The United States was no stranger to severe weather outbreaks in 2024, which included a long period of above normal tornado activity. Multiple major metro areas were hit by severe weather between May and July, producing nearly $30 billion in damages over the three month span.

May 6-9, 2024: Central, Southern, and Southeastern Tornado Outbreak

A significant multi-day tornado outbreak took shape between May 6-9, as a strong jet stream collided with moist, unstable air flowing northward from the Gulf of Mexico. A frontal boundary became the focal point for thunderstorm development, generating more than 165 confirmed tornadoes across 23 states from South Dakota and Nebraska all the way to Florida. Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska were among the hardest hit in the Plains, while parts of the Midwest and Southeast, including Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, the Carolinas, and Georgia, also experienced numerous tornadoes.

The variety and number of twisters ranged from EF-0 to EF-4, underscoring how widespread and intense this system was. Particularly devastating was the violent EF-4 tornado that struck Barnsdall and Bartlesville, Oklahoma, causing significant structural damage and prompting extensive rescue and cleanup efforts.

As the outbreak progressed, severe storms brought torrential rainfall to parts of Tennessee, with up to nine inches of rain recorded north of Nashville. This led to flash flood emergencies, water rescues, and school closures, compounding the dangers already posed by rotating supercells. Unfortunately, at least one fatality was reported in Florida when strong storms and possible tornadoes moved across the panhandle. In total, about $6.6 billion dollars of damage occurred. This outbreak demonstrated how spring weather patterns can spawn simultaneous threats of damaging winds, large hail, torrential rain, and tornadoes.

May 11-13, 2024: Southern Severe Weather

Just days after the previous outbreak, another powerful weather system took shape over the southern Plains and Gulf Coast from May 11-13. An unstable air mass and a subtle upper-level disturbance fueled severe storms in central and eastern Texas, southern Louisiana, and the Florida Panhandle. These storms had a bit of everything that added up to $1.1 billion in damages: damaging hail (with reports of golf ball-sized stones in Texas), high winds, and multiple tornadoes. The tornadoes that formed were especially troublesome in near-coastal counties of Texas, Louisiana, and Florida, where they overturned vehicles, damaged businesses and homes, and brought down trees and power lines.

While tornadoes often grab headlines, hail and straight-line winds also caused considerable destruction. Many vehicles were dented, windows shattered, roofs punctured, and large tree limbs snapped off. Once again, flooding became a concern, as repeated rounds of storms dropped heavy rain, leading to localized high water in areas that had already been saturated by previous weather systems. Despite occurring over a relatively short time frame, this event left behind notable financial costs in infrastructure and crop damage, and it added to the tally of severe weather that hammered the region throughout May.

May 16-17, 2024: Southern Derecho

On May 16-17, a rare southern derecho rumbled from Texas to Florida, fueled by warm, humid air and a potent upper-level disturbance. Derechos are characterized by long-lived, fast-moving complexes of thunderstorms that produce widespread, straight-line wind damage. In this case, wind gusts easily topped 100 mph in parts of central and eastern Texas, snapping power lines and toppling trees. Downtown Houston experienced some of the most dramatic scenes, where windows were blown out of skyscrapers and the power grid was strained by outages. This helped push the total cost of the storms to $1.6 billion.

As the storm complex marched east, it slammed into Louisiana, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle, where wind-driven rain damaged homes, flipped cars, and caused scattered fatalities. The National Weather Service confirmed that at least eight people had lost their lives as a direct result of the destructive winds and storm-related incidents. Derechos in the southern U.S. are less common than in the Midwest, making the scale of this event particularly noteworthy. In the aftermath, local emergency management teams coordinated massive cleanup and restoration efforts to deal with downed trees, debris, and critical infrastructure repairs.

May 18-22, 2024: Central, Southern, and Eastern Severe Weather

The active weather pattern refused to relent, and yet another outbreak transpired from May 18-22. A robust storm system swept across the Plains and into the Midwest and portions of the South, creating conditions ripe for supercells capable of large hail, tornadoes, and damaging winds. This five-day period ended up with $4.9 in damages.

Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Iowa, and Wisconsin bore the brunt of these storms in the early stages, with dozens of twisters touching down. The most notable was an EF-4 tornado that tore through southeast Iowa on May 21, churning along a 44-mile path with peak wind speeds approaching 185 mph. The town of Greenfield was heavily damaged, and the storm was, sadly, deemed the deadliest tornado so far this year, with five reported fatalities.

