Polk County, NE hail & severe wind history
106 storm reports on file for Polk County between 2010-06-01 and 2025-08-18 — 56 hail and 50 severe thunderstorm wind. That averages 6.6 reports a year, and Jun is the busiest month.
At a glance
- Most recent hail report: Aug 18, 2025 — 1" (quarter), 2.5 mi ENE of Shelby.
- Hail was reported on 35 days since 2010 — about 2.2 hail days a year.
- Largest hail on record: 2.75" (baseball) on Jun 20, 2011.
- Polk County has more hail reports than 18% of the 93 Nebraska counties we cover.
Search every Polk 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 Polk County storm reports…
Worst storm days in Polk County
| Date | Reports that day | Largest hail | Peak gust |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-06-03 | 5 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 70 mph |
| 2023-10-03 | 5 | — | 86 mph |
| 2017-06-13 | 5 | — | 92 mph |
| 2015-04-12 | 4 | 1.75" (golf ball) | — |
| 2025-08-18 | 3 | 1.75" (golf ball) | 60 mph |
| 2013-10-30 | 3 | 1.75" (golf ball) | — |
| 2011-05-12 | 3 | 1.75" (golf ball) | — |
| 2011-07-05 | 3 | 1.5" (ping pong ball) | 60 mph |
| 2014-07-31 | 3 | 1.25" (half dollar) | 60 mph |
| 2011-06-14 | 3 | 1" (quarter) | — |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-06-22 | 2" hen egg | 0 mi N of Osceola | Hail ranging from quarter size to two inches in diameter was reported across Osceola. |
| 2011-06-20 | 2.75" baseball | 8 mi NNW of Shelby | No narrative filed |
When does hail hit Polk County?
Across 16 years of records, June produced the most reports (34), followed by the months either side of it. Monthly totals:
| Month | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 0 | 0.0% |
| February | 0 | 0.0% |
| March | 0 | 0.0% |
| April | 11 | 10.4% |
| May | 25 | 23.6% |
| June | 34 | 32.1% |
| July | 15 | 14.2% |
| August | 9 | 8.5% |
| September | 0 | 0.0% |
| October | 9 | 8.5% |
| November | 0 | 0.0% |
| December | 3 | 2.8% |
Neighboring counties
Counties that share a border with Polk County (U.S. Census county adjacency), where we have storm records:
| County | Storm reports | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|
| Platte County, NE | 215 | 3" |
| Hamilton County, NE | 194 | 3" |
| York County, NE | 172 | 3" |
| Seward County, NE | 145 | 4.25" |
| Butler County, NE | 130 | 4" |
| Merrick County, NE | 92 | 3" |
See all 93 Nebraska counties →
Common questions about hail in Polk County
- How often does it hail in Polk County?
- Hail was reported on 35 separate days between 2010 and 2025, about 2.2 days a year, with June the busiest month for storm reports. 45 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 31143). 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.