May 1980 storm reports: hail, wind and tornadoes
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In May 1980, 452 hail, 424 damaging-wind and 203 tornado reports were logged on 31 storm days across 39 states. The largest hail reported was 5.50″ (softball size) in McClain County, OK on May 1, 1980. The most hail reports came on May 29, 1980 (55). Tornadoes killed 8.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Data through November 6, 2026. Methodology
← April 1980 All 1980 storm days June 1980 →
Source: National Storms (nationalstorms.com), CC BY 4.0, data from NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports.
Biggest storm days of May 1980
| Day | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 29, 1980 | 55 | 56 | 40 | 2.75″ | 12 |
| May 26, 1980 | 54 | 28 | 7 | 2.75″ | 11 |
| May 25, 1980 | 31 | 26 | 18 | 4.50″ | 13 |
| May 13, 1980 | 19 | 49 | 4 | 1.75″ | 10 |
| May 31, 1980 | 40 | 22 | 10 | 4.50″ | 10 |
| May 28, 1980 | 24 | 23 | 15 | 5.00″ | 9 |
| May 15, 1980 | 19 | 26 | 12 | 1.75″ | 5 |
| May 30, 1980 | 12 | 31 | 10 | 2.00″ | 12 |
| May 12, 1980 | 18 | 21 | 11 | 1.75″ | 10 |
| May 1, 1980 | 27 | 8 | 6 | 5.50″ | 3 |
Largest hail reported in May 1980
| Day | Size | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 1, 1980 | 5.50″ (softball) | McClain County, OK |
| May 28, 1980 | 5.00″ (softball) | Castro County, TX |
| May 16, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Gonzales County, TX |
| May 25, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Knox County, TX |
| May 27, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Hartley County, TX |
| May 28, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Roberts County, TX |
| May 31, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Shawnee County, KS |
| May 31, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Harlan County, NE |
| May 31, 1980 | 4.50″ (softball) | Phillips County, KS |
| May 31, 1980 | 3.50″ (teacup) | Harlan County, NE |
Storm reports by state, May 1980
| State | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 169 | 112 | 44 | 5.00″ |
| Nebraska | 47 | 22 | 10 | 4.50″ |
| Oklahoma | 51 | 19 | 9 | 5.50″ |
| Ohio | 20 | 37 | 2 | 2.75″ |
| Kansas | 32 | 13 | 12 | 4.50″ |
| Iowa | 9 | 27 | 9 | 2.75″ |
| Missouri | 16 | 17 | 7 | 1.75″ |
| Florida | 5 | 11 | 13 | 2.75″ |
| Alabama | 7 | 14 | 7 | 2.00″ |
| North Dakota | 6 | 19 | 3 | 2.00″ |
| South Dakota | 9 | 4 | 15 | 2.75″ |
| Georgia | 7 | 10 | 10 | 3.00″ |
| Minnesota | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2.75″ |
| Louisiana | 4 | 15 | 5 | 1.75″ |
| Pennsylvania | 5 | 15 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Michigan | 1 | 14 | 5 | 1.00″ |
| Wisconsin | 10 | 6 | 4 | 2.00″ |
| Mississippi | 4 | 8 | 7 | 1.75″ |
| Illinois | 4 | 8 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Indiana | 7 | 7 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Colorado | 4 | 2 | 7 | 1.75″ |
| Montana | 1 | 6 | 4 | 1.75″ |
| Arkansas | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| North Carolina | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Wyoming | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1.00″ |
| California | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2.25″ |
| Kentucky | 1 | 5 | 0 | 1.50″ |
| New York | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1.50″ |
| Tennessee | 0 | 4 | 2 | – |
| South Carolina | 0 | 0 | 5 | – |
| Virginia | 0 | 2 | 1 | – |
| West Virginia | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Arizona | 0 | 1 | 1 | – |
| Maryland | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| Vermont | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Delaware | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| New Mexico | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Utah | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Washington | 0 | 0 | 1 | – |
Every storm day in May 1980
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.