Flood and Hail in Indiana, May 7, 2004

Name: Flood and Hail in Indiana, May 7, 2004
Start: 2004-05-07T07:20
End: 2004-05-07T11:35
Location: Indiana

May 7, 2004 · NWS IWX · 18 events in 7 counties and zones

14 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flood, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 18

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 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 Northern Indiana wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 7, 5:56 AM EST, 1 hour 24 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, May 7, 5:56 AM EST, 1 hour 24 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
556 AM EST FRI MAY 7 2004

.AVIATION...
MCS OVER ILLINOIS WILL CONTINUE TO SLIDE SLOWLY ESEWD EARLY THIS
MORNING. THE BULK OF THE COMPLEX WILL BE SOUTH OF KSBN AND
KFWA...BUT THE NORTHERN PORTION WILL LIKELY CLIP THE TERMINALS SO
WILL INCLUDE VCTS FOR ABOUT AN HOUR AT KSBN EARLY THIS MORNING...AND
VCSH AT KFWA TOWARDS MID-MORNING AS THE COMPLEX WEAKENS AS IT MOVES
EAST.

NEXT BEST CHANCE FOR THUNDER WILL THEN BE THIS EVENING AHEAD OF A
WARM FRONT THAT WILL BE MOVING NORTH ACROSS THE REGION AROUND
MIDNIGHT. BEST CHANCES FOR STORMS APPEAR TO BE APPROXIMATELY
03Z-06Z...BUT WITH IT STILL 15 HOURS AWAY WILL HOLD OFF LOCKING IN
TO THAT QUITE YET.
&&

.SHORT TERM...
NGM VERIFIED THE BEST AT 06Z WITH PLACEMENT OF SURFACE
BOUNDARY...WHICH AT 07Z STRETCHED FROM SOUTH OF TOLEDO TO FORT WAYNE
TO KANKAKEE. NGM ALSO HAD THE BEST HANDLE ON THE 00Z-06Z QPF FIELDS.
HOWEVER MODELS AGREE ON DROPPING THE COLD FRONT SOUTH TO THE OHIO
RIVER BY MIDDAY THEN STARTING IT BACK NORTH THIS EVENING...ENTERING
THE CWFA FROM THE SOUTH AROUND MIDNIGHT. BAND OF BETTER RH WILL
EXIST ALONG AND NORTH OF THE FRONT WHERE SCATTERED ELEVATED
CONVECTION WILL BE POSSIBLE.

GOOD PUNCH OF DRY AIR AT 700MB THIS EVENING AND WET BULB ZEROES
AROUND 10K FEET. ISENTROPIC LIFT MAXIMIZES AS THE WARM FRONT PUSHES
THROUGH THIS EVENING AND AS A SMALL SHORTWAVE TROF SWINGS IN TO THE
GREAT LAKES FROM THE WEST. AS A RESULT BEST CHANCES FOR STORMS
APPEARS TO BE THIS EVENING INTO TONIGHT. ENTIRE CWFA IN SPC SLIGHT
RISK AREA...MAIN THREAT WOULD APPEAR TO BE HAIL IN ELEVATED STORMS
ABOVE SIGNIFCANT INVERSION.

TEMPS FROM PREVIOUS FORECAST APPEAR TO BE ON TRACK PROVIDED COOLER
AIR IS ABLE TO PUSH ALL THE WAY TO THE SOUTHERN COUNTIES BY DAYBREAK.

&&

.LONG TERM...
FEW CHANGES TO GOING GRIDS. HAVE BUMPED TEMPS A FEW THROUGH THE
FORECAST PERIOD WITH LATEST GFS TRENDING A BIT FURTHER NORTH WITH
THE BOUNDARY...BUT NOT NEARLY AS MUCH AS ETA HAS BEEN. UNFORTUNATELY
LONG PERIOD OF CHANCE TSRA ABOUT THE ONLY WAY TO GO FOR NOW WITH
TIMING OF INDIVIDUAL SHORTWAVES/CONVECTIVE COMPLEXES IMPOSSIBLE.
CONTINUE TO HOLD ONTO DRY FORECAST WEDNESDAY AS TRANSITION FROM
CURRENT ZONAL PATTERN TO SHARP LONGWAVE TROF IN THE WEST MAY CAP US
IN THE WARM SECTOR. THEN TSRA CHANCES HOLD UNTIL COLD FRONT NEARS
DAY7.
&&

.IWX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
IN...NONE.
MI...NONE.
OH...NONE.
&&

Hazardous weather outlook, May 7, 5:08 AM EST, 2 hours 12 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
508 AM EST FRI MAY 7 2004

