Nebraska, 1999

Tornado and Hail in Nebraska, May 30, 1999

May 30, 1999 · NWS GID · 17 events in 7 counties and zones

A cold front moving southeast across south-central Nebraska spawned scattered severe thunderstorms. Dime size to golf ball sized hail was reported across the area.

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
$145,000
Crop damage
$1.1 million
Events
17

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 cold front moving southeast across south-central Nebraska spawned scattered severe thunderstorms. Dime size to golf ball sized hail was reported across the area. A tornado touched down north of Lexington and moved toward town. Several outbuildings and grain bins were damaged or destroyed. Three farm houses had some damage. Luckily, the tornado lifted before making it to town.

The radar

The Grand Island radar (KUEX), 79 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:09 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

14 hail, 1 tornado, 1 funnel cloud, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Thayer

When
May 30, 4:10 PM CST
Where
Thayer County, Bruning
Measured
0.88 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.470, -97.530

Hail, Thayer

When
May 30, 4:45 PM CST
Where
Thayer County, Gilead
Measured
0.88 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.130, -97.470

Hail, Thayer

When
May 30, 5:10 PM CST
Where
Thayer County, Alexandria
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates
40.250, -97.380

Hail, Dawson

When
May 30, 5:50 PM CST
Where
Dawson County, 5 mi W of Eddyville
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
41.020, -99.730

Tornado, Dawson

When
May 30, 6:13 PM CST to 6:45 PM CST
Where
Dawson County, Lexington to 7 mi NW of Lexington
Rating
F1
Path length
5 mi
Path width
100 yd
Property damage
$50,000
Crop damage
$100,000
Reported by
EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates
40.850, -99.830

Hail, Dawson

When
May 30, 6:15 PM CST
Where
Dawson County, Gothenburg
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.930, -100.150

Hail, Hamilton

When
May 30, 6:40 PM CST
Where
Hamilton County, 4 mi NW of Giltner
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.820, -98.200

Hail, Hamilton

When
May 30, 6:52 PM CST
Where
Hamilton County, Giltner
Measured
1 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Crop damage
$50,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.780, -98.150

Funnel Cloud, Hamilton

When
May 30, 6:55 PM CST
Where
Hamilton County, 6 mi SW of Giltner
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
40.874, -98.023 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Dawson

When
May 30, 6:55 PM CST
Where
Dawson County, 5 mi W of Lexington
Measured
1 in hail
Crop damage
$50,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
40.780, -99.830

Thunderstorm Wind, Gosper

When
May 30, 7:00 PM CST
Where
Gosper County, 8 mi S of Elwood
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by
OFFICIAL NWS OBS.
Coordinates
40.480, -99.850

Hail, Phelps

When
May 30, 7:10 PM CST
Where
Phelps County, 5 mi N of Loomis
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$20,000
Crop damage
$200,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.550, -99.520

Hail, Clay

When
May 30, 7:15 PM CST
Where
Clay County, 8 mi N of Clay Center
Measured
1.5 in hail
Property damage
$20,000
Crop damage
$250,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.650, -98.050

Hail, Phelps

When
May 30, 7:20 PM CST
Where
Phelps County, Loomis
Measured
1 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Crop damage
$50,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
40.480, -99.520

Hail, Phelps

When
May 30, 7:30 PM CST
Where
Phelps County, 2 mi S of Loomis
Measured
1 in hail
Property damage
$10,000
Crop damage
$150,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
40.450, -99.520

Hail, Thayer

When
May 30, 7:54 PM CST
Where
Thayer County, Hebron
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.170, -97.580

Hail, Harlan

When
May 30, 8:10 PM CST
Where
Harlan County, Huntley
Measured
1.75 in hail
Property damage
$25,000
Crop damage
$250,000
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
40.220, -99.280

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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.
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

More

Every storm in Nebraska in 1999Every state in 1999This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Nebraska, 1999Warnings in Nebraska, May 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: 5699411, 5699412, 5699413, 5699414, 5699415, 5699416, 5699417, 5699418, 5699419, 5699420, 5699421, 5699422, 5699423, 5699424, 5699426, 5699425, 5699427.