Isolated thunderstorms occurred overnight in eastern Nebraska. Although these storms were largely non-severe, one storm did produce a microburst within the Omaha area.
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 OAX wrote it up.
Isolated thunderstorms occurred overnight in eastern Nebraska. Although these storms were largely non-severe, one storm did produce a microburst within the Omaha area. These thunderstorms weakened, but additional thunderstorms developed by mid afternoon along a weak surface trough over central Nebraska. The thunderstorms increased in coverage through the late afternoon and into the evening hours as they generally dropped east and southeast. Isolated occurrences of large hail and damaging winds occurred along the track of these storms. Thunderstorms generally weakened by mid to late evening.
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 Omaha, NE wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 31, 2:38 AM CST, 42 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE 338 AM CDT FRI JUL 31 2015 .SHORT TERM...(TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY) ISSUED AT 334 AM CDT FRI JUL 31 2015 THE CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS AND SEVERE POTENTIAL LATER TODAY AND SATURDAY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES SUNDAY...ARE THE PRIMARY FORECAST CONCERNS. PESKY AREA OF CONVECTION FIRED IN NORTHEAST NEBRASKA LATE LAST EVENING AND HAS PERSISTED INTO THIS MORNING WHILE DRIFTING INTO EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND WEST CENTRAL IOWA. STORMS WERE FIRING IN AREA OF LIFT ON RIGHT ENTRANCE REGION MID LEVEL JET JUXTAPOSED WITH RIBBON OF HIGHER 850 MOISTURE WHERE INHIBITION WAS WEAK. STORMS WERE DIMINISHING AS THEY DRIFTED SOUTHEAST AWAY FROM MOISTURE AND INTO MORE INHIBITION. SHORT RANGE HI-RES MODELS SUGGEST MOST OF THIS ACTIVITY WILL BE GONE BY OR SHORTLY AFTER SUNRISE. MEANWHILE WEAK FRONTAL BOUNDARY IN SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA IS FORECAST TO PROGRESS TOWARD INTERSTATE 80 THIS AFTERNOON. SOUTHERLY FLOW AHEAD WILL DRAW/KEEP MID 60S DEW POINTS IN OUR AREA...AND WITH RELATIVELY COOL MID LEVEL TEMPERATURES...INSTABILITY WILL INCREASE WITH AFTERNOON HEATING AS CAP WEAKENS. THERE IS GOOD CONSENSUS FROM HI-RES MODELS THAT SCATTERED STORMS WILL FIRE BY 20Z OR SO NEAR CONVERGENCE ZONE ALONG FRONTAL BOUNDARY. COVERAGE IS STILL IN QUESTION...BUT COMBINATION OF INSTABILITY AND MODEST SHEAR SUGGESTS AN ISOLATED HAIL/WIND EVENT WILL BE POSSIBLE. EXPECT CONVECTION TO DIMINISH THIS EVENING WITH LOSS OF HEATING. HOWEVER WEAK SHORTWAVE AND ATTENDANT INCREASE IN LOW LEVEL JET IN AN INCREASINGLY MOIST ENVIRONMENT SUGGESTS THERE IS AT LEAST A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR CONVECTION AFTER MIDNIGHT FROM NORTH CENTRAL INTO SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA. AND THOSE COULD LINGER INTO SATURDAY MORNING. BUT BETTER CHANCES COME SATURDAY AFTERNOON WHEN PERHAPS OUR BEST CHANCE FOR SEVERE WILL DEVELOP. SURFACE DEW POINTS ARE FORECAST INTO THE MID AND UPPER 60S FOR MUCH OF THE CWA AHEAD OF FRONTAL BOUNDARY TIED TO SHORTWAVE AND SURFACE LOW TRACKING ACROSS EASTERN SOUTH DAKOTA. WIND FIELDS INCREASE AT THIS TIME AS WELL...CREATING BULK SHEAR IN THE 35 TO 45KT RANGE. IF MORNING CONVECTION REMAINS SPARSE...EXPECT AFTERNOON HEATING TO PRODUCE MOST-UNSTABLE CAPES TOPPING 2500J/KG ALONG/AHEAD OF SURFACE FRONT...FOCUSING GREATEST POTENTIAL IN NORTHEAST NEBRASKA INITIALLY. SUFFICIENT INSTABILITY AND SHEAR WILL EXIST FOR ORGANIZED STORMS AND SUPERCELLS WITH POTENTIAL FOR HAIL/WIND. THIS AREA WILL LIKELY GROW UPSCALE INTO AN MCS...TRACKING SOUTHEAST THROUGH WESTERN IOWA AND EASTERN NEBRASKA SATURDAY EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. STORMS SHOULD BE EAST OF OUR AREA SUNDAY MORNING...WITH WESTERLY LOW LEVEL WIND COMPONENT AND DRIER AIR IN ITS WAKE. 850 TEMPS BY SUNDAY AFTERNOON ARE FORECAST INTO THE MID AND UPPER 20S UNDER A DECENT MIXING REGIME...SUGGESTING HIGHS SUNDAY AFTERNOON WILL RISE WELL INTO THE 90S MOST AREAS. .LONG TERM...(SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY) ISSUED AT 334 AM CDT FRI JUL 31 2015 AN UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN WILL PERSIST THROUGH MUCH OF NEXT WEEK AS NORTHWEST FLOW REMAINS ACROSS THE NORTHERN PLAINS INTO THE OHIO VALLEY. OUR AREA WILL REMAIN ON THE SOUTHWEST FRINGE OF THE STRONGEST MID LEVEL FLOW...WITH SEVERAL SHORTWAVES MARCHING THROUGH THE PLAINS. MEANWHILE...PERSISTENT SURFACE FRONTAL BOUNDARY WILL OSCILLATE NORTH/SOUTH WITH THE PASSAGE OF EACH WAVE...PROVIDING LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE FOR CONVECTION EACH DAY. GFS AND ECMWF BOTH SUPPORT THIS PATTERN...WITH VARYING DEGREES/TIMING OF SHORTWAVE INTRUSION INTO OUR AREA. SO WILL CONTINUE OUR CURRENT FORECAST TREND OF A CHANCE FOR STORMS EACH PERIOD DURING THE LONGER RANGE PERIOD...WITH TEMPERATURES SLIGHTLY COOLER GIVEN PERSISTENT EASTERLY WIND COMPONENT IN LOW LEVEL FLOW. THERE IS SOME INDICATION WESTERN RIDGE WILL PUSH FAR ENOUGH EAST LATER IN THE PERIOD TO PUSH CONVECTION TO OUR NORTHEAST...BUT WILL WAIT FOR FURTHER MODEL CONSISTENCY BEFORE REMOVING POPS FOR THURSDAY. && .AVIATION...