May 1997 storm reports: hail, wind and tornadoes
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In May 1997, 1,564 hail, 1,100 damaging-wind and 225 tornado reports were logged on 30 storm days across 44 states. The largest hail reported was 4.50″ (softball size) in Cowley County, KS on May 13, 1997. The most hail reports came on May 1, 1997 (166). Tornadoes killed 29.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Data through November 6, 2026. Methodology
← April 1997 All 1997 storm days June 1997 →
Source: National Storms (nationalstorms.com), CC BY 4.0, data from NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports.
Biggest storm days of May 1997
| Day | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 26, 1997 | 135 | 114 | 29 | 3.50″ | 13 |
| May 18, 1997 | 130 | 116 | 14 | 4.50″ | 15 |
| May 2, 1997 | 123 | 94 | 8 | 3.00″ | 13 |
| May 1, 1997 | 166 | 57 | 1 | 2.75″ | 14 |
| May 27, 1997 | 110 | 76 | 22 | 4.50″ | 9 |
| May 25, 1997 | 71 | 37 | 53 | 3.00″ | 12 |
| May 7, 1997 | 94 | 40 | 17 | 2.75″ | 11 |
| May 3, 1997 | 28 | 114 | 6 | 1.75″ | 9 |
| May 19, 1997 | 16 | 92 | 4 | 1.75″ | 14 |
| May 6, 1997 | 34 | 60 | 3 | 1.75″ | 13 |
Largest hail reported in May 1997
| Day | Size | Location |
|---|---|---|
| May 13, 1997 | 4.50″ (softball) | Cowley County, KS |
| May 17, 1997 | 4.50″ (softball) | Miami County, KS |
| May 18, 1997 | 4.50″ (softball) | Delaware County, IA |
| May 27, 1997 | 4.50″ (softball) | Falls County, TX |
| May 27, 1997 | 4.50″ (softball) | Bell County, TX |
| May 26, 1997 | 3.50″ (teacup) | Lawrence County, AL |
| May 2, 1997 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Wayne County, IA |
| May 8, 1997 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Gaines County, TX |
| May 18, 1997 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Rock Island County, IL |
| May 25, 1997 | 3.00″ (teacup) | Garvin County, OK |
Storm reports by state, May 1997
| State | Hail | Wind | Tornado | Largest hail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 372 | 143 | 60 | 4.50″ |
| Kansas | 250 | 59 | 37 | 4.50″ |
| Oklahoma | 175 | 86 | 43 | 3.00″ |
| Mississippi | 61 | 78 | 8 | 2.75″ |
| Pennsylvania | 19 | 110 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Missouri | 99 | 25 | 3 | 2.75″ |
| Georgia | 51 | 57 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Arkansas | 45 | 58 | 4 | 3.00″ |
| Ohio | 35 | 65 | 3 | 1.75″ |
| Florida | 26 | 49 | 8 | 2.00″ |
| Alabama | 34 | 34 | 6 | 3.50″ |
| Tennessee | 16 | 50 | 2 | 1.75″ |
| Iowa | 47 | 5 | 5 | 4.50″ |
| North Carolina | 25 | 27 | 1 | 1.00″ |
| Louisiana | 24 | 18 | 6 | 2.75″ |
| Michigan | 38 | 10 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Illinois | 20 | 20 | 5 | 3.00″ |
| New Mexico | 35 | 2 | 6 | 2.50″ |
| South Carolina | 16 | 26 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| New York | 6 | 35 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Virginia | 21 | 18 | 1 | 2.75″ |
| Idaho | 21 | 13 | 4 | 1.75″ |
| Colorado | 31 | 1 | 2 | 1.75″ |
| New Jersey | 6 | 24 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Nebraska | 16 | 1 | 6 | 1.75″ |
| Washington | 11 | 8 | 4 | 2.00″ |
| West Virginia | 6 | 11 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| Indiana | 3 | 10 | 3 | 2.00″ |
| Kentucky | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0.88″ |
| Maryland | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| North Dakota | 2 | 11 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Montana | 1 | 11 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| South Dakota | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1.00″ |
| California | 1 | 5 | 4 | 0.75″ |
| Connecticut | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Arizona | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Wisconsin | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Massachusetts | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0.88″ |
| Wyoming | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1.75″ |
| Delaware | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Minnesota | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.88″ |
| New Hampshire | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.75″ |
| Oregon | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.75″ |
| Vermont | 0 | 2 | 0 | – |
Every storm day in May 1997
May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 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.