Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:05 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, 5 mi W of Waltham
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Property damage
- $20,000
- Crop damage
- $40,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 43.820, -92.980
Hail and Damaging Winds in Minnesota, June 20, 1998
The combination of heavy rain, small stream flooding, and large hail damaged many crops from Austin east-southeast through Ostrander and along Highway 44. A school was heavily damaged in Canton and several business just north of Highway 44 in Mabel had roofs torn off.
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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $363,000
- Crop damage
- $402,000
- Events
- 19
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 ARX wrote it up.
A cluster of thunderstorms produced large hail and wind gusts up to 70 mph across southeast Minnesota with the most concentrated area of damage from Austin east through Fillmore County and into extreme southwest Houston County.The combination of heavy rain, small stream flooding, and large hail damaged many crops from Austin east-southeast through Ostrander and along Highway 44. A school was heavily damaged in Canton and several business just north of Highway 44 in Mabel had roofs torn off. Farm equipment was thrown across Highway 43 just north of Mabel with numerous trees down. In Spring Grove, a cattle barn had the roof blown off and numerous trees in a nearby park were blown down demolishing a shelter. Nearly every camper at a Recreational Vehicle sales lot in Spring Grove was demolished as well.
The radar
The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 124 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 18:07 UTC.
Event by event
12 hail, 6 thunderstorm wind, 1 funnel cloud. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:25 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, Austin
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Property damage
- $45,000
- Crop damage
- $35,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.670, -92.930
Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:36 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, Austin
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Property damage
- $35,000
- Crop damage
- $50,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.670, -92.930
Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:39 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, 3 mi E of Waltham
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Crop damage
- $25,000
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 43.820, -92.820
Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:45 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, 3 mi E of Sargeant
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.800, -92.750
Hail, Mower
- When
- June 20, 12:47 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, Waltham
- Measured
- 1.25 in hail
- Property damage
- $35,000
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 43.820, -92.880
Funnel Cloud, Mower
- When
- June 20, 1:18 PM CST
- Where
- Mower County, 2 mi E of Grand Meadow
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.672, -92.752 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 1:37 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, 1 mi NW of Ostrander
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Crop damage
- $25,000
- Reported by
- EMERGENCY MANAGER
- Coordinates
- 43.630, -92.450
Thunderstorm Wind, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 1:51 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Ostrander
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
- Property damage
- $13,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.620, -92.430
Thunderstorm Wind, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:00 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Ostrander
- Measured
- 56 kt (64 mph)
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Crop damage
- $20,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.620, -92.430
Hail, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:10 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Spring Vly
- Measured
- 1.25 in hail
- Property damage
- $18,000
- Crop damage
- $40,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.680, -92.400
Hail, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:15 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Ostrander
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Property damage
- $25,000
- Crop damage
- $30,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.620, -92.430
Hail, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:15 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, 5 mi S of Spring Vly
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Crop damage
- $45,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.620, -92.400
Thunderstorm Wind, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:20 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Harmony
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 43.550, -92.020
Thunderstorm Wind, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 2:50 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Canton
- Property damage
- $45,000
- Crop damage
- $25,000
- Reported by
- NWS STORM SURVEY
- Coordinates
- 43.530, -91.930
Thunderstorm Wind, Fillmore
- When
- June 20, 3:05 PM CST
- Where
- Fillmore County, Mabel
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Crop damage
- $22,000
- Reported by
- NWS STORM SURVEY
- Coordinates
- 43.520, -91.780
Thunderstorm Wind, Houston
- When
- June 20, 3:33 PM CST
- Where
- Houston County, Spring Grove
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Property damage
- $12,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.570, -91.650
Hail, Houston
- When
- June 20, 3:38 PM CST
- Where
- Houston County, Spring Grove
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Crop damage
- $25,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 43.570, -91.650
Hail, Houston
- When
- June 20, 3:53 PM CST
- Where
- Houston County, 4 mi S of Caledonia
- Measured
- 1.25 in hail
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Crop damage
- $20,000
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 43.580, -91.500
What these are
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
- Funnel Cloud
- A rotating column of cloud extending from a thunderstorm that did not reach the ground.
- 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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heat in New Jersey, June 20, 1998
- Heat in Pennsylvania, June 20 to 21, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Texas, June 20, 1998
- Flash Flood and Flooding in Iowa, June 20, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, June 20, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Wisconsin, June 20, 1998
- Flash Flood in Missouri, June 20, 1998
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Mississippi, June 20, 1998
- Hail in Minnesota, June 20, 1998
- Flash Flood and Hail in Massachusetts, June 20, 1998
- Flash Flooding in Minnesota, June 20, 1998
- Flash Flood and Lightning Strike in New York, June 20, 1998
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, June 1998
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: 5652472, 5652473, 5652471, 5652474, 5652475, 5652476, 5652477, 5652478, 5652479, 5652480, 5652481, 5652482, 5652483, 5652484, 5652574, 5652575, 5652485, 5652486, 5652573.