Hail — York, South Carolina

2024-04-20 · near York, York, South Carolina

Event narrative

Multiple sources reported an almost continuous swath of very large hail ranging from 2-inch diameter up to baseball size from the city of York through the city of Rock Hill. Intense downbursts producing wind gusts as high as 90 mph resulted in areas of wind-driven hail that produced extensive damage to structures and vehicles. The largest hail and most intense damage was in the city of Rock Hill, especially just south of the city center. Extensive roof damage, blown out windows, and facade/siding damage shredded by very large hail resulted in more than a dozen structures being considered a total loss. Hundreds of other structures experienced at least minor damage. Thousands of vehicles were damaged or destroyed. A few minor injuries also occurred.

Wider weather episode

An isolated thunderstorm developed over the North Carolina foothills during the afternoon and steadily intensified as it moved southeast into the South Carolina Piedmont. The storm evolved into an intense supercell over York County and produced downburst winds up to 90 mph and very large hail up to baseball size. Wind-driven hail caused extensive structural damage in the city of Rock Hill.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (34.9900, -81.2230)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1175361. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.