Hail in Oregon, August 6, 2003

Name: Hail in Oregon, August 6, 2003
Start: 2003-08-06T17:12
End: 2003-08-06T17:16
Location: Oregon

August 6, 2003 · NWS MFR · 4 events in 1 county or zone

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
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 MFR wrote it up.

A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued for central Jackson County at 1658 PDT on 08/06 and expired at 1727 PDT on 08/06. A second warning was issued for north central Jackson county for the same storm at 1800 PDT on 08/06 and expired at 1843 on 08/06. Additionally, based on reports of heavy rain, a Flash Flood Warning was issued for the Medford area at 1739 PDT on 08/06 and expired at 2044 PDT on 08/06. The above reports verified the Severe Thunderstorm Warning, but the reporting flooding problems were more of the urban flooding variety. The worst of the flooding was attributed to clogged storm drains.

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 Medford, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 6, 12:45 PM PST, 4 hours 27 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 6, 12:45 PM PST, 4 hours 27 minutes before

SOUTHWEST OREGON AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD, OR
145 PM PDT WED AUG 6 2003

AS EXPECTED SATELLITE PICTURE INDICATES ONLY INNOCUOUS CUMULUS
CLOUDS HAVE DEVELOPED TO THIS POINT. THE AIR MASS OVER MUCH OF OUR
INLAND REGION WILL DE-STABILIZE LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING AS A
SHORTWAVE NEAR CAPE MENDOCINO MOVES EAST-NORTHEAST INTO SISKIYOU
COUNTY AND THEN CONTINUES ACROSS KLAMATH AND NORTHERN LAKE COUNTIES
THIS EVENING. CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE HIGHEST OVER THE
CASCADES WITH ETA INDICATING BOUNDARY LAYER CAPE VALUES OF 200-1000
J/KG AND LI OF -1 TO -3.

THE AIR MASS WILL STABILIZE BEHIND THE TROUGH WITH A PERSISTENT
PATTERN SETTING UP FOR THURSDAY THROUGH MONDAY. A CLOSED LOW WILL
REMAIN OFFSHORE FROM NORTHERN OREGON AND WASHINGTON WITH COOL
ONSHORE FLOW. A VERY WEAK SHORTWAVE WILL DEEPEN THE MARINE LAYER
THURSDAY NIGHT FOR A CHANCE OF MIST/LIGHT SHOWERS AT THE COAST AFTER
MIDNIGHT INTO FRIDAY MORNING ALONG WITH LOW CLOUDS SPREADING INTO
THE UMPQUA BASIN. SIMILAR SITUATION SUNDAY NIGHT/MONDAY MORNING WITH
A STRONGER MARINE PUSH AS THE UPPER LOW MOVES EAST TOWARD THE COAST.

THE UPPER LOW IS EXPECTED TO WEAKEN AND MOVE INLAND TUESDAY FOR
SLIGHT COOLING AND JUST A SLIGHT CHANCE OF SHOWERS WEST OF CASCADES.
THERE IS A VERY SMALL POSSIBILITY OF A SOUTHWARD VARIATION IN THE
PROJECTED LOW TRACK...WHICH WOULD WARRANT MENTION OF THUNDERSTORMS
EAST OF THE CASCADES ON TUESDAY. DRY AND A LITTLE WARMER WEDNESDAY
AS HIGH PRESSURE OVER THE EASTERN PACIFIC BUILDS IN BEHIND THE
TROUGH.

.MFR...NONE

DW

Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 6, 5:30 AM PST, 11 hours 42 minutes before

ORZ021>031-CAZ080>085-071330-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OR
630 AM PDT WED AUG 06 2003

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHERN OREGON AND
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

.DAY ONE...TODAY

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY.

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

HESS

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 6, 4:17 PM PST, 55 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OREGON
517 PM PDT WED AUG 06 2003

TIME(PDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0512 PM    ASHLAND                   OR   1.25 INCH HAIL
08/06/03   JACKSON                        SPOTTER JA58 REPORTS HAIL
                                          WITH THE LARGEST THE SIXE
                                          OF A GOLF BALL.

0514 PM    MEDFORD                   OR   .75 INCH HAIL
08/06/03   JACKSON                        SPOTTER JA40 NE MEDFORD
                                          REPORTS 3/4 INCH HAIL AND
                                          HEAVY RAIN FROM TSTM.

0515 PM    MEDFORD                   OR   .75 INCH HAIL
08/06/03   JACKSON                        THAI BISTRO REPORTS 3/4
                                          INCH HAIL COVERING THE
                                          GROUND AT STEVENS AND
                                          BIDDLE.

0516 PM    MEDFORD                   OR   .75 INCH HAIL
08/06/03   JACKSON                        SPOTTER JA61 IN NE MEDFORD
                                          REPORTS 3/4 INCH HAIL.

Local storm report, Aug 6, 4:31 PM PST, 41 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OREGON
531 PM PDT WED AUG 06 2003

TIME(PDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0529 PM    MEDFORD                   OR   .5 INCH HAIL
08/06/03   JACKSON                        SPOTTER JA10 REPORTS 1/2
                                          INCH HAIL AND .30 IN RAIN
                                          IN 10 MINUTES.

Local storm report, Aug 6, 4:36 PM PST, 36 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MEDFORD OREGON
536 PM PDT WED AUG 06 2003

TIME(PDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0534 PM    MEDFORD                   OR
08/06/03   JACKSON                        DIANE SANDLER REPORTS THE
                                          INTERSECTION OF MCANDREWS
                                          AND BIDDLE FLOODED WITH
                                          THE WATER UP TO THE TOPS
                                          OF CAR TIRES.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

4 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Jackson

When: August 6, 5:12 PM PST
Where: Jackson County, Ashland
Measured: 1.25 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.200, -122.700

Spotter JA58 reported hail, the largest of which was golf ball size.

Hail, Jackson

When: August 6, 5:14 PM PST
Where: Jackson County, Medford
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.333, -122.867

Spotter JA40 in northeast Medford reported 3/4 inch hail and heavy rain.

Hail, Jackson

When: August 6, 5:15 PM PST
Where: Jackson County, Medford
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.333, -122.867

Thai Bistro reported 3/4 inch hail covering ground at Stevens and Biddle.

Hail, Jackson

When: August 6, 5:16 PM PST
Where: Jackson County, Medford
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 42.333, -122.867

Spotter JA61 in northeast Medford reported 3/4 inch hail.

What these are

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

Every storm in Oregon in 2003 Every state in 2003 This day in weather history Warnings in Oregon, August 2003

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: 5334495, 5334496, 5334497, 5334498.