Wind gust 64 mph
5 S Monroe Platte County
“Corrects previous tstm wnd gst report from 5 S Monroe. Nebraska Mesonet. (OAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
/ Storm field report · Platte
Hail in Columbus · May 17, 2026
NEXRAD logged 20 hail signatures up to 2"; the estimated-size surface reached 1.25" aloft. At 2" — tennis ball — this is a severe hail signal associated with roof damage. Open it on the live map to see the swath over the streets.
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Peak hail signal 2" ≈ tennis ball · the largest NEXRAD radar signature
Homes in the hail footprint 652
Ground reports 3 3 wind
Radar surfaces 2 NEXRAD + estimated size
Convective day · May 17, 2026 · noon–noon UTC
Severity
The 2nd most severe storm Columbus has seen in the last 12 months
Composite score · 5.2 / 10
Storm severity score
Overview's storm severity score weighs hailstone size, homes in the footprint, and ground-truth reports.
5.2 /10
- Peak hail signal
- 50 /100
- Homes exposed
- 56 /100
- Ground truth
- 50 /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 Columbus saw the hail — from two instruments
May 17, 2026 · Columbus, NE
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
2"
Detections
20
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
1.25"
The storm in context
Where May 17, 2026 sits in Columbus's hail record.
This was Columbus's 4th recorded hail day, arriving 1 day after the May 16, 2026 storm. By severity it ranks 2nd of the 16 storms we have logged here. Radar put the day's largest stone over Columbus at 2" — the largest NEXRAD radar signature.
The May 17, 2026 convective day was bigger than Columbus: the same system put hail over 894 other tracked cities, 185 of them in Nebraska. Nearest: Platte Center (3 miles north, up to 1.75"); Monroe (6 miles northwest, up to 2"); Silver Creek (12 miles southwest, up to 1.75").
These maps are stills. In the app this date is one of 16 Columbus 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
3 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.
Wind reports
3 reports Wind gust 71 mph
2 NE Platte Center Platte County
“personal weather station. (OAX)”
— NOAA / SPC storm report
Wind gust 64 mph
8 SSE Creston Platte County
“Public Weather Station. (OAX)”
— 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 15 minutes, from to .
Reports came from Monroe, Platte Center, and Creston — beyond Columbus itself.
Severe hail signal
What 2" hail means for Columbus roofs.
Two-inch-plus hail is capable of puncturing shingles, breaking skylights or windows, and heavily denting soft materials. The strongest radar bands warrant prompt inspection, but neither the signal nor the footprint confirms damage at a specific address.
Radar reading · not confirmed damage
Roofing exposure
What this storm is worth to a roofer.
652 homes × $12,000 avg. claim
Potential roof exposure
$7.8M
Potential roof exposure — 652 homes × the ~$12,000 industry-average hail roof claim. Exposure, not confirmed damage.
- Illustrative jobs
- 3 jobs
- Illustrative work
- ~$45K
Close just 0.5% of the 652 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
May 2028
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.
Names and phones for every home in the footprint: at most $137 on top of the $150 plan.
Columbus hail history
Other storms in Columbus.
16 recorded storm days in Columbus, NE
Map unavailable
NEXRAD surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Sep 13, 2026
1" Estimated 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Sep 11, 2026
0.75" Estimated 0.75"
1 ground report Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Aug 17, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Aug 13, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Aug 12, 2026
0.75" Estimated 0.75"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Aug 8, 2026
1.25" Estimated 1.25"
1 ground report Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Jul 29, 2026
0.5" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Jul 8, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.75"
1 ground report Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Jul 2, 2026
1" Signatures 1"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Jun 13, 2026
0.75" Estimated 0.75"
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Jun 1, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
NEXRAD surface Storm date Columbus / NE
May 30, 2026
No ground reports filed Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
May 16, 2026
3.25" Signatures 3.25" Estimated 1.5"
2 ground reports Open report →
Estimated-size surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Apr 23, 2026
1" Signatures 1" Estimated 0.5"
No ground reports filed Open report →
NEXRAD surface Storm date Columbus / NE
Mar 5, 2026
No ground reports filed Open report →
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.
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For iPhone. Android coming soon.
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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 14, 2026.