Logically the force with which a hail stone strikes the ground or an object is determined by its mass and the speed with which it is traveling. If the hail stones are less than 1 inch in diameter, the damage they cause is fairly minimal; however, a hail stone over 1 inch in diameter is going to cause more damage. If hail stones are a hazard on their own, imagine the damage they can cause if they have more speed behind them. And the speed is what they get from high speed winds. With high speed winds behind them, bigger hail stones can cause serious damage to property and serious injury.

Hail tracking is a system that allows you to keep track of the hail storms that might be moving to your area. During tornado season it can be a real asset to have hail tracking. Just think about it. When a hail storm is approaching there are certain things that you need to do in order to make sure that you, your family and your property are safe from damage. You need to move any outside furniture under cover. You need to move your car under cover, you need to close all the windows, outside doors and curtains. Aside from all the preparation you have to do before hand, this is a lot to accomplish if you have no warning and the hail storm or tornado is already upon you.

In essence a hail tracking system gives you time, it gives you a warning so that you can have the time you need to get yourself ready. During tornado season, when this kind of extreme weather is fairly common you will want this small grace period, so it is a good idea to learn how to use a hail tracking system. There are two main kinds of hail tracking. One is free and is online – you can choose an area for the map to focus on and it will show you whether there is any hail predicted in that area. There are also hail tracking programs that you pay for, these are also online, which makes them able to stay as up to the moment as possible.

Whichever one is right for you, hail tracking is something that you need to consider. There are about 3000 hail storms a year in the U.S., during the most severe storms hail stones can reach the size of a softball. In addition to the hail storms there are about 1000 tornadoes each year, and on average the damage that they cause is over a billion dollars. There are on average 1500 injuries and almost 100 deaths, all caused by tornadoes and hail storms. Extreme storms are not the rule, but when they do happen they can be devastating.

What is necessary to consider then, is how ready is your home to withstand the forces of these storms? It is inevitable that your home will be damaged by these storms; unfortunately this is just the truth. There is nothing you can do to control the storms but there are steps you can take to limit the damage to your property and to protect yourself and your loved ones from injury. Don’t wait for the storm to arrive – you need to plan ahead. And a hail tracking system can help you do this

Hail tracking enables you to keep track of hail storms and extreme weather conditions that might affect your area. There are two main kinds of commonly used hail tracking. There are free hail tracking websites online, which can be extremely useful if you want to know if a hail storm is heading towards you. There are also hail tracking programs that you pay for, these are usually more accurate and you can set them to your particular area. Essentially, hail tracking makes you better able to prepare for the hail storm so that you can protect yourself and your property.

There are two questions that then need to be asked about property damage. What causes the damage and what kind of property is usually damaged? It may seem that all that does the damage are the hail stones but really it is also the wind speed. If hail falls without high wind speeds there will be some damage, but think for a moment what adding wind speed to balls of ice will do to your car, windows or roof? It is the combination of strong winds and hail that cause the most severe damage, though less severe damage can of course be caused by lesser storms.

So then, what types of property are you likely to want to protect? In order to answer this question you need to decide what size of hail stone you find threatening and severe. Even small hail stones can damage plants because they are so sensitive, however small hail wouldn’t really do much damage to a sturdy building, unless the wind conditions were extreme. It is really with hail stones over 1 inch that it can damage windows, roofs and cars. The force with which the hail stone hit the object is determined by its size and the wind speed. So the items you want to protect – your car, your house etc., you don’t really have to worry unless the hail is over 1 inch. Once the hail is over this size, you need to start taking precautions, and this is where hail tracking can be extremely useful.

The typical items of property that are damaged by hail are cars, windows and roofs. Hail can cause massive damage to your roof, so it is important that if you live in an area with a lot of hail storms you must have good insurance that covers hail damage, and impact-resistant shingles on the roof. If there is damage an inspector will come out to assess it, and you can proceed from there.

The same is true of car damage. You want to prevent damage to the car by moving it inside at the first sign of trouble, but sometimes you are too late, so you must have insurance that will cover this kind of damage. While hail tracking can be extremely useful you do have to keep an eye on it.

You don’t want to drag all your possessions under cover at the first sign of dark clouds, so rather check with hail tracking to see what kind of weather and what kind of hail is expected. In this kind of situation hail tracking can save you a lot of time and effort. But it can also save you a lot of money by giving you the necessary time to move your possessions out of harm’s way. This, in a nut shell is why hail tracking is so very important, so whether you use the free or paid service it is a vital tool that you need to know how to use.

