Tornado, Hamilton
- When
- April 8, 10:00 AM CST to 10:06 AM CST
- Where
- Hamilton County, Aurora to 4 mi NW of Aurora
- Rating
- F1
- Path length
- 4 mi
- Path width
- 50 yd
- Property damage
- $300,000
- Reported by
- GENERAL PUBLIC
- Coordinates
- 40.870, -98.080
Tornadoes and Hail in Nebraska, April 8, 1999
A quick moving spring storm tapped a moderately unstable environment to produce three tornadoes across south-central Nebraska. The first occurred west of Aurora near the town of Murphy.
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
- $655,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 9
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.
A quick moving spring storm tapped a moderately unstable environment to produce three tornadoes across south-central Nebraska. The first occurred west of Aurora near the town of Murphy. A grain dryer at the local elevator was destroyed. Several pivots and a few outbuildings were damaged along the four mile path. Another tornado set down northeast of Clarks. A cattle shed was destroyed on one farmstead. Just to the north, four sheds, including a horse barn, were totaled at another farm. Several pivots were reported severely damaged. Yet one more tornado touched down briefly south of Belgrade damaging some fence, a chemical applicator and a barn. As the storm front passed near Hampton, a semi-tractor trailer was blown off the road and totaled. The occupants were uninjured.
The radar
The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 68 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 15:59 UTC.
Event by event
4 thunderstorm wind, 3 tornado, 2 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm Wind, Hamilton
- When
- April 8, 10:10 AM CST
- Where
- Hamilton County, 4 mi SE of Hampton
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Property damage
- $75,000
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 40.830, -97.850
Thunderstorm Wind, Hamilton
- When
- April 8, 10:15 AM CST
- Where
- Hamilton County, 5 mi N of Hampton
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Property damage
- $70,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 40.930, -97.900
Hail, Nance
- When
- April 8, 10:40 AM CST
- Where
- Nance County, Fullerton
- Measured
- 0.75 in hail
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 41.370, -97.980
Tornado, Merrick
- When
- April 8, 10:54 AM CST to 10:59 AM CST
- Where
- Merrick County, Clarks to 4 mi NE of Clarks
- Rating
- F1
- Path length
- 3 mi
- Path width
- 40 yd
- Property damage
- $200,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 41.230, -97.800
Thunderstorm Wind, Merrick
- When
- April 8, 10:55 AM CST
- Where
- Merrick County, Silver Creek
- Measured
- 52 kt (60 mph)
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 41.320, -97.670
Tornado, Nance
- When
- April 8, 10:56 AM CST to 10:58 AM CST
- Where
- Nance County, 4 mi S of Belgrade
- Rating
- F0
- Path length
- 1 mi
- Path width
- 10 yd
- Property damage
- $10,000
- Reported by
- NEWSPAPER
- Coordinates
- 41.430, -98.070
Thunderstorm Wind, Polk
- When
- April 8, 11:05 AM CST
- Where
- Polk County, 6 mi NW of Stromsburg
- Measured
- 57 kt (66 mph)
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 41.180, -97.680
Hail, Polk
- When
- April 8, 11:20 AM CST
- Where
- Polk County, 3 mi W of Shelby
- Measured
- 1 in hail
- Reported by
- LAW ENFORCEMENT
- Coordinates
- 41.200, -97.480
What these are
- Tornado
- A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
- 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.
- 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
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, April 8, 1999
- Tornado and Flood in Illinois, April 8, 1999
- Tornadoes in Illinois, April 8, 1999
- Tornadoes and Hail in Illinois, April 8, 1999
- Tornadoes and Hail in Missouri, April 8, 1999
- Tornado in Missouri, April 8, 1999
- Tornado in Missouri, April 8, 1999
- Hail in California, April 8, 1999
- Winter Storm in Utah, April 8 to 10, 1999
- Lightning Strike in Indiana, April 8, 1999
- High Wind in Colorado, April 8, 1999
- Tornado in Missouri, April 8, 1999
More
Every storm in Nebraska in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Nebraska, 1999Warnings in Nebraska, April 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: 5689850, 5689851, 5689852, 5689853, 5689856, 5689854, 5689855, 5689857, 5689858.