Hail History

Hail history for Benton County, Iowa

Every NOAA hail report filed in Benton County since 1963, with preliminary National Weather Service reports to November 3, 2026.

Readout · Benton County

Last hail
Aug 11, 2026
0.88 in, nickel size · preliminary
Hail days, last 5 years
13
since Nov 3, 2021 · 37 reports
Largest ever
4.00 in
grapefruit · May 11, 1970

278 reports on 128 days since 1963 · #7 of 100 Iowa counties

Hail map · Benton County

Vinton Belle Plaine Van Horne Urbana Norway Shellsburg Garrison Keystone Atkins Walford 25 mi
  • Under 1 in
  • 1–1.75 in
  • 1.75–2.5 in
  • 2.5–4 in
  • 4 in +
  • No size
260 most recent reports with a location. Dot size and colour follow hail size. Open street map

For homeowners

Concerned about your roof after hail?

Send a request to Moxisync Labs for review. The latest hail report in Benton County is from August 11, 2026. We’re building local roofer coverage. Submitting a request does not guarantee a quote or book an inspection.

Phone line opening soon

What would a claim cost you? Try the hail claim calculator

Roofer? Get hail alerts for your area with StormScope

What the record says about Benton County

The latest hail report in Benton County is from August 11, 2026, 0.88 in (nickel size). Since November 3, 2021 there have been 13 separate hail days; the biggest stones in that time were 2.00 in on April 14, 2026.

Over the 20 years 2006–2025, Benton County logged 178 reports on 75 hail days, about 8.9 reports a year. That is about twice the median Iowa county (3.7 a year) and ranks #7 of 100 Iowa counties for all-time reports. Benton County holds 2% of all 16,032 hail reports in Iowa.

4% of reports with a size were 2 inches (hen egg) or larger, against 7% for the median Iowa county. The largest hail on record here is 4.00 in (grapefruit) on May 11, 1970.

Reports were down 49% in 2016–2025 (60) compared with 2006–2015 (118). The busiest year was 2006, with 30 reports on 5 days. Hail here peaks in June (27% of reports); 71% fall between April and June.

Reports a year 2006–2025 average

  • Benton County 8.9
  • Median Iowa county 3.7

Hail days 2006–2025

  • Benton County 75
  • Median Iowa county 39.5

Share 2 in or larger of sized reports

  • Benton County 4%
  • Median Iowa county 7%

Hail over time

0102030 1963: 1 reports, largest 0.75 in 1965: 1 reports, largest 1.50 in 1970: 1 reports, largest 4.00 in 1970 1971: 3 reports, largest 3.00 in 1974: 3 reports, largest 2.00 in 1977: 1 reports, largest 2.75 in 1980 1984: 2 reports, largest 2.75 in 1986: 1 reports, largest 1.75 in 1987: 4 reports, largest 1.00 in 1988: 1 reports, largest 3.00 in 1990 1991: 2 reports, largest 0.75 in 1992: 1 reports, largest 1.75 in 1994: 6 reports, largest 1.50 in 1995: 6 reports, largest 1.75 in 1997: 7 reports, largest 1.75 in 1998: 7 reports, largest 1.75 in 1999: 2 reports, largest 1.50 in 2000: 5 reports, largest 1.75 in 2000 2001: 3 reports, largest 1.00 in 2002: 3 reports, largest 1.00 in 2003: 9 reports, largest 1.75 in 2004: 10 reports, largest 1.75 in 2005: 9 reports, largest 1.00 in 2006: 30 reports, largest 2.50 in 2007: 11 reports, largest 1.00 in 2008: 21 reports, largest 1.00 in 2009: 5 reports, largest 1.00 in 2010: 8 reports, largest 1.00 in 2010 2011: 18 reports, largest 1.75 in 2012: 6 reports, largest 1.00 in 2013: 7 reports, largest 1.25 in 2014: 6 reports, largest 1.75 in 2015: 6 reports, largest 1.00 in 2016: 2 reports, largest 0.75 in 2017: 10 reports, largest 1.00 in 2018: 3 reports, largest 1.25 in 2019: 2 reports, largest 0.88 in 2020: 16 reports, largest 2.00 in 2020 2021: 2 reports, largest 1.00 in 2022: 1 reports, largest 1.00 in 2023: 21 reports, largest 1.75 in 2024: 1 reports, largest 1.25 in 2025: 2 reports, largest 0.88 in 2026: 12 reports, largest 2.00 in
Reports per year, 1963–2026. Bar colour shows the largest hail that year. Reporting grew sharply after the mid-1990s, so early decades undercount.
020406080 January: 3 reports (1%) Jan February: 3 reports (1%) Feb March: 15 reports (5%) Mar April: 65 reports (23%) Apr May: 58 reports (21%) May June: 74 reports (27%) Jun July: 32 reports (12%) Jul August: 12 reports (4%) Aug September: 8 reports (3%) Sep October: 7 reports (3%) Oct Nov December: 1 reports (0%) Dec
All 278 reports by calendar month.
Reports per month, 2017–2026. Darker cells had more reports.
YearJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecTotal
2026 93 12
2025 11 2
2024 1 1
2023 57513 21
2022 1 1
2021 2 2
2020 2131 16
2019 11 2
2018 12 3
2017 46 10