Imagine the damage a 3 inch hail stone could do, if you don’t take the necessary precautions. Some families have decided to use a hail tracker. A hail tracker can be a free or paid for service. There are free hail trackers online which enable you to see when and where a hail storm is going to hit. You can also opt for purchasing a hail tracker. These can be more accurate and you can set it to your particular area. Hail trackers are often used by building and roofing contractors to assess where there might be damage that they can offer their services to fix.

If you have a hail tracker you will be able to pre-empt the hail storm, this will enable you to put the necessary precautions in place to keep yourselves and your property as safe as possible. Once you have gotten the hail warning from your hail tracker, there are some easy and necessary precautions that you can take. In a hail storm, if you are safely inside, the main areas that are prone to damage are your car and your house, particularly the roof.

Even without the accuracy of a hail tracker you can spot the signs of a hail storm, though you will have less warning. A hail storm is made by massive thunderstorms. The things to look out for are strong winds, extremely dark clouds, heavy rain and thunder and lightning. If you see these signs – a hail storm may be approaching.

The first thing you need to have prepared in advance is a storm kit. This kit must have a flashlight, candles, a battery operated radio and new batteries, waterproof matches and the necessary emergency contacts. It is important that everyone know where this kit is located. The next step is to keep the trees around the property cleanly trimmed. You want to keep an eye out for any branches that might be close enough to cause damage to the house during the storm. Make sure that the roof is well maintained and intact – if there is any damage it will mean that the roof will be prone to damage by the hail. If, at some point, you are considering a new roof, think seriously about roofing which is resistant to impact, and therefore hail damage. Lastly, make sure the drains and gutters are clear – this will enable the rain to drain quickly and prevent damage.

With all this preparation in place, you will be safer, but there is still more to do once the storm arrives. When your hail tracker tells you the storm is approaching, you need to close all the windows and outside doors, also close the curtains to prevent flying glass causing injury. Find shelter for pets and animals, whether indoors or out. Bring all the cars, RVs and boats into a covered area where they will be protected from the hail. Move any lawn furniture, garbage cans or any other garden equipment under a covered or protected area.

Basically you want anything that could be damaged by the hail to be under a cover of some kind that will offer it some form of protection. You should be safely inside with your storm kit, waiting for the storm to pass. With all this necessary preparation it is clear why having the advanced warning of a hail tracker might be very worthwhile. So whether you spend money on one or use the internet, make sure you know how to use a hail tracker to protect yourself and your property.

In addition to the significant threat in Mississippi and Alabama, several other states are also expected to experience large hail damage:

• Arkansas
• Florida
• Georgia
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Tennessee
• Virginia

Large hail – about 2″ and larger- can cause significant roof damage as well as siding and structural damage to residential properties. Take all precautions necessary to protect yourself and property from these damaging hailstorms.

Forecast Discussion

Mid- to upper-level synoptic patter over the continental United States is noted with a cyclonic flow west of the Appalaachians. Included are numerous low-amplitute disturbances the strongest of which appears over South Dakota into central Nebraska. This disturbance is forcasted to move eastward as it evolves into a 500 millibar low over Louisiana by the end of the day.

At the surface, the main storm associated with the northern trough is expected to redevelop eastward across Louisiana today. The occluded front was observed southeastward from there to Paducah, Kentucy. A cold front extended across Arkansas, then northern Texas. The front may bring a cold surge from the Texas panhandle. By 6pm, the cold front should reach central Ohio, eastern Kentucky, northern Mississippi, west-central Louisiana and the coastal plain in upper Texas.

As the air in our atmosphere is constantly on the move, it won’t come as much of a surprise to learn that there is always a huge potential for wind damage across the whole of the United States of America. The types of wind damage to be expected will very much depend on where you live in this great nation of ours and what is causing the wind at that time, in meteorological terms.

Gales and Storm Force Winds

Pretty much every part of the country is at risk of wind damage caused by gales and storm force winds. Even a median wind speed of just 40 mph is classified as a Gale (force 8 on the Beaufort Wind Scale) and this has the potential to snap branches off trees and damage very weak structures (e.g. fences). When an average wind speed of around 50 mph is experienced, this is classified as Severe Gale Force 9 (on the Beaufort Wind Scale) and this causes damage to slates and tiles and can cause much larger branches to be snapped off trees.

