A round of severe thunderstorms moved through central and southern portions of central Indiana on 24 May 2006. Isolated marginally severe hail occurred, with most reports being of wind damage.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS IND wrote it up.
A round of severe thunderstorms moved through central and southern portions of central Indiana on 24 May 2006. Isolated marginally severe hail occurred, with most reports being of wind damage.
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 Indianapolis, IN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 24, 4:05 PM EST, 2 hours 25 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 505 PM EDT WED MAY 24 2006 .AVIATION DISCUSSION...THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX DEVELOPING ACROSS IL SHOULD CONTINUE TO ORGANIZE AND MOVE EAST ACROSS CENTRAL INDIANA IN THE 00Z TO 06Z TIME FRAME TONIGHT. AS A RESULT, I WILL ADD A TEMPO GROUP TO ALL TAF SITES FOR IFR VIS AND MVFR CIGS FOR THE STORMS. THERE COULD BE SOME STRATUS THAT DEVELOPS AFTER 06Z TONIGHT BUT SIGNALS ARE NOT STRONG AND SATELLITE SHOWS NO STRATOCU FROM THE GULF NORTH INTO IL. HOWEVER, MUCH DEPENDS ON THE EVOLUTION OF THE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS IL. THIS MAY LEAD TO A LARGER AREA OF STRATUS IF A LARGER COMPLEX CAN ORGANIZE. EXPECT A BREAK IN THE PRECIP AFTER 06Z THROUGH 15Z THURS. EXPECT MORE STORMS TO DEVELOP BETWEEN 15Z AND 18Z THURS AS A COLD FRONT MOVES ACROSS THE AREA. && .PREV DISCUSSION...FORECAST FOCUS FOR TODAY WAS THREAT OF THUNDERSTORMS AND SEVERE POTENTIAL TODAY AND TOMORROW. SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWED THAT A WARM FRONT HAD SET UP ROUGHLY BETWEEN KHUF AND KORD AT 19Z. ALOFT...AN H5 CUTOFF LOW COULD BE SEEN ACROSS THE EASTERN DAKOTAS WITH RIDGING IN PLACE OVER INDIANA...BUT THIS RIDGING WAS BEING PUSHED EASTWARD THROUGHOUT THE DAY. MODELS WERE FAIRLY SIMILAR IN THEIR INITIALIZATION AND HANDLING OF THE MAJOR FEATURES...BUT THE GFS MODEL APPEARS TO SUFFER FROM CONVECTIVE FEEDBACK BEGINNING TONIGHT AND INTO TOMORROW. SO TRENDED MORE TOWARDS A NAM/ECMWF BLEND FOR NEARLY ALL PERIODS OF THE FORECAST. MOS GUIDANCE TEMPERATURES WERE VERY SIMILAR AND A BLEND WAS USED. FOR TONIGHT...THE UPPER LOW OVER THE EASTERN DAKOTAS WILL MOVE EASTWARD. THIS WILL HELP TO ADVECT MOISTURE AND WARMER AIRMASS INTO THE AREA. A STRONG DRY SLOT COULD BE SEEN ON WATER VAPOR AND IS MOVING SHARPLY EAST...PROVIDING A FORCING MECHANISM FOR THUNDERSTORMS TO EVENTUALLY REACH THE FORECAST AREA LATER THIS AFTERNOON AND THIS EVENING. HAVE INCREASED POPS INTO THE LIKELY CATEGORY OVERNIGHT. A STRONG THETA E AXIS TO CROSS THE AREA ACCOMPANIED WITH SURFACE MOISTURE ADVECTION HELPING TO BRING A MORE TROPICAL AIRMASS. THERE SHOULD BE A WEAK LLJ OF 25 KTS TO HELP BRING IN THE AIRMASS CHANGE. PERHAPS A THREAT FOR SEVERE WEATHER IN WESTERN AREAS WITH CLOSER PROXIMITY TO THE UPPER LOW AND HELPING TO PROVIDE BETTER SHEAR AND A MORE UNSTABLE AIRMASS ARRIVING THIS EVENING. LOW TEMPERATURES TONIGHT WILL REMAIN VERY MILD AS DEWPOINTS SHOULD EASILY REACH INTO THE MID 60S AS PER UPSTREAM OBSERVATIONS. MOS GUIDANCE SHOWED LOW/MID 60S FOR LOWS AND THIS WAS REASONABLE. TOMORROW...A DRY SLOT SHOULD WRAP IN OVER THE AREA EARLY IN THE DAY AND HELP TO BRING LESS OF A CHANCE FOR ACTIVITY FROM THE MORNING INTO AFTERNOON...WITH INCREASING CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS AFTER THAT TIME AS UPPER LOW WILL DRIFT ACROSS SOUTHERN LAKE MICHIGAN AND A SURFACE LOW SHOULD TRAIL A COLD FRONT INTO THE MIDWEST BY EVENING HOURS. HIGHS IN THE MID 80S WITH 850 MB TEMPERATURES APPROACHING +18C BY EVENING. TOMORROW NIGHT UPPER LOW AND SURFACE SYSTEM WILL SLOWLY MOVE INTO SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN AND LEAVE TROUGHINESS OVER INDIANA. SUSTAINED LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS SHOULD EXIT EAST BY EARLY FRIDAY. LOW TEMPERATURES REMAINING IN THE 60S WITH WARM AIRMASS NOT REALLY DISLODGED BY THE COLD FRONT TO ANY GREAT DEGREE. FRIDAY...UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL REMAIN OVER THE AREA AS SEEN IN 850-500 MB HEIGHTS. SO HAVE ALLOWED CHANCE FOR SHOWERS AND STORMS TO REMAIN...ESPECIALLY ACROSS NORTHEAST PARTS OF THE FORECAST AREA. SHOULD BEGIN TO DIMINISH