DENVER (KDVR) — Is that snow in May? Nope, just a spring Colorado hailstorm that brought baseball-sized hail.
On Thursday night, the metro was slammed with damaging hail and a slew of rain. The Pinpoint Weather team said the hail moved in quickly and impacted cities like Denver, Thornton and Commerce City.
FOX31 viewers sent photos and videos of large hailstones, flooded streets and even some damaged windshields. FOX31 wasn’t immune to the storm, as our own news truck sustained heavy damage.
The National Weather Service has released a list of the maximum hail sizes recorded, thanks to spotters all over the state. Hailstones ranged from quarter-sized to baseball-sized.
CountyLocationMax hailstone sizeAdams1 NE Northglenn1.5Adams1 NE Thornton1.75Adams1 NW Federal Heights1Adams1 S Northglenn1Adams1 W Northglenn1.5Adams2 E Broomfield2.25Adams2 E Federal Heights1Adams2 NE Thornton1.75Adams2 SSW Henderson2Adams3 N Aurora2Adams3 N Buckley AFB1.75Adams3 NE Northglenn1Adams3 NNW Northglenn1.5Adams5 NW Aurora1AdamsNorthglenn1.5AdamsWestminster1Arapahoe1 N Aurora1.75Arapahoe1 W Aurora1Arapahoe1 WSW Aurora1Arapahoe2 NW Aurora1.5Arapahoe2 S Aurora1.25Arapahoe2 SSW Aurora1Arapahoe2 SW Buckley AFB1Arapahoe3 N Cherry Creek Reserv1.25Arapahoe3 W Aurora1.5Arapahoe4 ENE Buckley AFB1.5Arapahoe4 W Aurora1BentLas Animas1.25Boulder1 W Niwot1Boulder1 WNW Niwot1Boulder2 NW Erie1Boulder3 NE Boulder0.75BoulderLafayette0.88Broomfield1 NE Broomfield1Broomfield2 E Broomfield1.5Denver1 N Denver1Denver1 S Denver1Denver1 SE Denver1.75Denver2 E Denver1.25Denver2 N Denver1Denver2 NW Denver1Denver3 E Commerce City2.25Denver3 E Denver1.25Denver3 ESE Commerce City2.5Denver3 NNW Denver1Denver3 SE Commerce City2.75Denver4 E Denver1.75Denver4 ESE Denver1.75Denver4 NW Cherry Creek Reser1Denver5 E Denver1.25Denver5 ESE Denver1.75Denver5 SE Denver1.5Denver6 N Buckley AFB2Denver7 N Buckley AFB1.25DenverDenver1.25Jefferson1 SE Broomfield1.25Jefferson1 SSE Broomfield1Kit Carson3 E Vona1OteroLa Junta1Weld1 NE Erie1.25Weld2 NE Erie0.88Weld2 NNE Erie1.5Weld2 SE Erie1.25Weld3 N Firestone0.88Weld4 NE Firestone0.75Yuma3 WNW Idalia1Yuma5 NE Idalia1.5Yuma7 SW Idalia0.7Source: Iowa Environmental Mesonet
Baseball-sized hail drops in Commerce City
The largest hailstone recorded from Thursday night’s storm was in Commerce City where a 2.75-inch stone was found.
According to NWS, 2.75 inches is comparable to a baseball. That hailstone can cause some serious damage.
Normally, hailstones range from a fourth to a half an inch. Several spotters recorded hailstones that were an inch, which is about the size of a quarter and considered uncommon.
To have baseball-sized hail recorded is considered very rare.
Friday rounds out the month of May with mild conditions. Storms return to Colorado, but they will mostly be focused along the plains.
