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Central Kansas and Nebraska

Central Nebraska's Hail Belt, From Grand Island to North Platte

Central Nebraska sees large hail on dozens of days each decade: NOAA's Storm Events Database counts 73 separate days of 1-inch hail in Lincoln County alone from 2016 through 2025. This page lays out the 2016-2025 storm record for Hall, Adams, Buffalo and Lincoln counties, the storms that hit Grand Island, Hastings, Kearney and North Platte hardest, and the Nebraska rules that protect you when a roofer is paid from an insurance claim.

Four counties compared

County (main city)Hail reports1 in.+1.75 in.+2 in.+1-inch hail days
Lincoln (North Platte)210202862973
Buffalo (Kearney)977823945
Adams (Hastings)775819931
Hall (Grand Island)584012525

Figures come from NOAA's Storm Events Database. Lincoln County's 202 events of 1-inch hail are the most of any Nebraska county on this site, well ahead of Lancaster County's 113, and its hail fell on 73 different days in the decade.

Grand Island (Hall County)

On June 13, 2017, quarter to tennis ball size hail fell across much of Grand Island, with a $10 million estimate. On May 20, 2024, 2-inch hail returned to the city, while nearby Wood River reported shredded trees, dented cars, broken windows and damaged shingles. Wind is a hazard too: on August 7, 2019, the airport's ASOS measured an 87 mph gust.

Hastings (Adams County)

June 2022 hit Hastings twice. On June 7, reports of golf ball to 2.5-inch hail came from all across the city, with broken windows and siding damage and a $12 million estimate. A week later, the NWS Hastings office four miles north of downtown measured 2.25-inch hail. The county's costliest hail in the database remains the baseball-size storm of May 11, 2005, estimated at $40 million.

Kearney (Buffalo County)

The database's largest Buffalo County stones are 5-inch hail at Kearney on June 12, 2002, with a $50 million estimate and 15 minor injuries. More recently, on June 7, 2022, hail of 2 to 4 inches at Ravenna caused widespread siding and window damage and shattered windshields on the town's fire trucks. On May 29, 2008, an EF2 tornado began in northwest Kearney and stayed on the ground for most of a 22-mile path.

North Platte (Lincoln County)

  • July 19, 2025. Four-inch hail was logged near North Platte's airport.
  • June 21, 2015. Near Sutherland Reservoir, 4.25-inch hail broke every window on the west side of a house and left the roof leaking; at Dickens, softball size hail put holes in a roof and a living room ceiling.
  • April 14, 2012. Tennis ball size hail fell on the west side of North Platte, and in parts of the city large hail came and went for almost two hours; the estimate is $30 million.

Recent FEMA declarations

Central Nebraska keeps appearing in federal disaster declarations. Buffalo County is in DR-4928, declared August 3, 2026 for severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding beginning May 15, 2026. Lincoln County is in DR-4808 and DR-4822 for storms in 2024, and in DR-4920 for wildfires beginning March 12, 2026. Adams and Buffalo counties share DR-4641 for the storms of December 15, 2021.

Rules that apply to every Nebraska roofer

  • No deductible rebates, in writing. Any contract, estimate or work order paid from insurance must include a capitalized notice stating that rebating a deductible violates Nebraska insurance law and that you are personally responsible for paying it. You sign it, and it goes to your insurer before the claim is paid.
  • Registration follows insurance. If a contractor's workers' compensation coverage is canceled, the Commissioner of Labor revokes its registration as of the cancellation unless a new certificate arrives first. A current listing in NDOL's contractor search is the quickest way to see where a company stands.

The homepage covers Nebraska's cancellation right for insurance-paid roofs, and NRD's Nebraska storm center tracks active warnings.

Central Nebraska roofers on the National Roofing Directory

NRD has city pages for Grand Island, Kearney and Hastings.

Frequently asked questions

Which central Nebraska county gets the most large hail?

Lincoln County, home to North Platte. NOAA's Storm Events Database records 202 hail events of 1 inch or larger there from 2016 through 2025, on 73 separate days.

Can a Nebraska roofer offer to cover my deductible?

No. Neb. Rev. Stat. 44-8604 bars a residential contractor from promising to rebate any part of a deductible, including through allowances or discounts, and 44-8607 requires a signed notice of that rule on insurance-paid contracts.

What happens if a Nebraska contractor's workers' compensation lapses?

Under Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-2110, the Commissioner of Labor revokes the contractor's registration as of the cancellation date unless the contractor files a new certificate of insurance before then.

Sources

  1. NOAA's Storm Events Database — ncei.noaa.gov
  2. quarter to tennis ball size hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  3. 2-inch hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  4. Wood River — ncei.noaa.gov
  5. measured an 87 mph gust — ncei.noaa.gov
  6. golf ball to 2.5-inch hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  7. measured 2.25-inch hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  8. baseball-size storm of May 11, 2005 — ncei.noaa.gov
  9. 5-inch hail at Kearney on June 12, 2002 — ncei.noaa.gov
  10. hail of 2 to 4 inches at Ravenna — ncei.noaa.gov
  11. EF2 tornado — ncei.noaa.gov
  12. Four-inch hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  13. 4.25-inch hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  14. softball size hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  15. Tennis ball size hail — ncei.noaa.gov
  16. DR-4928 — fema.gov
  17. DR-4808 — fema.gov
  18. DR-4822 — fema.gov
  19. DR-4920 — fema.gov
  20. DR-4641 — fema.gov
  21. capitalized notice — nebraskalegislature.gov
  22. revokes its registration — nebraskalegislature.gov
  23. contractor search — dol.nebraska.gov