AFTER 00Z WITH THE H5 RIDGE BUILDING IN SHARPLY FROM THE WEST AND ENDING THE CYCLONIC FLOW ALOFT. HIGH TEMPERATURES TO BE A BIT COOLER THAN THURSDAY WITH CLOUDS IN THE NORTHEAST POTION...BUT REMAINING MILD FARTHER SOUTHWEST WITH LITTLE CHANGE TO THE AIRMASS. FRIDAY NIGHT...RIDGE WILL BUILD IN AND HELP TO CLEAR SKIES OUT. SOUNDINGS ARE SHOWING A STRONG SURFACE INVERSION DEVELOPING UNDERNEATH OF MID LEVEL DRYING ASSOCIATED WITH THE H5 RIDGE. HIGH SURFACE DEWPOINTS WILL BE IN PLACE...SO HAVE ADDED PATCHY FOG MENTION FOR THE OVERNIGHT HOURS AND LOWS WILL CONTINUE TO REMAIN ABOVE NORMAL AND INTO THE 60S. FOR SATURDAY AND SUNDAY...THE VERY STRONG H5 RIDGE WILL BUILD IN AND ECMWF H85 TEMPS WILL REMAIN IN THE UPPER TEENS SO HIGHS IN THE MID TO UPPER 80S WILL BE QUITE LIKELY WITH LITTLE OF A PRECIP THREAT IN THE FORECAST. PERHAPS APPROACHING THE LOW 90S IN THE FAR SOUTHWEST PARTS OF THE FORECAST AREA. EXTENDED TO REMAIN HOT AND SOMEWHAT HUMID UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF A VERY STRONG H5 RIDGE...ONLY CHANGE WAS TO BUMP TEMPS UP A BIT. && .IND WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NONE. && PUBLIC...LAJ/BTS AVIATION...JEH
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE INDIANAPOLIS IN 431 PM EDT WED MAY 24 2006 INZ021-028>031-035>040-043>048-051>056-060>064-067>071-252045- CARROLL-WARREN-TIPPECANOE-CLINTON-HOWARD-FOUNTAIN-MONTGOMERY- BOONE-TIPTON-HAMILTON-MADISON-VERMILLION-PARKE-PUTNAM-HENDRICKS- MARION-HANCOCK-VIGO-CLAY-OWEN-MORGAN-JOHNSON-SHELBY-SULLIVAN- GREENE-MONROE-BROWN-BARTHOLOMEW-KNOX-DAVIESS-MARTIN-LAWRENCE- JACKSON- 331 PM CDT WED MAY 24 2006 /431 PM EDT WED MAY 24 2006/ THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE FROM LATE THIS EVENING INTO EARLY THURSDAY MORNING. LARGE HAIL IS THE MOST LIKELY THREAT. DAMAGING WINDS WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY. AFTER THAT...THE WEATHER SHOULD BE QUIET INTO TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED TONIGHT AND AGAIN FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY AFTERNOON. && THIS PRODUCT IS NOW AVAILABLE IN GRAPHICAL FORMAT...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE INFORMATION...AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/IND (ALL LOWERCASE) INZ041-042-049-057-065-072-252045- DELAWARE-RANDOLPH-HENRY-RUSH-DECATUR-JENNINGS- 431 PM EDT WED MAY 24 2006 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL INDIANA. .DAY ONE...TONIGHT. THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE LATE THIS EVENING INTO THURSDAY MORNING. THEY ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BECOME SEVERE...BUT SOME MAY PRODUCE GUSTY WINDS OR SMALL HAIL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY. SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY. AFTER THAT...THE WEATHER SHOULD BE QUIET INTO TUESDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THURSDAY AND FRIDAY. && THIS PRODUCT IS NOW AVAILABLE IN GRAPHICAL FORMAT...ALONG WITH OTHER WEATHER...HYDROLOGICAL AND CLIMATE INFORMATION...AT HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/IND (ALL LOWERCASE) JK
The Indianapolis radar (KIND), 100 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 23:28 UTC.
18 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.
Windows were blown out of a building in downtown Terre Haute. Several trees were also downed in city streets.
Power lines were downed.
A healthy 6-inch diameter tree was downed.
Trees were downed.
Trees were downed.
Trees were downed.
More windows were blown out of the building that was damaged at 6:30 PM EST.
A semi truck was blown over.
A tree fell on a trailer.
Downed trees and power lines were widespread in Freelandville.
Numerous trees were downed.
Several trees were downed.
Large tree branches were broken off.
Trees and power lines were downed.
Trees were downed near Highway 231.
Trees were downed countywide.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Indiana in 2006Every state in 2006This day in weather historyWarnings in Indiana, May 2006
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: 5505360, 5505361, 5505362, 5505414, 5505415, 5505416, 5505417, 5505418, 5505419, 5505420, 5505421, 5505422, 5505423, 5505424, 5505425, 5505426, 5505427, 5505428, 5505429.