Hail This Week in Alabama may be a State Record

news image
Special Stories
22 Mar 2018 10:37 PM
A hailstone measuring more than 5 inches at its thickets point and weighing in at more than a half-pound may be Alabama's largest on record. The hailstone was collected by Cullman Tribune reporter W.C. Mann Monday night after severe thunderstorms pelted Cullman county with destructive hail. The day after on Tuesday, National Weather Service meteorologists from the Huntsville office were out surveying tornado damage and gathering data. But they also stopped by the community of Walter, Alabama to view this hailstone. NWS Huntsville wrote a summary about the hailstone saying that there is no official record for largest hail in Alabama, but combing through "Storm Data" they found the largest diameter to be 4.25 inches. Tap/click here to read the office's report. What happens next? Well, the measurements are being sent to the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) and if the information is made official, this will be Alabama's largest hailstone ever recorded. By the way, the largest hailstone in any state was 8.0" in diameter, 18.6" in circumference, and weighed 1.93 pounds! That stone fell on July 23, 2010 in Vivian, South Dakota. Hail forms within strong updrafts in thunderstorms. Quickly-rising air causes the hail to form and tosses it around within the cloud, continually growing until it becomes too heavy to be supported by the updraft. Then it falls to the ground. What fell on Monday night in parts of Alabama, especially Cullman, was destructive hail. Many took to social media to show the large hail that they saw. https://www.facebook.com/WeatherNation/videos/10156353134779874/ https://twitter.com/WeatherNation/status/975939055870296064 https://www.facebook.com/WeatherNation/videos/10156353734829874/ https://www.facebook.com/WeatherNation/videos/10156354077154874/ https://www.facebook.com/paul.downs.35/posts/10215548814504295 For WeatherNation, Meteorologist Steve Glazier
All Weather News
More
Snow Chances For The Mid-South and Southeast This Week

Snow Chances For The Mid-South and Southeast This Week

Forecast TimingA trough of low pressure is ex

12 Jan 2026 12:35 AM
Record Warmth in Store For the West

Record Warmth in Store For the West

Here comes the warmth again across the West!

11 Jan 2026 10:50 PM
Snow Squalls In The Northeast

Snow Squalls In The Northeast

The Northeastern U.S. has been one of the mor

11 Jan 2026 10:45 PM
One Year Later: Palisades and Eaton Fires

One Year Later: Palisades and Eaton Fires

It has been one year since the Palisades and

11 Jan 2026 2:05 AM
Severe Threat Has Ended in the South

Severe Threat Has Ended in the South

Outlooks & TimingFriday night and Saturda

10 Jan 2026 8:30 PM
Snow Returns to Ski Country

Snow Returns to Ski Country

It's been a slow start to the ski season for

8 Jan 2026 1:45 AM
Wintry Weather to Rain Chances In The Northeast

Wintry Weather to Rain Chances In The Northeast

NORTHEAST - We've had a series of clipper sys

7 Jan 2026 10:35 AM