Marion County, IA hail & severe wind history
236 storm reports on file for Marion County between 2010-04-02 and 2025-06-20 — 109 hail and 127 severe thunderstorm wind. That averages 14.8 reports a year, and Jun is the busiest month.
At a glance
- Most recent hail report: May 19, 2025 — 1" (quarter), 1.25 mi WSW of Knoxville Arpt.
- Hail was reported on 44 days since 2010 — about 2.9 hail days a year.
- Largest hail on record: 4" (grapefruit) on Jun 20, 2015.
- Marion County has more hail reports than 92% of the 99 Iowa counties we cover.
Search every Marion County report
Check a single date first, or filter the full record below — pick a year, narrow to a month, or drag the hail-size slider to see only the larger stones (1", quarter size, is the National Weather Service severe threshold).
Loading Marion County storm reports…
Worst storm days in Marion County
| Date | Reports that day | Largest hail | Peak gust |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-04-05 | 15 | 1.75" (golf ball) | — |
| 2015-07-28 | 13 | 1" (quarter) | 81 mph |
| 2021-06-18 | 9 | 2.5" (tennis ball) | 58 mph |
| 2023-03-31 | 9 | 1.5" (ping pong ball) | 70 mph |
| 2018-08-28 | 9 | — | 75 mph |
| 2024-07-30 | 7 | 1.25" (half dollar) | 63 mph |
| 2017-04-09 | 7 | 1.25" (half dollar) | — |
| 2024-05-24 | 7 | — | 58 mph |
| 2011-06-26 | 6 | — | 77 mph |
| 2013-09-19 | 5 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 64 mph |
Reports by year
Report counts are driven partly by how many people were around to report a storm, so recent years tend to look busier than the early 2010s. Treat the trend as a reporting trend, not purely a weather trend.
Notable large-hail events (2" and up)
| Date | Size | Near | What was reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-05-21 | 2" hen egg | 2.08 mi SE of Pella Muni Arpt | Coop observer relayed 2 inch hail report. |
| 2024-05-21 | 2" hen egg | 2.49 mi ESE of Pella Muni Arpt | Public relayed, via social media, report of 2 inch hail. |
| 2021-06-18 | 2" hen egg | 1.56 mi E of Knoxville | Delayed report of 2 inch hail relayed by broadcast media via social media. Time estimated via radar. |
| 2021-06-18 | 2.5" tennis ball | 2.19 mi ESE of Lake Red Rock | Public report via social media. |
| 2017-06-15 | 2.75" baseball | 3.79 mi NNE of Columbia | Multiple patrol cars and EMA vehicles were damaged by large hail up to baseball size. Some reports coming in of damages to homes, buildings, etc from hail. Most reports of hail from southern 1/3 of Marion County from Melcher-Dallas to west of Attica. |
| 2017-06-15 | 2.75" baseball | 2.81 mi N of Columbia | Law enforcement reported baseball sized hail and very strong winds. |
| 2017-06-15 | 2.75" baseball | 1.11 mi WSW of Attica | No narrative filed |
| 2015-06-20 | 3" teacup | .52 mi E of Harvey | Trained spotter report of 3 to 3.5 inch hail as storm passed over his home around 5pm. |
When does hail hit Marion County?
Across 15 years of records, June produced the most reports (63), followed by the months either side of it. Monthly totals:
| Month | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 0 | 0.0% |
| February | 0 | 0.0% |
| March | 12 | 5.1% |
| April | 48 | 20.3% |
| May | 37 | 15.7% |
| June | 63 | 26.7% |
| July | 44 | 18.6% |
| August | 15 | 6.4% |
| September | 9 | 3.8% |
| October | 4 | 1.7% |
| November | 1 | 0.4% |
| December | 3 | 1.3% |
Neighboring counties
Counties that share a border with Marion County (U.S. Census county adjacency), where we have storm records:
| County | Storm reports | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|
| Polk County, IA | 645 | 3.25" |
| Warren County, IA | 255 | 3.5" |
| Jasper County, IA | 151 | 2.75" |
| Mahaska County, IA | 87 | 3" |
| Lucas County, IA | 62 | 2" |
| Monroe County, IA | 58 | 2.5" |
Common questions about hail in Marion County
- How often does it hail in Marion County?
- Hail was reported on 44 separate days between 2010 and 2025, about 2.9 days a year, with June the busiest month for storm reports. 84 reports were quarter size (1") or larger.
- Does a report here mean hail hit my street?
- Not necessarily. Each report is one observation tied to a nearby landmark, and a county can be large. Storms also go unreported where few people live. Use the date check above to see what was reported nearby, and treat it as a starting point.
- How big is a 1.75" hailstone?
- Forecasters describe hail by everyday objects: 1" is a quarter, 1.75" a golf ball, 2.75" a baseball. The sizes in these reports are estimates made by the person reporting, not lab measurements.
- Where do I get the official record?
- All reports here come from the NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, which you can search directly. For anything formal, use NOAA’s own records rather than this page.
Look up another place
About these numbers
Every row above is a report filed with the National Weather Service and archived in the NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (FIPS 19125). Reports are eyewitness, trained-spotter and damage-survey observations, so they cluster near roads and towns and miss storms over empty country. Hail sizes are estimates. Damage figures are preliminary as filed and are never revised in this archive. Use this page for background, not for an insurance claim, a legal filing, or a roof assessment — for those, get the official record from NOAA directly.