When the sustained wind speed is around 60 mph, we reach Storm Force 10 and this is where the potential for wind damage becomes even more far reaching: indeed, whole roofs can be stripped off and trees can be uprooted completely. Violent Storm Force 11 is the Beaufort Wind Scale category that is just below a Hurricane; therefore widespread damage can be expected during such an event. However, it is worth noting that most inland, low-lying parts of the United States are extremely unlikely to see events of this magnitude.

Hurricanes

When the median wind speed reaches 73 mph+, this is classified as Hurricane Force 12 on the Beaufort Wind Scale and is where there is a frighteningly-high potential for wind damage. Such an intense depression could be spread over a vast area and almost every property, vehicle, tree etc. will be prone to serious damage during such an event.

It is worth noting that there are certain parts of the United States that will be more susceptible to storms of this nature and these are found in the southern and eastern states of the country. Again, you will generally tend to find that the potential for wind damage will decrease as such a storm makes its way further inland—meaning that coastal areas are always at the highest risk from hurricanes.

Tornadoes

Although wind damage caused from tornadoes will usually be over a much smaller area than hurricanes, never underestimate how truly devastating such meteorological phenomena can be. Interestingly, the intensity of a tornado is measured by how much it ‘eats’: which is a rather cruel and colloquial way of describing the wind damage it has caused in its wake.

For this, experts use a scale known as the Enhanced Fujita Scale; they rate a tornado from EF0 (where you will see average wind speeds in the tornado of around 75 mph) and EF5 (where wind speeds are estimated to be over 200 mph). The amounts of wind damage will vary according to this scale: with EF0 likely to see minor or no damage at all; and EF2 leading to considerable damage. EF5 would mean almost total devastation under the path of such a monstrous and rare tornado.

Types of Wind Damage

If you are known to live in a part of the country that is affected by tornadoes and hurricanes, it is safe to assume that pretty much nothing would be sacred when it comes to wind damage. Some types of storms have the potential to literally destroy everything in their path. In fact, it is thought that a tornado of EF4 or above is known to literally blow-up a building as it passes over and this is said to be due not only to the wind speed itself, but also to the massive decrease in air pressure in the funnel of the storm.

Inhabitants in other parts of the United States should never be complacent here, as they are still at risk of wind damage from gales and storm force winds. This could range from anything from a few slates being removed from the roof, to a whole tree being uprooted and crashing through a side of your property. Always be aware of such a possibility and take any precautions necessary to ensure you are not caught out in the future.

When a hail storm hits and if the stones measure more than an inch in diameter, this can and will lead to serious damage to property and even life in the area it falls. With this in mind, it really is imperative to be fully aware of such potential risks and also to take every precaution to minimize the possibility of any damage and/or injury. As we have already established above, the possibility of a damaging hail storm is prevalent in every corner of the United States; however, there are certain regions that are far more prone to these frightening events than others.

Specifically, it is known that the areas hardest hit by hail storms can be found in the states which occupy central USA. Between the Rocky Mountains in the west and the Appalachian Mountains in the East is where hail storms are definitely at their worst and this coincides with the zone that has been colloquially named ‘Tornado Alley’.

Each and every year there are certain months of the year where tornadoes are more frequent than others and this season varies slightly across the zone. For example, in the more southern states, tornado season is at its most significant between March and May. As spring rolls into summer, so the possibility of tornadoes tends to move farther north: meaning that the northern states of Tornado Alley are most at risk between June and July.

This season coincides with when the possibility of a damaging hail storm is most present. Massive hail stones are known to be synonymous with tornado weather; in turn being associated with some of the most tremendous thunderstorms ever to be witnessed on this planet. Towering ‘super-cells’ or Cumulonimbus clouds reach high into the atmosphere at such times and this is where some exceptionally damaging hail stones can form.

So, if you were wondering where the most prone parts of the country for damaging hail storms can be found, you need look no farther than Tornado Alley. However, we can actually narrow this large expanse of the country down even further: in that we can identify the 10 cities of the US which are known to be most prone to this phenomenon.

In 2011, a report was released from CDS Business Mapping, LLC, in Boston, which highlighted the 10 metropolitan areas in the country (with populations in excess of 50,000 inhabitants) where there is the greatest risk of damaging hail storms. These are as follows:

1. Amarillo, Texas

2. Wichita, Kan.

3. Tulsa, Okla.

4. Oklahoma City, Okla.

5. Midwest City, Okla.

6. Aurora, Colo.

7. Colorado Springs, Colo.

8. Kansas City, Kan.

9. Fort Worth, Texas

10. Denver, Colo.

As you can see, these cities are spread across only four states: Colorado, Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas—all of which are in Tornado Alley and are believed to be most at risk from these highly damaging storms. It is absolutely no coincidence that the worst hail storms are associated with the specific parts of the country listed above.

