Hail, Butler
- When
- June 20, 6:25 AM CST
- Where
- Butler County, 5 mi W of Aplington
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Property damage
- $3,000
- Crop damage
- $10,000
- Coordinates
- 42.580, -92.980
Hail in Iowa, June 20, 1997
S. During the night time hours, the low level jet strengthened into the central Plains.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it. 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $3,000
- Crop damage
- $10,000
- Events
- 1
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 DMX wrote it up.
An unstable airmass was over the central U.S. During the night time hours, the low level jet strengthened into the central Plains. A small mesoscale convective system developed and swept rapidly east across northern Iowa. The storms produced severe weather in the form of high winds and some hail. Since freezing levels were quite high, above 14,000 feet, the hail was of limited size. Winds of 80 MPH swept into Eldora during the early morning hours. Structural damage was done to the roof of a school building there. Most other damage was not that severe. Hail caused considerable crop damage in the area. Reports from rural Hardin County suggest a swath 3 miles wide and 7 miles wide with significant hail damage.
The radar
The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 113 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:27 UTC.
Event by event
1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- 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
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, June 20 to 21, 1997
- Flash Flooding and Flood in Michigan, June 20 to 23, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Wisconsin, June 20, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, June 20, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Wind in South Dakota, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in South Dakota, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in South Dakota, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in South Dakota, June 20, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Nebraska, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Nebraska, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Iowa, June 20, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Iowa, June 20, 1997
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, June 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: 5598762.