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Russell County, KS hail & severe wind history
378 storm reports on file for Russell County between 2010-04-29 and 2026-06-30 — 165 hail and 213 severe thunderstorm wind. That averages 22.2 reports a year, and May is the busiest month.
At a glance
- Most recent hail report: May 17, 2026 — 1.25" (half dollar), 0.87 mi NE of Lucas.
- Hail was reported on 66 days since 2010 — about 3.9 hail days a year.
- Largest hail on record: 2.75" (baseball) on Jun 1, 2011.
- Russell County has more hail reports than 80% of the 105 Kansas counties we cover.
Search every Russell 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 Russell County storm reports…
Worst storm days in Russell County
| Date | Reports that day | Largest hail | Peak gust |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-07-16 | 12 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 77 mph |
| 2011-06-01 | 11 | 2.75" (baseball) | 64 mph |
| 2018-05-01 | 10 | 2" (hen egg) | — |
| 2021-05-26 | 9 | 2.5" (tennis ball) | 70 mph |
| 2015-04-24 | 9 | 2.5" (tennis ball) | 81 mph |
| 2018-09-01 | 9 | 1.5" (ping pong ball) | 64 mph |
| 2026-05-17 | 8 | 2.25" (hen egg) | — |
| 2012-04-14 | 8 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 74 mph |
| 2011-08-09 | 8 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 82 mph |
| 2010-07-14 | 8 | 1.5" (ping pong ball) | 70 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-05-17 | 2.25" hen egg | 5.57 mi ESE of Milberger | Large hail was measured to be 2.25 inches in diameter. |
| 2024-06-04 | 2" hen egg | 4.25 mi NE of Wilson Lake | Army Corps of Engineers reported mainly nickel to quarter sized hail. A few stones were larger than golf balls. The time was estimated from radar. |
| 2024-05-19 | 2.5" tennis ball | .88 mi NW of Russell | There were several reports in Russell of half-dollar to tennis ball sized hail. During the NWS Storm Survey the next day, there was noted hail damage to various structures in town including the upper windows at the Russell Municipal Airport. The damage was likely worsened by the measured 82 mph winds. |
| 2024-05-19 | 2" hen egg | .69 mi S of (Rsl)Russell Muni Ar | No narrative filed |
| 2021-05-26 | 2.5" tennis ball | .69 mi N of Russell | No narrative filed |
| 2018-05-01 | 2" hen egg | 5.55 mi S of Dorrance | No narrative filed |
| 2017-05-25 | 2" hen egg | 3.02 mi ESE of Gorham | The hail was reported along I-70. The time of the event is approximated from radar. |
| 2017-05-25 | 2.25" hen egg | .69 mi N of Russell | Hail 2.25 inches in diameter struck the east side of town. No damage was reported. |
When does hail hit Russell County?
Across 17 years of records, May produced the most reports (102), followed by the months either side of it. Monthly totals:
| Month | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 0 | 0.0% |
| February | 0 | 0.0% |
| March | 2 | 0.5% |
| April | 34 | 9.0% |
| May | 102 | 27.0% |
| June | 90 | 23.8% |
| July | 69 | 18.3% |
| August | 54 | 14.3% |
| September | 24 | 6.3% |
| October | 1 | 0.3% |
| November | 0 | 0.0% |
| December | 2 | 0.5% |
Neighboring counties
Counties that share a border with Russell County (U.S. Census county adjacency), where we have storm records:
| County | Storm reports | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|
| Barton County, KS | 411 | 4.25" |
| Ellis County, KS | 404 | 4" |
| Lincoln County, KS | 232 | 2.75" |
| Rush County, KS | 230 | 6" |
| Ellsworth County, KS | 221 | 3.25" |
| Osborne County, KS | 193 | 3" |
Common questions about hail in Russell County
- How often does it hail in Russell County?
- Hail was reported on 66 separate days between 2010 and 2026, about 3.9 days a year, with May the busiest month for storm reports. 135 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 20167). 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.