Hail and Heavy Rain in Nebraska, May 21, 1998

Name: Hail and Heavy Rain in Nebraska, May 21, 1998
Start: 1998-05-21T07:45
End: 1998-05-21T12:56
Location: Nebraska

May 21, 1998 · NWS GID · 18 events in 10 counties and zones

Thunderstorms rumbling across south-central Nebraska early in the day were responsible for dropping large hail and heavy rain in parts of the area. Hail the size of baseballs was reported.

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: 0
Property damage: $765,000
Crop damage: $2.5 million
Events: 18

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 GID wrote it up.

Thunderstorms rumbling across south-central Nebraska early in the day were responsible for dropping large hail and heavy rain in parts of the area. Hail the size of baseballs was reported. Windshields were shattered in the Lexington area and torrential rainfall forced water over US Highway 30 for a short time west of Kearney. The heavy rains caused the roof over the Kearney/Buffalo County law enforcement building to collapse. Damage to the 911 center was estimated to be near $400,000. Street flooding was common in the rest of Kearney.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

17 hail, 1 heavy rain. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Gosper

When: May 21, 7:45 AM CST
Where: Gosper County, Johnson Res
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.700, -99.850

Hail, Dawson

When: May 21, 8:04 AM CST
Where: Dawson County, Lexington
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $40,000
Crop damage: $150,000
Coordinates: 40.780, -99.730

Hail, Dawson

When: May 21, 8:14 AM CST
Where: Dawson County, Overton
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $125,000
Coordinates: 40.730, -99.530

Hail, Gosper

When: May 21, 8:30 AM CST
Where: Gosper County, 8 mi S of Elwood
Measured: 1 in hail
Crop damage: $75,000
Coordinates: 40.480, -99.850

Hail, Dawson

When: May 21, 8:35 AM CST
Where: Dawson County, 4 mi W of Overton
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Property damage: $30,000
Crop damage: $300,000
Coordinates: 40.730, -99.620

Hail, Dawson

When: May 21, 8:50 AM CST
Where: Dawson County, 3 mi W of Overton
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.730, -99.580

Heavy Rain, Buffalo

When: May 21, 9:00 AM CST to 10:00 AM CST
Where: Buffalo County, Kearney
Property damage: $500,000
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.855, -99.075 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Phelps

When: May 21, 9:10 AM CST
Where: Phelps County, Bertrand
Measured: 1 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.530, -99.630

Hail, Buffalo

When: May 21, 9:20 AM CST
Where: Buffalo County, Amherst
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.830, -99.270

Hail, Kearney

When: May 21, 10:30 AM CST
Where: Kearney County, 7 mi N of Axtell
Measured: 1 in hail
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.580, -99.120

Hail, Adams

When: May 21, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Adams County, Kenesaw
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.630, -98.650

Hail, Kearney

When: May 21, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Kearney County, 1 mi E of Heartwell
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.570, -98.770

Hail, Hall

When: May 21, 11:35 AM CST
Where: Hall County, 5 mi S of Grand Is
Measured: 1 in hail
Property damage: $20,000
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.850, -98.350

Hail, Adams

When: May 21, 11:37 AM CST
Where: Adams County, 7 mi N of Hastings
Measured: 1 in hail
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: $100,000
Coordinates: 40.680, -98.380

Hail, Hamilton

When: May 21, 11:50 AM CST
Where: Hamilton County, 2 mi S of Giltner
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.750, -98.150

Hail, Clay

When: May 21, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Clay County, Harvard
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: $200,000
Coordinates: 40.620, -98.100

Hail, Clay

When: May 21, 12:26 PM CST
Where: Clay County, 3 mi N of Sutton
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Property damage: $10,000
Crop damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 40.650, -97.850

Hail, Fillmore

When: May 21, 12:56 PM CST
Where: Fillmore County, 4 mi N of Grafton
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Property damage: $5,000
Crop damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 40.680, -97.700

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Nebraska in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Nebraska, May 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: 5644695, 5644696, 5644697, 5644698, 5644699, 5644700, 5644703, 5644701, 5644702, 5644704, 5644705, 5644706, 5644707, 5644708, 5644709, 5644710, 5644711, 5644712.