Hail and Damaging Winds in Connecticut, July 15, 1997

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Connecticut, July 15, 1997
Start: 1997-07-15T16:38
End: 1997-07-15T18:10
Location: Connecticut

July 15, 1997 · NWS OKX · 4 events in 2 counties and zones

In New Haven County, high winds downed trees and powerlines in Southbury and Oxford. Lightning struck one house in Southbury.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 1
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 4

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS OKX wrote it up.

Clusters of slow moving thunderstorms, some severe, moved east-southeast over the local area.They produced high winds, hail, and heavy rain.In New Haven County, high winds downed trees and powerlines in Southbury and Oxford. Lightning struck one house in Southbury. Lightning struck 4 hilltop houses on the east side of Naugatuck. It caused only minor damage to all four houses.In Fairfield County, high winds downed trees in Easton and downed trees and powerlines in Trumbull. A tree fell onto and damaged a roof in Trumbull. In Newtown, a man was injured when he was struck by lightning while he was fixing a water pump in the basement of a home on White Oaks Farm Road.

The radar

The Brookhaven radar (KOKX), 75 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 21:39 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind, 1 lightning, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, New Haven

When: July 15, 4:38 PM EST
Where: New Haven County, Southbury to Oxford
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 41.480, -73.220

Lightning, Fairfield

When: July 15, 4:45 PM EST
Where: Fairfield County, Newtown
Injuries: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Coordinates: 41.326, -73.447 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Fairfield

When: July 15, 6:00 PM EST
Where: Fairfield County, Easton to Trumbull
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 41.250, -73.300

Hail, Fairfield

When: July 15, 6:10 PM EST
Where: Fairfield County, Bridgeport
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.180, -73.220

What these are

Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Connecticut in 1997 Every state in 1997 This day in weather history Warnings in Connecticut, July 1997

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5610433, 5610436, 5610434, 5610435.