May 1974 storm reports: hail, wind and tornadoes
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In May 1974, 456 hail, 362 damaging-wind and 146 tornado reports were logged on 31 storm days across 38 states. The largest hail reported was 4.50″ (softball size) in Potter County, TX on May 4, 1974. The most hail reports came on May 13, 1974 (43). Tornadoes killed 10.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Data through November 6, 2026. Methodology
← April 1974 All 1974 storm days June 1974 →
Source: National Storms (nationalstorms.com), CC BY 4.0, data from NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports.
Biggest storm days of May 1974
| Day | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 30, 1974 | 41 | 43 | 10 | 2.75″ | 12 |
| May 13, 1974 | 43 | 29 | 11 | 4.50″ | 7 |
| May 25, 1974 | 31 | 26 | 4 | 3.00″ | 7 |
| May 17, 1974 | 26 | 22 | 4 | 2.00″ | 13 |
| May 11, 1974 | 2 | 27 | 19 | 1.75″ | 7 |
| May 28, 1974 | 25 | 17 | 2 | 3.00″ | 8 |
| May 23, 1974 | 31 | 8 | 3 | 2.75″ | 9 |
| May 12, 1974 | 1 | 27 | 10 | 0.75″ | 12 |
| May 4, 1974 | 25 | 6 | 6 | 4.50″ | 8 |
| May 20, 1974 | 21 | 8 | 7 | 4.50″ | 9 |
Largest hail reported in May 1974
| Day | Size | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 4, 1974 | 4.50″ (softball) | Potter County, TX |
| May 13, 1974 | 4.50″ (softball) | Stafford County, KS |
| May 20, 1974 | 4.50″ (softball) | Lyman County, SD |
| May 3, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Crockett County, TX |
| May 3, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Reagan County, TX |
| May 4, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Lafayette County, AR |
| May 16, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Scott County, IA |
| May 20, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Cherry County, NE |
| May 24, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Lubbock County, TX |
| May 24, 1974 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Lynn County, TX |
Storm reports by state, May 1974
| State | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kansas | 135 | 25 | 10 | 4.50″ |
| Texas | 68 | 29 | 20 | 4.50″ |
| Iowa | 41 | 36 | 10 | 3.00″ |
| Nebraska | 41 | 26 | 7 | 3.00″ |
| Florida | 15 | 16 | 25 | 1.75″ |
| Missouri | 22 | 28 | 4 | 3.00″ |
| Oklahoma | 26 | 17 | 9 | 2.75″ |
| Illinois | 20 | 20 | 6 | 1.75″ |
| Arkansas | 16 | 17 | 3 | 3.00″ |
| Louisiana | 13 | 12 | 5 | 2.75″ |
| South Dakota | 9 | 8 | 7 | 4.50″ |
| Georgia | 6 | 11 | 5 | 1.75″ |
| Michigan | 4 | 14 | 2 | 1.75″ |
| Ohio | 1 | 12 | 5 | 0.75″ |
| North Dakota | 3 | 6 | 5 | 1.75″ |
| South Carolina | 1 | 11 | 2 | 1.50″ |
| Maryland | 0 | 11 | 2 | – |
| Minnesota | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2.75″ |
| Colorado | 4 | 3 | 4 | 1.75″ |
| Tennessee | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Alabama | 5 | 4 | 1 | 2.75″ |
| Indiana | 1 | 6 | 2 | 2.75″ |
| North Carolina | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0.75″ |
| Wisconsin | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Kentucky | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Mississippi | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0.75″ |
| New Mexico | 0 | 3 | 3 | – |
| New York | 0 | 6 | 0 | – |
| Delaware | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1.50″ |
| Wyoming | 0 | 4 | 0 | – |
| New Jersey | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Montana | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Virginia | 0 | 1 | 1 | – |
| California | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Connecticut | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Massachusetts | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| West Virginia | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
Every storm day in May 1974
May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 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 18 May 19 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.