Severe weather preparedness: Hail size and safety

Hail is just one of the many hazards that accompany severe weather. It forms when thunderstorm updrafts carry raindrops upward into extremely cold areas of the atmosphere, where the raindrops freeze into hailstones. The longer it can stay afloat, the higher the chance it will grow in size. 

 

 

Hail Size: Sizes range from pea sized to grapefruit, though a storm in Texas last May was warned for DVD-sized hail (5.5" hail), the first warning of its kind. I was on that storm, though we didn't see any stones that measured to the size of a DVD. After the storm passed, we did encounter tennis ball to baseball sized hail outside of Levelland, Texas! 

Hail Safety: 

If you are outdoors and a storm in your area becomes severe warned for hail, move indoors. If that is unavoidable, and you can’t find something to protect your body, at least find something to protect your head. Stay out of low-lying areas as that might fill suddenly with water from the downpours. If driving and you encounter a hailstorm, pull safely onto the shoulder and make sure you are away from any trees. The one thing you SHOULDN'T do is park under an overpass. We see it time and time again as many think it is the safe thing to do. That not only blocks oncoming traffic, but puts other travelers as risk.