During the same time, several eastern states also grappled with fierce wind gusts that battered power lines and trees. The National Weather Service issued multiple “Particularly Dangerous Situation” (PDS) tornado and severe thunderstorm watches, underscoring the high risk posed by these storms. Road closures, power outages, and property destruction followed in many communities, forcing local officials to declare states of emergency in hard-hit areas. By the end of the period, the outbreak highlighted how persistent instability, driven by recurrent weather disturbances and ample gulf moisture, can create back-to-back severe weather threats for a wide swath of the country.

May 25-26, 2024: Central U.S. Tornado Outbreak

An outbreak of severe weather, including deadly tornadoes, took shape late in the day on May 25th across Texas and Oklahoma. As is typical for the time of year, a frontal boundary stretched across the region separated a very warm and humid air mass from a cooler, drier air mass. The result was an outbreak of severe weather and tornadoes. In particular, a deadly EF-3 tornado developed just north of the Dallas Metroplex near Valley View, Texas, just prior to midnight. Farther north, multiple supercells developed across portions of northeastern Oklahoma and southern Kansas late in the evening on the 25th, which continued eastward into southern Missouri and northern Arkansas into the early morning hours of the 26th. Over 40 tornadoes were reported from the evening of May 25th into the early morning hours of the 26th.

Fueled by strong upper-level winds, severe thunderstorms continued to march eastward on May 26th. Severe thunderstorms were ongoing at the start of the day across southern Missouri and northern Arkansas and continued to rapidly spread eastward across the Tennessee and Ohio valleys. However, additional severe weather developed in the wake of these initial storms across southwestern Missouri early in the afternoon on the 26th, with additional thunderstorm development over Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky later in the afternoon.

In all, severe weather over the course of May 25-26 was responsible for 7 deaths, at least 100 injuries, and about $3.4 billion worth of damage. Widespread damage to homes, businesses, vehicles, agriculture, and other infrastructure were reported across Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Arkansas, Illinois, and Kentucky.

May 27-28, 2024: Texas Hail Storms

Very large and destructive hailstorms developed over Texas on May 27-28, causing $2.3 billion in damages. Storms first developed over north-central Texas throughout the day on May 27, including over the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex. Hail as large as baseballs were reported in and around the Metroplex. In addition, hurricane-force wind gusts from storms caused downed power lines, trees, and damage to buildings throughout the Metroplex. One such downburst from thunderstorms was responsible for one death when a house under construction collapsed in Magnolia, Texas.

Thunderstorms continued to move over eastern Texas on May 28th while additional thunderstorms developed during the afternoon hours over the Panhandle region. Here, reports of very large hail were reported, including the first warning issued by the National Weather Service for DVD-sized hail (5 inches in diameter) in Hockley County, with numerous reports of baseball- to softball-sized hail across the Texas Panhandle.

May 30 – June 1, 2024: Colorado Hail Storms and Southern Severe Weather

Destructive thunderstorms developed over portions of eastern Colorado during the evening hours of May 30th, which lasted into the early morning hours of May 31st. Hailstones over 2 inches in diameter were reported across Denver, which smashed car windows, shredded gardens, dinged vehicles, and damaged homes’ sidings.

Farther to the south, an outbreak of severe weather moved over Texas into Louisiana on May 30th. This included multiple reports of tornadoes and large hail over western Texas. Thunderstorms produced golf ball to baseball sized hail around Midland and Odessa. There were even a few tornado reports from these storms. Farther to the east, numerous thunderstorms produce wind damage throughout eastern Texas, including around Waco, Austin, and Houston. A few tornadoes were also reported from near Nacogdoches, Texas, to just south of Shreveport, La.

Additional reports of large hail and damaging hail occurred on May 31st across western Texas, especially around Lubbock, including wind reports of 91 mph near Anton in Hockley County. Numerous reports of wind gusts in excess of 70 mph were also reported throughout the Panhandle.

June 1st saw a continuation of severe weather across Texas and Louisiana. One thunderstorm in Magnolia Beach, Texas, recorded a wind gust to 100 mph! This storm caused 2 boats to capsize off the coast, destroyed an RV and shed, and damaged homes. Farther north, numerous reports of golf ball to baseball sized hail were reported from Dallas to Baton Rouge, La. All told, the multi-day outbreak produced around $3 billion in damages.

June 12-14, 2024: Central and Eastern Severe Weather

A potent cold front spurred severe thunderstorms from June 12-14 across the central and eastern U.S. Severe weather first developed across northern and northeastern Minnesota during the evening hours of June 12th. Roughly 10 tornadoes were reported that evening, while dozens of reports of ping pong to baseball sized hail were also reported that evening. Farther to the south, thunderstorms produced hail over 2 inches in diameter in and around Omaha, Neb., causing damage to homes, vehicles, and businesses.

