: it marks where estimated size outran the signatures, or trailed them.
The modeled maximum hail size across the swath, derived from radar aloft — the largest stone the storm could have supported, which is not necessarily what reached the ground.
Only the radar-estimated size surface resolved for Apr 15, 2026 — this storm produced no NEXRAD point detections over West Branch, so there is one map to show, not two.
Where Apr 15, 2026 sits in West Branch's hail record
This was West Branch's 4th recorded hail day, arriving 13 days after the Apr 2, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 6th of the 6 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over West Branch at 0.5" — radar-estimated size aloft.
The Apr 15, 2026 convective day was bigger than West Branch: the same system put hail over 425 other tracked cities, 127 of them in Iowa. Nearest: Conesville (21 miles south, up to 1"); Muscatine (23 miles southeast, up to 0.5"); Ainsworth (26 miles southwest, up to 1").
These maps are stills from West Branch's Apr 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.
The National Weather Service logged no spotter reports for this storm over West Branch. That absence is ordinary — filing a report takes a person on the spot who saw the hail and phoned it in. What stands as the record for this date is the radar above, which caught the storm regardless.
What 0.5" hail means for West Branch roofs
Hail under three-quarters of an inch stays below the National Weather Service severe threshold and rarely breaks shingles outright. But repeated small-hail events accelerate granule loss and shorten roof life — on older roofs, it's still worth a conversation.
$348K
Potential roof exposure — 29 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.Track hail over West Branch on the live map
Radar updates in real time, spotter reports appear on the map as they're filed, and the full West Branch storm history — this Apr 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
6 recorded storm days in West Branch, IA
Other storms in West Branch
Jul 3, 2026
1.75"
Jun 10, 2026
0.5"
Apr 2, 2026
2.75"
Mar 30, 2026
1"
Mar 10, 2026
1.5"