INZ003>009-012>018-020-022>027-032>034-MIZ077>081-OHZ001-002-004-005-
015-016-024-025-081007-
ADAMS IN-ALLEN OH-ALLEN IN-BERRIEN MI-BLACKFORD IN-BRANCH MI-CASS MI-
CASS IN-DE KALB IN-DEFIANCE OH-ELKHART IN-FULTON OH-FULTON IN-
GRANT IN-HENRY OH-HILLSDALE MI-HUNTINGTON IN-JAY IN-KOSCIUSKO IN-
LA PORTE IN-LAGRANGE IN-MARSHALL IN-MIAMI IN-NOBLE IN-PAULDING OH-
PULASKI IN-PUTNAM OH-ST. JOSEPH MI-ST. JOSEPH IN-STARKE IN-
STEUBEN IN-VAN WERT OH-WABASH IN-WELLS IN-WHITE IN-WHITLEY IN-
WILLIAMS OH-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...ANGOLA...ARCHBOLD...AUBURN...
BENTON HARBOR...BENTON HEIGHTS...BERNE...BLUFFTON...BREMEN...BRYAN...
BUCHANAN...BUTLER...COLDWATER...COLUMBIA CITY...DECATUR...DEFIANCE...
DELPHOS...DOWAGIAC...DUNKIRK...DUNLAP...ELKHART...FAIR PLAIN...
FAIRMOUNT...FORT SHAWNEE...FORT WAYNE...GARRETT...GAS CITY...
GEORGETOWN...GOSHEN...GRANGER...GRISSOM AFB...GULIVOIRE PARK...
HARTFORD CITY...HICKSVILLE...HILLSDALE...HUNTINGTON...KENDALLVILLE...
KNOX...LA PORTE...LAGRANGE...LIGONIER...LIMA...LOGANSPORT...MARION...
MICHIGAN CITY...MISHAWAKA...MONTICELLO...MONTPELIER...NAPOLEON...
NAPPANEE...NEW HAVEN...NILES...NORTH MANCHESTER...OSSIAN...OTTAWA...
PERU...PLYMOUTH...PORTLAND...ROCHESTER...SIMONTON LAKE...
SOUTH BEND...ST. JOSEPH...STURGIS...SWANTON...SYRACUSE...
THREE RIVERS...TRAIL CREEK...TRI-LAKES...UPLAND...VAN WERT...
WABASH...WARSAW...WAUSEON...WESTVILLE...WINAMAC AND WINONA LAKE
508 AM EST FRI MAY 7 2004

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR NORTHERN INDIANA...NORTHWEST
OHIO AND SOUTHWEST LOWER MICHIGAN.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS TODAY AND TONIGHT. THE STORMS
LATER THIS EVENING INTO EARLY TONIGHT MAY BE SEVERE...WITH LARGE HAIL
THE PRIMARY HAZARD. ISOLATED DAMAGING WIND GUSTS ARE ALSO POSSIBLE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY

THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SATURDAY AND THERE IS A CHANCE THAT THE
STORMS MAY BE SEVERE. ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE SUNDAY
THROUGH TUESDAY AND AGAIN ON THURSDAY.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS EVENING.

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES, OR
CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WWW.CRH.NOAA.GOV/IWX

The radar

The Northern Indiana radar (KIWX), 29 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 12:19 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

14 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Whitley

When: May 7, 7:20 AM EST
Where: Whitley County, 2 mi NE of Columbia City
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.183, -85.450

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 7:32 AM EST
Where: Allen County, 1 mi N of Ft Wayne
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 41.083, -85.133

Hail, Whitley

When: May 7, 7:32 AM EST
Where: Whitley County, 2 mi NW of Columbia City
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.183, -85.517

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 7:34 AM EST
Where: Allen County, 1 mi S of Ft Wayne
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.050, -85.133

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 7:40 AM EST
Where: Allen County, Ft Wayne
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.067, -85.133

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 7:43 AM EST to 7:58 AM EST
Where: Allen County, 1 mi NW of Ft Wayne
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.083, -85.150

Trained spotter reported dime to quarter size hail covering the ground just northwest of Fort Wayne. The hail lasted for about 15 minutes.

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 7:45 AM EST
Where: Allen County, 1 mi NW of Ft Wayne
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: BROADCAST MEDIA
Coordinates: 41.083, -85.150

Hail, Whitley

When: May 7, 7:50 AM EST
Where: Whitley County, Columbia City
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 41.167, -85.483

Thunderstorm Wind, White

When: May 7, 8:03 AM EST
Where: White County, 3 mi S of Wolcott
Measured: 65 kt (75 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 40.717, -87.033

Trained spotter estimated winds of 75 MPH 3 miles south of Wolcott.

Thunderstorm Wind, White

When: May 7, 8:15 AM EST
Where: White County, 1 mi W of Monticello
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 40.750, -86.350

Law enforcement reported numerous trees and power lines down west of Monticello.

Thunderstorm Wind, Cass

When: May 7, 8:34 AM EST
Where: Cass County, Logansport
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 41.067, -85.883

Emergency management reported numerous trees down in Logansport.

Hail, Kosciusko

When: May 7, 8:40 AM EST
Where: Kosciusko County, Silver Lake
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 41.050, -85.150

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 8:56 AM EST
Where: Allen County, 1 mi SW of Ft Wayne
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 40.683, -85.983

Hail, Miami

When: May 7, 9:06 AM EST
Where: Miami County, 6 mi SE of Peru
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 41.067, -85.133

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 9:12 AM EST
Where: Allen County, Ft Wayne
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: AMATEUR RADIO
Coordinates: 40.900, -85.167

Hail, Wells

When: May 7, 9:50 AM EST
Where: Wells County, 1 mi N of Ossian
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 40.967, -84.867

Hail, Allen

When: May 7, 9:55 AM EST
Where: Allen County, Monroeville
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 41.091, -85.067 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Allen

When: May 7, 10:35 AM EST to 11:35 AM EST
Where: Allen forecast zone
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER
Coordinates: 40.750, -86.767

Emergency management reported minor flooding of streets in Fort Wayne and creeks and streams at bankfull across the county.

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.
Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Indiana in 2004 Every state in 2004 This day in weather history Warnings in Indiana, May 2004

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: 5397258, 5397259, 5397260, 5397261, 5397262, 5397263, 5397264, 5397265, 5397266, 5397267, 5397268, 5397269, 5397270, 5397271, 5397272, 5397273, 5397274, 5397275.