Hail, Middlesex
- When
- August 5, 1:00 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex County, Sudbury
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- FIRE DEPT/RESCUE SQUAD
- Coordinates
- 42.370, -71.400
Hail and Damaging Winds in Massachusetts, August 5, 1999
Severe thunderstorms moved through portions of central and eastern Massachusetts during the afternoon and early evening. In Middlesex County, dime size hail was reported in Sudbury and Waltham, and thunderstorm winds downed trees and branches in Watertown.
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
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 8
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 BOX wrote it up.
Severe thunderstorms moved through portions of central and eastern Massachusetts during the afternoon and early evening. In Middlesex County, dime size hail was reported in Sudbury and Waltham, and thunderstorm winds downed trees and branches in Watertown. Quarter size hail fell in Gardner, in Worcester County. Severe thunderstorms in Norfolk County downed trees and branches in Bellingham, and also dropped dime size hail. Lightning struck the Braintree police station, knocking out several non-emergency phone lines and computer systems for almost five hours. In Bristol County, dime size hail fell in Norton, and also at the National Weather Service office in Taunton.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
5 hail, 2 thunderstorm wind, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
Hail, Middlesex
- When
- August 5, 1:18 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex County, Waltham
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 42.380, -71.230
Thunderstorm Wind, Middlesex
- When
- August 5, 1:45 PM EST
- Where
- Middlesex County, Watertown
- Measured
- 50 kt (58 mph)
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 42.370, -71.180
Hail, Worcester
- When
- August 5, 2:08 PM EST
- Where
- Worcester County, Gardner
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 42.570, -71.980
Hail, Norfolk
- When
- August 5, 3:28 PM EST
- Where
- Norfolk County, Bellingham
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- AMATEUR RADIO
- Coordinates
- 42.080, -71.470
Thunderstorm Wind, Norfolk
- When
- August 5, 3:37 PM EST to 3:45 PM EST
- Where
- Norfolk County, Bellingham
- Measured
- 50 kt (58 mph)
- Reported by
- TRAINED SPOTTER
- Coordinates
- 42.080, -71.470
Lightning, Norfolk
- When
- August 5, 4:20 PM EST
- Where
- Norfolk County, Braintree
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 42.171, -71.184 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Hail, Bristol
- When
- August 5, 4:40 PM EST to 4:50 PM EST
- Where
- Bristol County, Taunton to Norton
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
- Coordinates
- 41.900, -71.100
What these are
- Hail
- Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
- 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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Tornado in Colorado, August 5, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Arizona, August 5, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Oklahoma, August 5, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in New Hampshire, August 5, 1999
- Damaging Wind in Connecticut, August 5, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Wyoming, August 5, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Washington, August 5, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in New York, August 5, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Ohio, August 5, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Connecticut, August 5, 1999
- Waterspouts in Pennsylvania, August 5 to 21, 1999
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Connecticut, August 5, 1999
More
Every storm in Massachusetts in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyWarnings in Massachusetts, August 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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5713404, 5713405, 5713406, 5713407, 5713408, 5713409, 5713411, 5713410.