(06Z TAFS FOR KOFK...KLNK AND KOMA.) ISSUED AT 1138 PM CDT THU JUL 30 2015 ISO SHRA/TSRA HAVE DEVELOPED BETWEEN KOMA/KOFK THIS EVNG...BUT IT APPEARS UNLIKELY EITHER TAF SITE WILL BE IMPACTED OVERNIGHT OTHER THAN AN INCREASE IN MID-LEVEL CLOUDS. A WEAK BOUNDARY IS STILL EXPECTED TO DROP SWD THRU THE TAF SITES THROUGH THE DAY ON FRI AND WE WILL LIKELY SEE SOME SHRA/TSRA DVLPMNT ALNG THIS BOUNDARY BY MID AFTERNOON ON FRI LIKELY AFFECTING KOMA AND ESPECIALLY KLNK...BUT SOUTH OF KOFK. WE MAY SEE SOME MVFR VISBY IN THIS ACTIVITY. ANY SHRA ACTIVITY SHOULD END BY EARLY EVNG FRI AT THE TAFS. && .OAX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... NE...NONE. IA...NONE. && SHORT TERM...DERGAN LONG TERM...DERGAN AVIATION...BOUSTEAD
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE OMAHA/VALLEY NE 418 AM CDT FRI JUL 31 2015 IAZ043-055-056-069-079-080-090-091-NEZ011-012-015>018-030>034- 042>045-050>053-065>068-078-088>093-312330- MONONA-HARRISON-SHELBY-POTTAWATTAMIE-MILLS-MONTGOMERY-FREMONT- PAGE-KNOX-CEDAR-THURSTON-ANTELOPE-PIERCE-WAYNE-BOONE-MADISON- STANTON-CUMING-BURT-PLATTE-COLFAX-DODGE-WASHINGTON-BUTLER- SAUNDERS-DOUGLAS-SARPY-SEWARD-LANCASTER-CASS-OTOE-SALINE- JEFFERSON-GAGE-JOHNSON-NEMAHA-PAWNEE-RICHARDSON- 418 AM CDT FRI JUL 31 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST IOWA...WEST CENTRAL IOWA...EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA...NORTHEAST NEBRASKA AND SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS IN EAST CENTRAL NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST IOWA ARE EXPECTED TO DISSIPATE EARLY IN THE DAY...WITH SEVERE STORMS NOT EXPECTED. MORE THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO FIRE THIS AFTERNOON AS A WEAK COLD FRONT SLIPS SOUTH INTO THE AREA. SUFFICIENT SHEAR AND INSTABILITY WILL EXIST FOR SOME STRONG STORMS THAT COULD PRODUCE SMALL HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. WIDESPREAD SEVERE STORMS ARE NOT ANTICIPATED. THE MOST LIKELY AREA FOR STORMS TO FIRE WILL BE SOUTH OF A LINE FROM NELIGH TO WEST POINT...TEKAMAH AND HARLAN BEFORE 3 PM...WITH THAT AXIS GRADUALLY WORKING SOUTH TO INTERSTATE 80 BY LATE AFTERNOON...AND INTO SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST IOWA BY EARLY EVENING. MOST OF THE ACTIVITY IS EXPECTED TO DIMINISH AFTER SUNSET. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SATURDAY THROUGH THURSDAY THERE IS A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS BOTH SATURDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT...WITH A CHANCE FOR SEVERE STORMS COVERING MOST OF EASTERN NEBRASKA AND SOUTHWEST IOWA. LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS WILL BE POSSIBLE. THERE COULD BE A FEW THUNDERSTORMS SATURDAY MORNING...BUT THE BETTER CHANCE FOR SEVERE WILL COME SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING WHEN INSTABILITY AND SHEAR WILL BE HIGHEST. THERE ARE ADDITIONAL CHANCES FOR THUNDERSTORMS EACH DAY MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAY. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TONIGHT.
The Omaha radar (KOAX), 30 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 09:18 UTC.
5 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Local media reported on a swatch of wind damage from the Benson to Dundee area of Omaha. Within this zone tree limbs of 3 inches or great were blown down. Some homes had siding partially removed, and over 8800 people were without electrical power.
The observer reported substantial crop damage in the area.
There were also 40 mph winds reported, with combined with the hail produced siding damage and knocked out windows.
Numerous trees and tree limbs were downed in town, some onto power lines. Law enforcement estimated wind gusts to near 70 mph.
Small tree limbs were also reported down in the area.
Some tree limbs were reported downed in town.
Pictures of the hail showed a spike appearance.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Nebraska in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyWarnings in Nebraska, July 2015
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: 586042, 586043, 586046, 586044, 586050, 586054, 586053, 586056, 586063.