Hail, Dallas
- When
- July 27, 6:03 PM CST
- Where
- Dallas County, Van Meter
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Crop damage
- $5,000
- Reported by
- UNKNOWN
- Coordinates
- 41.530, -93.970
Hail and Lightning Strike in Iowa, July 27, 1999
A warm, moist, and very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa with surface temperatures around 90 degrees and dew point temperatures in the mid 70s. A small area of thunderstorms erupted over central and south central Iowa.
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
- $30,000
- Crop damage
- $25,000
- 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 DMX wrote it up.
A warm, moist, and very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa with surface temperatures around 90 degrees and dew point temperatures in the mid 70s. A small area of thunderstorms erupted over central and south central Iowa. The storms became severe quickly and dropped hail up to golf ball in size and produced gusty winds. The event was short lived as the storms dissipated rapidly around sunset. Lightning struck a house in Johnson causing a fire. Damage was not severe and the fire was extinguished fairly rapidly.
The radar
The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 30 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:04 UTC.
Event by event
3 hail, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Dallas
- When
- July 27, 6:20 PM CST
- Where
- Dallas County, Waukee
- Measured
- 1.5 in hail
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Crop damage
- $10,000
- Reported by
- UNKNOWN
- Coordinates
- 41.620, -93.900
Lightning, Polk
- When
- July 27, 6:30 PM CST
- Where
- Polk County, Johnston
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 41.686, -93.573 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Marion
- When
- July 27, 7:30 PM CST
- Where
- Marion County, 2 mi S of Knoxville
- Measured
- 1.75 in hail
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Crop damage
- $10,000
- Reported by
- UNKNOWN
- Coordinates
- 41.280, -93.100
What these are
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
- Lightning
- A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Tornado in North Dakota, July 27, 1999
- Heat in Louisiana, July 27, 1999
- Marine High Wind in Tennessee, July 27, 1999
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, July 27, 1999
- Tornadoes and Hail in South Dakota, July 27, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Minnesota, July 27, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Colorado, July 27, 1999
- Damaging Winds in Arkansas, July 27, 1999
- Tornado and Hail in Minnesota, July 27, 1999
- Flash Flood and Damaging Wind in Iowa, July 27 to 28, 1999
- Damaging Wind and Lightning Strike in North Carolina, July 27, 1999
- Flash Flood in Idaho, July 27, 1999
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, July 1999
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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5706018, 5706017, 5706020, 5706019.