As the cold front sank farther south and east on June 13th, severe weather accompanied this front. Wind damage from thunderstorms were reported from southwestern Michigan through northern Indiana, central and northern Illinois, Missouri, and Kansas. A few tornadoes were reported across western Kansas. Tornadoes were also reported near Macomb, Ill., and just east of Bloomington, Ill. A 4-inch diameter hailstone was found near Glenwood, Mo., while an 80-mph wind gust was recorded in Nashville, Kan.

Severe weather reached portions of the eastern U.S. on June 14th as this cold front continues to move eastward. The most concentrated area of severe weather occurred over eastern Pennsylvania and across central and northern New Jersey. Thunderstorm wind gusts downed trees in Philadelphia, and a weak tornado was reported near Trenton, N.J. Farther west, thunderstorms downed trees and power lines outside of Pittsburgh, as well as across portions of Ohio. The far-ranging series of severe weather produced $1.2 billion in damage.

June 24-26, 2024: Central and Northeast Severe Weather

During an active severe weather and rainy pattern, the north-central U.S. was hit again by a rash of storms containing strong winds, hails, and several tornadoes. The Upper Midwest, including Chicago, was hit by gusty thunderstorms June 24-25. Most of the tornado activity and strongest gusts were focused over the heart of the U.S. on June 25, targeting Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, and Missouri.

The storms on June 24-25, combined with earlier rounds of heavy rain in the north-central U.S. in the previous days, generated a considerable amount of flooding from eastern Nebraska and eastern South Dakota into Iowa and Minnesota. River flooding was expansive, even causing breeches or overtopping of levees in Iowa. Of the 13 reported tornadoes on June 25, the strongest was an EF-3 that hit west-central Nebraska.

As the storm system pushed into the eastern U.S. on June 26, it took aim at the Mid-Atlantic and far southern New England. A Mesoscale Convection System (MCS), or a group of strong thunderstorms, developed over Pennsylvania in the afternoon and made its way into southeastern New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and southeastern Massachusetts in the evening. Another round of tornado-producing storms even developed behind this main cluster of storms, hitting southern Pennsylvania in the evening. In addition to the widespread damaging winds, eight tornadoes, including an EF-2, formed across Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. Residents near Providence, R.I., were caught off-guard as an EF-1 tornado hit the northern suburbs of the city just before midnight. When all was said and done, the three-day period produce $1.7 billion in damage.

June 17 – July 7: New Mexico Wildfires

Ahead of the rainy season, drought conditions had set up across most of New Mexico in June. The hot and dry weather in place allowed for a greater risk of wildfires. The most significant fire during this period was the South Fork Fire that formed near Ruidoso, N.M., on June 17. Strong winds in the region at the time caused extreme fire behavior as residents evacuated the area. This large fire eventually destroyed or caused damage to over 1,400 structures. The wildfires produced about $1.7 billion worth of damages.

The leftover burn scar of the 17,569-acre fire became an even bigger headache once the rainy season got underway in New Mexico. Multiple flash flooding events from locally heavy rain in and around Ruidoso caused further evacuations in July. The raging floods went through the recently burned areas, which picked up debris from the fire as it inundated the Ruidoso area.

July 13-16: Central and Eastern Tornado Outbreak and Severe Weather

The four-day severe weather outbreak generated over 2,200 storm reports that were concentrated over the Northern Tier from Montana and the Dakotas to New England, causing $2.4 billion in damages. This outbreak included two derechos with peak gusts over 100 mph, and there were 90 tornadoes from July 13 to July 16.

The first derecho occurred on July 13, developing over eastern Montana in the afternoon. It progressed southeastward into South Dakota during the evening and overnight hours, where it caused most of the damage along its path. Additional storms hit the Upper Midwest on July 13-14, which spawned a small tornado outbreak and caused notable wind damage in northern Illinois, including the Chicago area.

Chicago was not done with severe weather during this outbreak, as the second derecho did considerably more wind and tornado damage from eastern Iowa into northern and central Illinois and Indiana on July 15. Several EF-0 and EF-1 tornadoes occurred in the Chicago metro region that day.

Upstate New York also saw multiple days of significant wind damage and tornadoes between July 15-16, which spread into central New England on July 16. This helped boost New York State to its highest yearly tornado account on record. The strongest of these was an EF-2 that tore through Rome, N.Y. on July 16, causing significant damage to a pair of churches and the surrounding buildings and vehicles.

2024 Year in Review: Billion Dollar Disasters From May Through July