Butler County, KS hail & severe wind history
685 storm reports on file for Butler County between 2010-04-06 and 2026-06-19 — 359 hail and 326 severe thunderstorm wind. That averages 40.3 reports a year, and May is the busiest month.
At a glance
- Most recent hail report: Jun 18, 2026 — 1.25" (half dollar), 0.55 mi E of El Dorado.
- Hail was reported on 115 days since 2010 — about 6.8 hail days a year.
- Largest hail on record: 5" (softball) on Apr 8, 2011.
- Butler County has more hail reports than 99% of the 105 Kansas counties we cover.
Search every Butler 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 Butler County storm reports…
Worst storm days in Butler County
| Date | Reports that day | Largest hail | Peak gust |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-06-20 | 24 | 1.5" (ping pong ball) | 70 mph |
| 2012-05-30 | 17 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 70 mph |
| 2011-06-09 | 16 | 1" (quarter) | 75 mph |
| 2018-06-26 | 15 | 2.75" (baseball) | 81 mph |
| 2016-03-30 | 14 | 3" (teacup) | 60 mph |
| 2011-04-08 | 12 | 5" (softball) | 64 mph |
| 2025-06-17 | 12 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 85 mph |
| 2014-05-10 | 12 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 70 mph |
| 2015-04-02 | 12 | 1" (quarter) | 75 mph |
| 2026-04-23 | 11 | 2" (hen egg) | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-04-23 | 2" hen egg | 0 mi N of Elbing | This was a delayed report received via emergency management. |
| 2025-05-19 | 2.5" tennis ball | .55 mi E of El Dorado | Pictures of tennis-ball sized hail sent in by the emergency manager. |
| 2024-07-11 | 2" hen egg | 5.11 mi NNW of El Dorado Res | No narrative filed |
| 2024-07-11 | 2" hen egg | 7.91 mi NNW of El Dorado Res | No narrative filed |
| 2022-05-31 | 2.5" tennis ball | 1.64 mi E of El Dorado | No narrative filed |
| 2022-05-31 | 2" hen egg | .55 mi W of El Dorado | No narrative filed |
| 2022-04-29 | 2.5" tennis ball | 2.14 mi SSW of El Dorado Res | A report sent via Facebook of tennis ball sized hail near El Dorado Lake. Time is estimated from radar. |
| 2018-06-26 | 2.5" tennis ball | 1.09 mi W of El Dorado | Though not reported, it's likely the tennis ball sized hail caused damage. |
When does hail hit Butler County?
Across 17 years of records, May produced the most reports (176), followed by the months either side of it. Monthly totals:
| Month | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 0 | 0.0% |
| February | 18 | 2.6% |
| March | 27 | 3.9% |
| April | 121 | 17.7% |
| May | 176 | 25.7% |
| June | 171 | 25.0% |
| July | 69 | 10.1% |
| August | 72 | 10.5% |
| September | 18 | 2.6% |
| October | 10 | 1.5% |
| November | 1 | 0.1% |
| December | 2 | 0.3% |
Neighboring counties
Counties that share a border with Butler County (U.S. Census county adjacency), where we have storm records:
| County | Storm reports | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|
| Sedgwick County, KS | 1,135 | 7.75" |
| Cowley County, KS | 465 | 4" |
| Sumner County, KS | 262 | 3.5" |
| Marion County, KS | 251 | 4" |
| Harvey County, KS | 243 | 2.75" |
| Greenwood County, KS | 208 | 4.25" |
| Chase County, KS | 110 | 4" |
| Elk County, KS | 68 | 2.5" |
Common questions about hail in Butler County
- How often does it hail in Butler County?
- Hail was reported on 115 separate days between 2010 and 2026, about 6.8 days a year, with May the busiest month for storm reports. 258 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 20015). 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.