May 1981 storm reports: hail, wind and tornadoes
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In May 1981, 400 hail, 266 damaging-wind and 187 tornado reports were logged on 31 storm days across 39 states. The largest hail reported was 4.50″ (softball size) in Stevens County, KS on May 7, 1981. The most hail reports came on May 18, 1981 (52).
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Data through November 6, 2026. Methodology
← April 1981 All 1981 storm days June 1981 →
Source: National Storms (nationalstorms.com), CC BY 4.0, data from NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports.
Biggest storm days of May 1981
| Day | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 18, 1981 | 52 | 32 | 9 | 2.75″ | 9 |
| May 23, 1981 | 25 | 23 | 28 | 2.75″ | 7 |
| May 9, 1981 | 32 | 20 | 18 | 1.75″ | 4 |
| May 13, 1981 | 26 | 25 | 13 | 3.00″ | 4 |
| May 8, 1981 | 37 | 18 | 5 | 3.00″ | 4 |
| May 15, 1981 | 21 | 22 | 10 | 4.50″ | 8 |
| May 17, 1981 | 23 | 0 | 20 | 3.00″ | 4 |
| May 22, 1981 | 19 | 9 | 15 | 1.75″ | 8 |
| May 7, 1981 | 24 | 4 | 12 | 4.50″ | 5 |
| May 28, 1981 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 2.00″ | 8 |
Largest hail reported in May 1981
| Day | Size | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 7, 1981 | 4.50″ (softball) | Stevens County, KS |
| May 12, 1981 | 4.50″ (softball) | Newton County, AR |
| May 15, 1981 | 4.50″ (softball) | Concho County, TX |
| May 8, 1981 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Parker County, TX |
| May 13, 1981 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Le Flore County, OK |
| May 15, 1981 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Concho County, TX |
| May 15, 1981 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Burleson County, TX |
| May 17, 1981 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Okfuskee County, OK |
| May 6, 1981 | 2.75″ (baseball) | Sherman County, TX |
| May 7, 1981 | 2.75″ (baseball) | Midland County, TX |
Storm reports by state, May 1981
| State | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 183 | 89 | 71 | 4.50″ |
| Oklahoma | 41 | 15 | 44 | 3.00″ |
| Kansas | 55 | 8 | 14 | 4.50″ |
| Arkansas | 29 | 20 | 8 | 4.50″ |
| Louisiana | 10 | 26 | 5 | 1.75″ |
| Missouri | 13 | 13 | 4 | 2.75″ |
| Kentucky | 9 | 19 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Colorado | 9 | 7 | 5 | 2.00″ |
| Iowa | 6 | 1 | 10 | 1.75″ |
| Mississippi | 7 | 9 | 1 | 2.50″ |
| Florida | 2 | 2 | 10 | 1.75″ |
| Georgia | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Minnesota | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Tennessee | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1.75″ |
| Alabama | 1 | 6 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Indiana | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Virginia | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| North Carolina | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Nebraska | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Ohio | 0 | 5 | 0 | – |
| Illinois | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1.50″ |
| Pennsylvania | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| South Carolina | 0 | 3 | 1 | – |
| South Dakota | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Idaho | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Montana | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| West Virginia | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1.50″ |
| Arizona | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| Maryland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| New Mexico | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| New York | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Oregon | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Wisconsin | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
| California | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Delaware | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| Michigan | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
| North Dakota | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Utah | 0 | 0 | 1 | – |
| Wyoming | 0 | 1 | 0 | – |
Every storm day in May 1981
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.