Hail size 1.5"
4 E Independence Jackson County
“report via social media. time estimated via radar. (EAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
/ Storm field report · Jackson
Hail in Independence · Aug 18, 2026
Hit 25 days ago
NEXRAD logged 0 hail signatures up to 0"; the estimated-size surface reached 1.5" aloft. Open it on the live map to see the swath over the streets.
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Peak hail signal 1.5" ≈ ping-pong ball · radar-estimated size aloft
Homes in the hail footprint 34,787
Ground reports 5 5 hail
Radar surfaces 2 NEXRAD + estimated size
Convective day · Aug 18, 2026 · noon–noon UTC
Severity
The most severe storm Independence has seen in the last 12 months
Composite score · 5.8 / 10
Storm severity score
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
5.8 /10
- Peak hail signal
- 38 /100
- Homes exposed
- 91 /100
- Ground truth
- 83 /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 Independence saw the hail — from two instruments
Aug 18, 2026 · Independence, MO
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 Surface resolved
Radar signature field 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
0"
Detections
0
Radar-estimated hail size Surface resolved
Estimated size field 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
1.5"
The storm in context
Where Aug 18, 2026 sits in Independence's hail record.
This was Independence's 8th recorded hail day, arriving 9 days after the Aug 9, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 1st of the 9 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Independence at 1.5" — radar-estimated size aloft.
The Aug 18, 2026 convective day was bigger than Independence: the same system put hail over 309 other tracked cities, 39 of them in Missouri. Nearest: Liberty (7 miles north, up to 0.5"); Kansas City (13 miles southwest, up to 2"); Sibley (13 miles northeast, up to 0.5").
These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 9 Independence 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
5 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
5 reports Hail size 1.5"
1 SW Independence Jackson County
“Social media shared report of hail approximately ping pong in size. Time estimated from radar. (EAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Hail size 1.25"
Independence Jackson County
“Public shared photo of hail approximately half dollar sized. Time estimated from radar. (EAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Hail size 1"
Sugar Creek Jackson County
“(EAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Hail size 1"
Sugar Creek Jackson County
“Public shared photo of quarter sized hail. Time estimated from radar. (EAX)”
— 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.
Hail was reported over 11 minutes, from to .
Reports came from Sugar Creek — beyond Independence itself.
High damage potential
What 1.5" hail means for Independence roofs.
Hail around an inch and a half is capable of cracking shingles, stripping granules, and denting gutters, vents, and siding. Risk is usually greatest near the strongest radar signal, but property-level damage still requires an on-site inspection.
Radar reading · not confirmed damage
Roofing exposure
What this storm is worth to a roofer.
34,787 homes × $12,000 avg. claim
Potential roof exposure
$417M
Potential roof exposure — 34,787 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
- Illustrative jobs
- 174 jobs
- Illustrative work
- ~$2.6M
Close just 0.5% of the 34,787 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
August 2028
Claims from this storm can typically be filed until around August 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 $7,305 on top of the $150 plan.
Independence hail history
Other storms in Independence.
9 recorded storm days in Independence, MO
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Sep 6, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Aug 9, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Jun 25, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Jun 4, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
May 31, 2026
1.75" Signatures 1.75" Estimated 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Apr 26, 2026
1" Signatures 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Apr 23, 2026
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Independence / MO
Apr 17, 2026
1.25" Signatures 1.25" Estimated 0.5"
1 ground report 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 7, 2026.