Residents across the city are still reeling after an explosive hailstorm ripped through the region late Tuesday afternoon, shattering windshields, denting cars, and leaving entire neighborhoods looking as though they’d been blasted by artillery. The sudden burst of extreme weather—lasting just under 20 minutes—was powerful enough to grind traffic to a halt and send people scrambling for cover as ice chunks “the size of grapefruits,” as one witness described, pounded the streets.
Meteorologists say the storm intensified far more quickly than expected. “We were tracking a strong cell, but the rate of hail formation was extraordinary,” said Dr. Lena Ortiz, a senior forecaster at the Regional Weather Center. “We rarely see hailstones reach these sizes outside of major supercell events. This storm developed a rapidly rotating updraft that allowed hail to grow to extreme diameters before gravity finally brought it down.”
For many residents, the science offered little comfort. What they saw—and felt—was terrifying.
“I’ve lived here 42 years and never seen hail this big,” said Anthony Ramirez, who was stuck in his truck on East Market Street when the storm hit. “It sounded like someone was smashing the roof with bricks. Cars started swerving, alarms blaring, and people were running into stores just to get away from it.”
City emergency services reported a surge in calls ranging from minor injuries to structural damage. Several bus shelters collapsed under the weight of accumulated ice, and at least three intersections flooded within minutes as clogged drains struggled to keep up. Power crews are still working to restore electricity to more than 4,000 homes after hailstones punched holes through rooftop solar panels and damaged transformers.
Social media was flooded with images of the destruction: lawns buried under white mounds of ice, skylights shattered like brittle glass, and trees stripped bare as though hit by a blast wave. One viral video shows a delivery driver diving behind a metal bin as hailstones explode against the pavement around him.
Experts warn that while hailstorms of this magnitude were once considered rare, they’re becoming more common in a warming climate. The combination of hotter surface temperatures and stronger atmospheric instability creates the ideal conditions for violent, fast-forming storms.
“This is a glimpse into the kind of extreme weather events we’ll face more often,” Dr. Ortiz noted. “They develop quickly, strike hard, and leave very little time to prepare.”
City officials have asked residents to stay indoors today as crews continue clearing debris and inspecting damaged infrastructure. A temporary claims center will open tomorrow to help affected households file for emergency assistance.
For now, the city is left counting the cost of a storm that arrived without warning—and left behind scenes of chaos that locals say they’ll never forget.