May 1970 storm reports: hail, wind and tornadoes
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In May 1970, 189 hail, 194 damaging-wind and 90 tornado reports were logged on 25 storm days across 36 states. The largest hail reported was 4.00″ (grapefruit size) in Sedgwick County, KS on May 10, 1970. The most hail reports came on May 12, 1970 (24). Tornadoes killed 26.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Data through November 6, 2026. Methodology
← April 1970 All 1970 storm days June 1970 →
Source: National Storms (nationalstorms.com), CC BY 4.0, data from NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports.
Biggest storm days of May 1970
| Day | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 9, 1970 | 21 | 16 | 9 | 3.00″ | 6 |
| May 12, 1970 | 24 | 14 | 6 | 4.00″ | 11 |
| May 24, 1970 | 16 | 18 | 5 | 2.00″ | 15 |
| May 10, 1970 | 24 | 10 | 3 | 4.00″ | 6 |
| May 25, 1970 | 4 | 26 | 6 | 1.75″ | 15 |
| May 11, 1970 | 19 | 8 | 8 | 4.00″ | 7 |
| May 13, 1970 | 7 | 16 | 5 | 2.00″ | 7 |
| May 14, 1970 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 2.00″ | 6 |
| May 23, 1970 | 9 | 13 | 2 | 2.00″ | 9 |
| May 15, 1970 | 4 | 9 | 7 | 1.75″ | 7 |
Largest hail reported in May 1970
| Day | Size | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 10, 1970 | 4.00″ (grapefruit) | Sedgwick County, KS |
| May 11, 1970 | 4.00″ (grapefruit) | Benton County, IA |
| May 11, 1970 | 4.00″ (grapefruit) | Lubbock County, TX |
| May 12, 1970 | 4.00″ (grapefruit) | Beckham County, OK |
| May 12, 1970 | 4.00″ (grapefruit) | Beckham County, OK |
| May 11, 1970 | 3.50″ (teacup) | Lincoln County, KS |
| May 11, 1970 | 3.50″ (teacup) | Custer County, NE |
| May 28, 1970 | 3.50″ (teacup) | Carson County, TX |
| May 8, 1970 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Barton County, KS |
| May 9, 1970 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Labette County, KS |
Storm reports by state, May 1970
| State | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 28 | 18 | 23 | 4.00″ |
| Kansas | 30 | 15 | 10 | 4.00″ |
| Iowa | 16 | 24 | 8 | 4.00″ |
| Missouri | 27 | 12 | 5 | 3.00″ |
| Ohio | 11 | 21 | 6 | 1.75″ |
| Nebraska | 15 | 4 | 1 | 3.50″ |
| Illinois | 4 | 12 | 2 | 1.75″ |
| Indiana | 4 | 9 | 5 | 2.00″ |
| Oklahoma | 9 | 3 | 5 | 4.00″ |
| Wisconsin | 2 | 10 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Maryland | 3 | 8 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Pennsylvania | 4 | 7 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Michigan | 4 | 4 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Mississippi | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Georgia | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1.00″ |
| Louisiana | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1.00″ |
| South Dakota | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2.75″ |
| Tennessee | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Alabama | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Florida | 0 | 4 | 1 | – |
| Kentucky | 0 | 5 | 0 | – |
| Minnesota | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| North Carolina | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| New Mexico | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1.00″ |
| Colorado | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Montana | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Utah | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Virginia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Wyoming | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2.75″ |
| Arkansas | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| North Dakota | 0 | 2 | 1 | – |
| Nevada | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| New York | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| South Carolina | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.75″ |
| West Virginia | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| Oregon | 0 | 0 | 1 | – |
Every storm day in May 1970
May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 May 11 May 12 May 13 May 14 May 15 May 16 May 17 May 20 May 21 May 22 May 23 May 24 May 25 May 26 May 27 May 28 May 29 May 30 May 31
A storm day runs 7 a.m. to 7 a.m. Eastern (12:00–12:00 UTC), the convention the Storm Prediction Center uses. Read more about NOAA storm reports.