Winnie, TX Hail Storm – May 2026

Winnie, Texas experienced a multi-zone hail-producing storm on May 23, 2026, producing a maximum 1.71-inch hail report and a long sequence of NWS alerts and radar detections.

What Happened

The event began in the early morning with an initial NWS warning at 7:23 AM CDT and continued through the late afternoon. NWS issued 23 alerts for the Winnie metro area between 7:23 AM and 4:39 PM CDT. Most warnings reported 0.75-inch hail in NWS warning only messages. Dual-polarization radar detected 1.0-inch hail around 9:23 AM CDT and again showed a larger radar return near 4:39 PM CDT that mapped at 1.46 inches. The storm track produced repeating cells across multiple adjacent notification zones during mid-morning and again in the late afternoon. The event is concluded.

Damage Assessment

Alerts and radar returns indicate a hail size range concentrated near three quarter-inch up to mid-inch class impacts across the warning area, with localized radar detections reaching 1.46 inches late in the day. For residential property in the Winnie area, three-quarter-inch hail commonly causes minor cosmetic damage to vehicle paint, soft trim, and landscaping. Hail above one inch increases the likelihood of denting on unprotected metal surfaces, bruising and granule loss on asphalt shingles, and localized damage to vinyl siding and skylights. The late-afternoon radar return that reached 1.46 inches presents an elevated risk for shingle damage and shattered glass on exposed windows in affected neighborhoods.

No spotter-verified damage reports are included on this public page. Field inspections should prioritize areas that intersect the radar-detected returns at 9:23 AM CDT and 4:39 PM CDT and locations that received repeated warnings during the mid-morning and late-afternoon cycles.

What Contractors Should Know

Inspect roofs on the earliest-accessible homes and structures that lie along the mapped radar returns and NWS warning corridor. Document damage with timestamped photographs and geotagged coordinates. On roofs with composite shingles, look for granule loss, bruising, split shingles, and exposed matting. For metal-clad buildings and vehicles, check for dent patterns concentrated on horizontal surfaces and windward elevations. Prioritize claims where multiple exposures align with the 4:39 PM CDT radar return and where properties received repeated warnings.

Safety and repair sequencing: secure ladders and fall protection when surfaces are wet or coated in hail debris. Clear gutters and downspouts before temporary repairs to reduce water intrusion risk. For insurance scopes, include radar-detected hail sizes and the sequence of NWS warnings in your inspection notes. Recommend temporary tarps only where water intrusion is present or imminent, and provide written estimates that separate hail-specific repairs from preexisting wear.