Hail days since Nov 3, 2021

DateReportsLargestStorm page
Aug 11, 2026 3 1.00 in View
Apr 15, 2026 1 1.00 in —
Apr 14, 2026 8 2.00 in —
Jul 11, 2025 1 0.88 in —
Apr 17, 2025 1 0.88 in —
Jul 15, 2024 1 1.25 in —
Oct 11, 2023 3 1.50 in —
Jul 13, 2023 1 1.00 in —
May 7, 2023 5 1.75 in —
Apr 19, 2023 2 1.00 in —
Apr 4, 2023 5 1.00 in —
Mar 31, 2023 5 1.00 in —
Aug 19, 2022 1 1.00 in —

Largest hail on record

Largest hail reports in Benton County
Date Size Location Time · source
May 11, 1970 4.00 ingrapefruit — 18:30 local · NCEI
Aug 8, 1988 3.00 inteacup — 15:25 local · NCEI
May 31, 1971 3.00 inteacup — 20:15 local · NCEI
Sep 24, 1984 2.75 inbaseball — 17:18 local · NCEI
Sep 24, 1984 2.75 inbaseball — 17:02 local · NCEI

Sizes filed before 1996 are often rough estimates (round numbers like 7.00 or 8.00 in) without an exact spot; they are shown as NOAA filed them.

Size of every report

Most recent reports

Most recent hail reports in Benton County
Date Size Location Time · source
Aug 11, 2026 0.88 innickel 1 W Belle Plaine 09:55 UTC · NWS prelim.
Aug 11, 2026 1.00 inquarter Belle Plaine 09:41 UTC · NWS prelim.
Aug 11, 2026 1.00 inquarter 1 S Belle Plaine 09:40 UTC · NWS prelim.
Apr 15, 2026 1.00 inquarter 3.45 S Vinton 16:31 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 2.00 inhen egg 0.86 SW Van Horne 16:25 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.00 inquarter 4.27 NNW Blairstown 16:24 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.25 inhalf dollar 3.38 WSW Newhall 16:23 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.75 ingolf ball 0.86 SW Van Horne 16:22 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.00 inquarter 0.51 W Urbana 16:16 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.00 inquarter 2.07 NW Vinton Meml Arpt 16:11 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.00 inquarter 1.38 S Vinton 16:09 local · NCEI
Apr 14, 2026 1.00 inquarter 0.51 E Belle Plaine 16:06 local · NCEI

Cities and towns in Benton County

PlaceReportsLargest
Vinton393.00 in
Belle Plaine291.50 in
Van Horne242.00 in
Urbana221.75 in
Norway171.75 in
Shellsburg172.00 in
Garrison141.75 in
Keystone141.50 in
Atkins121.75 in
Walford112.75 in
Mount Auburn101.75 in

Smaller places with fewer than 10 reports

These places have too few reports for a page of their own, so their record lives here.

PlaceReportsHail daysLatest
Newhall76Jul 11, 2020
Blairstown54Mar 31, 2007
Luzerne54May 7, 2023
Watkins44Jun 14, 2008
Lisbon33Apr 13, 2006

Questions about hail in Benton County

How often does it hail in Benton County, Iowa?

278 hail reports have been logged in Benton County since 1963. Over the 20 years 2006–2025 that averages 8.9 reports a year. That ranks #7 of 100 Iowa counties by number of reports.

When is hail season in Benton County?

Most reports come in June, April, May. June alone accounts for 27% of all reports.

What is the largest hail recorded in Benton County?

4.00 in (grapefruit size) on May 11, 1970. 4% of reports here were 2 inches or larger.

When did it last hail in Benton County?

The most recent report in this data is from August 11, 2026 (0.88 in). Final NOAA data runs to July 31, 2026; preliminary NWS reports run to November 3, 2026.

How many hail storms has Benton County had in the last five years?

13 separate days with hail reports since November 3, 2021, adding up to 37 reports. The most recent was August 11, 2026.

Where does this hail data come from?

Hail reports come from the NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, which the National Weather Service compiles from spotter, public, law enforcement and media reports. Recent days use preliminary NWS Local Storm Reports via the Iowa Environmental Mesonet until NOAA publishes final data. Only reported hail is counted, so areas with fewer people tend to have fewer reports.