Connecticut, 2002

Hail and Damaging Winds in Connecticut, June 16, 2002

June 16, 2002 · NWS OKX · 6 events in 4 counties and zones

As a severe thunderstorm moved east across extreme Northern Fairfield, Northern New Haven and Northern Middlesex Counties, it produced large hail and damaging wind gusts. Spotters in Sherman and Waterbury reported 3/4-inch diameter hail.

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

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
6

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 OKX wrote it up.

As a severe thunderstorm moved east across extreme Northern Fairfield, Northern New Haven and Northern Middlesex Counties, it produced large hail and damaging wind gusts. Spotters in Sherman and Waterbury reported 3/4-inch diameter hail. High winds downed trees in Naugatuck and trees and wires in East Hampton.An isolated severe thunderstorm, embedded within a band of heavy showers and thunderstorms, produced high winds that downed trees in Wallingford.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS New York, NY wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jun 16, 1:00 PM EST, 1 hour 9 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jun 16, 1:00 PM EST, 1 hour 9 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
200 PM EDT SUN JUN 16 2002

A LARGE LO PRES SYS CNTRD JUST N OF LK ONTARIO ATTM WL DRFT EWD OVR
THE NEXT FEW DYS. THIS LO WL SWING A TROF THRU THE FA THIS EVE.
THERE WL BE SOME SHWRS/TSTMS WITH AND AHD OF THIS FEATURE.

HAIL INFO...ALRDY HAVE RCVD SVRL REPORTS OF SMALL HAIL. VILS BTWN
35-45 PRODUCG HAIL SIZE BTWN 1/4 AND 1/2 INCH. APPEARS A VIL OF ARND
55 WOULD GIVE 3/4 INCH IN MY NECK OF THE WOODS.

THE LOW SWINGS ANOTHER TROF THRU TMRW AFTN/EVE BUT SHWRS WITH THIS
LKLY TO RMN WELL N OF FA. SFC LO FINALLY MOVS OFF MAINE CST DURG TUE
WITH ONE LAST AND VRY WK TROF SLIDG ACRS THE LCL RGN LT IN THE DAY.
ONCE AGN NO PCPN AS THIS AGAIN SHLD BE WELL N AND NE OF AREA.

TEMPS OVR NEXT FEW DAYS WL AVG SLGLY ABV SEASONAL LVLS. MOS VALUES
APPEAR ON TRACK SO LITTLE DEVIATION EXPTD HERE.

PRLIM TEMPS AND POPS FOLLOW...
EWR   61  80  62  82 /  40  10  10  10
MGJ   53  75  51  79 /  40  10  10  10
DXR   53  75  51  79 /  40  10  10  10
NYC   61  80  62  82 /  40  10  10  10
ISP   58  75  58  76 /  30  10  10  10
GON   58  75  58  76 /  30  10  10  10

MARINE...44025 DID GO BACK UP TO 5 FT...BUT NOT REPRESENTATIVE OF
MOST OF AREA SO WL PRBLY CONT TO LEAVE SCA DOWN.

.OKX...
CT...NONE.
NJ...NONE.
NY...NONE.
MARINE...NONE.

The radar

The Brookhaven radar (KOKX), 94 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 19:06 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Fairfield

When
June 16, 2:09 PM EST
Where
Fairfield County, Sherman
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
41.567, -73.500

Hail, New Haven

When
June 16, 2:50 PM EST
Where
New Haven County, Waterbury
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates
41.550, -73.033

Thunderstorm Wind, New Haven

When
June 16, 2:52 PM EST
Where
New Haven County, Naugatuck
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
41.483, -73.050

Thunderstorm Wind, New Haven

When
June 16, 3:45 PM EST
Where
New Haven County, Wallingford
Measured
52 kt (60 mph)
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
41.450, -72.833

Thunderstorm Wind, Middlesex

When
June 16, 4:00 PM EST
Where
Middlesex County, East Hampton
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Reported by
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates
41.583, -72.500

Thunderstorm Wind, New London

When
June 16, 4:15 PM EST to 4:20 PM EST
Where
New London County, Oakdale
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by
FIRE DEPT/RESCUE SQUAD
Coordinates
41.467, -72.167

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Connecticut in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Connecticut, June 2002

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: 5301402, 5301403, 5301404, 5301405, 5301486, 5301487.