Inhabitants in these areas not only have the worry of their property being hit by the tornado itself, but also of the further possibility of serious damage caused through hail storms. If you do live in these areas of the country, of course, you should take every precaution to protect against tornadoes, but you should also seriously think about the damage that would be caused by hail stones which measure more than an inch across.

Buildings and structures should be fortified and protected against such damage possibilities, and for the most part, this is usually a matter of relying upon your own common sense. Helpful guides are available for you to consult to ensure you are doing everything humanly possible to guard against this awful possibility.

When you’re a contractor looking for jobs, time is always of the essence. You need up-to-the-minute hail damage information if you are going to find repair jobs before your competition does. But speed is not the only concern. You need accurate information so you waste time looking in the wrong neighborhoods.

Rooftops not Roads

It is quite common to receive hail report observations from highways and interstates. After all, that is usually the most populated place during a severe thunderstorm. Hundreds of cars can pass a stretch of highway in only a few minutes. During a hail storm, the odds of a hail report being called in are quite good.

Whereas in residential neighborhoods, most people are battening down the hatches during a hail storm. Unless the hail is very widespread, it may not even be observed by the homeowner. How many homeowners have you run across that don’t even know they have damage to their rooftops?

So which would you rather follow: Hail that fell on roads, or hail that fell on rooftops?

Hail Tracking Software

LiveHailReports.com features a unique interactive map that allows you to plot hail reports and zoom-in to the street level. This gives you the ability to determine whether hail damage occurred in desired residential neighborhoods, or out in the middle of a cornfield or interstate.

With aerial photography, you can literally see the individual rooftops (as shown in the picture above) of residential neighborhoods.

Stop the guesswork and start winning more jobs by choosing the solution that gives you both speed and accuracy when it comes live hail reports.

Hail Storms in the United States

There are many different areas of the country that can suffer from hail damage, but the majority of hail damage reports will be experienced in the area commonly referred to as ‘Tornado Alley’. There are between 10,000 and 12,000 storms that will cause damage in the country every year, and the amount of damage that can be caused will largely depend on the size of the hail stones that will fall. People can take steps if they live in an area that appears on the hail map, but in some cases the storms can happen before the hail watch spots that the conditions are likely to trigger such a storm.

The total cost of the hail damage reports can often run into thousands of dollars for individuals, but it is believed that throughout the country hail storms can cause as much as $1 billion per year. As with any severe weather system, there are some occasions that can be truly exceptional, and a storm that hit Kansas City in 2001 is estimated to be the costliest hail storm to have ever happened in the United States, causing damage in the region of $2 billion in that one storm alone.

Vehicle Damage Caused by Hailstones

One of the most difficult things to deal with for any motorist is the damage caused to the windscreen by a hail storm, and following a major storm the hail reports will often show hundreds of windscreens being smashed. With the repair bill for each windscreen often being hundreds of dollars, the bill for repairing the cars alone after a major storm can regularly exceed $1 million.

There is also a lot of hail damage that can happen to the bodywork of a car, too, and for many vehicles that have been caught out in a severe hail storm, the cost of repairing all the body work could be thousands of dollars. This means that many cars are written off by insurance companies simply because the cost of repair is too high.

Property Damage from Hail Damage

The range of hail damage reports and what has been affected will often include homes and other domestic properties, and even the preparations of homeowners will often fail to prevent the significant damage cause by hail. The properties in ‘Tornado Alley’ are particularly at risk from such damage, and it is the trailer homes in these areas that can be badly damaged by such storms.

There are many people in the ‘Tornado Alley’ region of the country who will appear on the hail map of damage, and it is estimated that many homeowners in this area will pay a lot more for their insurance costs because of this. It is believed that insurance for homeowners in the areas of Colorado that are particularly prone to hail damage can include as much as half of the premium to pay for hail and tornado damage. It is also worth noting that there are many people who will try to take advantage of such damage, as the National Insurance Crime Bureau reported an increase of 136 per cent in fraudulent hail damage claims between 2006 and 2010.

