Hail size 1.25"
4 W Topeka Shawnee County
“Report from mPING: Half Dollar (1.25 in.). Time estimated from radar data. (TOP)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
/ Storm field report · Shawnee
Hail in Topeka · Apr 23, 2026
NEXRAD logged 1 hail signature up to 1"; the estimated-size surface reached 0.5" aloft. Open it on the live map to see the swath over the streets.
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Peak hail signal 1" ≈ quarter · the largest NEXRAD radar signature
Homes in the hail footprint 33
Ground reports 4 2 hail · 2 wind
Radar surfaces 2 NEXRAD + estimated size
Convective day · Apr 23, 2026 · noon–noon UTC
Severity
The 6th most severe storm Topeka has seen in the last 12 months
Composite score · 3.3 / 10
Storm severity score
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
3.3 /10
- Peak hail signal
- 25 /100
- Homes exposed
- 31 /100
- Ground truth
- 67 /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 Topeka saw the hail — from two instruments
Apr 23, 2026 · Topeka, KS
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.
NEXRAD radar signatures Surface resolved
Radar signature field Where NEXRAD flagged hail as the storm passed — point signatures from the radar, which indicate hail overhead rather than confirm what landed.
Max size
1"
Detections
1
Radar-estimated hail size Surface resolved
Estimated size field 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.
Max size
0.5"
The storm in context
Where Apr 23, 2026 sits in Topeka's hail record.
This was Topeka's 3rd recorded hail day, arriving 6 days after the Apr 17, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 6th of the 14 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Topeka at 1" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.
The Apr 23, 2026 convective day was bigger than Topeka: the same system put hail over 703 other tracked cities, 147 of them in Kansas. Nearest: Maple Hill (13 miles southwest, up to 0.75"); Perry (17 miles southeast, up to 1"); Paxico (20 miles west, up to 1").
These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 14 Topeka 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
4 reports filed with the NWS
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
2 reports Hail size 1.25"
2 NE Pauline Shawnee County
“Report from mPING: Half Dollar (1.25 in.) Time estimated from radar data. (TOP)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Wind reports
2 reports Wind gust 59 mph
2 ESE Pauline Shawnee County
“KFOE Topeka Regional Airport. (TOP)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Wind gust 60 mph
7 WSW Topeka Shawnee County
“dime size hail. (TOP)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Storm forensics
How the storm moved
Timing and place names from NOAA ground reports
Read from the arrival times and locations of the NOAA ground reports, not a radar-measured storm track.
The storm tracked east at roughly 10 mph, based on the timing of ground reports.
Hail was reported over 51 minutes, from to .
Reports came from Pauline — beyond Topeka itself.
Damage-capable hail signal
What 1" hail means for Topeka 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.
33 homes × $12,000 avg. claim
Potential roof exposure
$396K
Potential roof exposure — 33 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
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 $7 on top of the $150 plan.
Topeka hail history
Other storms in Topeka.
14 recorded storm days in Topeka, KS
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Sep 15, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Aug 18, 2026
1.25" Estimated 1.25"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Aug 14, 2026
1.75" Estimated 1.75"
4 ground reports Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Jul 8, 2026
1" Signatures 1"
1 ground report Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Jun 10, 2026
2.25" Estimated 2.25"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Jun 8, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
4 ground reports Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Jun 4, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
May 31, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
May 30, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
May 17, 2026
1" Signatures 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Apr 26, 2026
2.5" Signatures 2.5" Estimated 2"
17 ground reports Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Apr 17, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Topeka / KS
Mar 5, 2026
1" Signatures 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
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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 tells you where to look. Only an inspection confirms damage at an address. Last updated Sep 16, 2026.