Other Hail Statistics

The largest recorded hailstone to have fallen in the United States did so during a storm in Vivian, South Dakota in 2010, measuring a diameter of eight inches, and weighed just under two pounds. Fortunately, this is very rare, with less than one per cent of damaging hail storms recorded in the United States containing hailstones over three inches in diameter. It does go to show just how extreme some storms can be at times, and why it is always important to keep a close watch on hail storm predictions.

Whether you are a roofer, contractor, insurance agent or other professional you need the most accurate data to help you make wise business decisions. When it comes to Hail, you want to know the exact neighborhoods and, if possible, street addresses of homes that were affected by a hail storm.

Free hail maps are a great way to investigate basic hail damage information without paying the high costs associated with other value-add products. In this post we are going to look at one source of free hail maps: the Storm Prediction Center’s climatology website.

Free hail maps at Storm Precition Center

The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) aggregates hail information on a daily basis and provides a free hail map on their website. You can see at a glance which regions of the country were affected by hail storms. To log on, visit www .spc.noaa.gov/climo /reports. You can review Hail Reports, Wind, and Tornado Reports. The site navigation allows you to review past days hail maps as well.

While the information on the SPCs website is free, it may not be as detailed as you would like to see when money is on the line. You want to target your hail damage searches to the most specific neighborhoods possible. That’s why we created LiveHailReports.com.

Our product takes Hail Reports to a whole new level by giving you detailed information about each hail report, along with the ability to drill-down to the street level and view individual neighborhoods–sometimes even rooftops that were affected by hail.

Screenshot of Hail Damage on Rooftop

Our real-time address lookup enables you to find the nearest street address to the hail report:

Real-time Address Lookup allows you to find the nearest residential street address to a specific hail report.

And finally, export features allow you to review the whole report in Microsoft Excel or Google Earth, for unparalleled clarity and detail.

Export of Hail Reports using Google Earth

You have a tough enough job as it is. Check out the free hail maps sources and then try our product out. We believe it will be well worth your time.

Try LiveHailReports.com for just $49.95 per month and get nationwide enhanced hail data and 90-days of historical access.

Tornado Alley

Probably the most vulnerable part of the country that is likely to see large hail damage reports is that which already suffers from another major weather issue, which is the tornado. ‘Tornado Alley’ will sometimes vary slightly depending on the perspective of the individual, but it is generally acknowledged to cover the states to be found between the Rocky Mountain range and the Appalachian mountain range. The states in this area will usually see the largest number of damaging hail reports, and these include Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska and parts of South Dakota and Colorado.

The reason for these states being particularly vulnerable to damaging hail storms is that they offer the best possible surroundings for hail to form, as it does require specific climatic criteria. One of the key aspects of this is that these states are away from coastlines, which are naturally milder in terms of temperature. The main features for the formation of hail are that the temperature needs to be below zero degrees Celsius and also in an area where there is plenty of precipitation.

There are over ten thousand hail storms that happen in the continental United States every year, and a high proportion of these will happen in the states referred to as ‘Tornado Alley’. It is worth noting that those areas closest to the mountain ranges can be particularly at risk from hail damage. Although hail storms generally move quite quickly and happen over a short period of time, they can slow down or even stop moving, and this is most likely to happen in those areas closest to the mountain ranges.

The Rest of the United States

Although the hail map does show a distinct increase of storms happening in ‘Tornado Alley’, this isn’t the only area to experience such storms. Florida is known to suffer some damaging storms from time to time, but any area of the country can experience storms on occasion. Hail can often occur without warning, but those hail storms that are likely to cause significant damage will often be spotted on a hail watch and people can be warned in advance.

For areas that are close to the coast, these storms will usually only be a problem during a period of cold weather, as the conditions won’t be conducive for the formation of hail for much of the year. Further inland, it is worth watching out for fast moving weather fronts that have a lot of rain clouds moving in to areas of cold weather, as this will often lead to the right conditions for hail.

Hail Damage Across The United States

The damage that can be caused by hail is huge across the country, and some estimates suggest that the repairs of hail damage every year can amount up to $1 billion. The majority of this will be because of the repairs that are required to homes and cars, but equally a lot of the damage can happen to public buildings, and almost anything with a glass surface can suffer such damage.

As well as the damage to objects and property, there are also rare cases that have been reported of people being injured by large hailstones. These hail damage reports are particularly rare, as the odds of being hit by a very large hailstone are very long indeed. Even in the storms that produce the largest hailstones, the majority of the storm will be made up of small hail stones with only one or two larger ones, meaning that although it is possible for people to suffer head trauma or concussion, this is a negligible risk in reality.