Wheatland, WY Hail Storm – June 2026

A severe hail storm tracked through Wheatland, WY on June 8, 2026, producing a peak 3.89-inch hailstone and multiple radar-detected hail cores across late afternoon into early evening.

What Happened

Storm initiation appeared in mid-afternoon with radar-detected hail returns near Wheatland at about 1:16 PM MDT showing 1.25-inch signatures. Activity persisted through the afternoon with intermittent stronger echoes at 1:55 PM and 2:41 PM MDT. A long-lived cluster redeveloped in the late afternoon and intensified into early evening.

Between about 6:40 PM and 7:30 PM MDT the storm produced several high-reflectivity cores. Radar detections at 6:44 PM and 6:58 PM MDT indicated stones in the near-2-inch range. A major radar core passed through the area just after 7 PM MDT, with subsequent radar and spotter reports detecting stones above 2 inches later that evening. A radar- and spotter-verified report was logged at 7:42 PM MDT showing 2.59-inch hail detection, and additional radar returns at 7:17 PM and 7:29 PM MDT indicated 2.8-inch and 2.43-inch signatures respectively.

Public reports and observer submissions provide the ground view. Emergency management received reports at 5:40 PM MDT of quarter-sized hail accompanied by large quantities of smaller hail covering roadways. NOAA personnel logged multiple spotter-verified measurements at 7:57 PM MDT of 1.25-inch stones. Two separate spotter image submissions at 8:01 PM MDT documented 1.75-inch stones.

NWS alerts were active through the event, including radar-detected hail alerts beginning in the early afternoon and continuing into the evening. One late alert at 9:19 PM MDT referenced an existing NWS warning area after the primary hail cores moved out of the immediate Wheatland vicinity.

Damage Assessment

Field reports and on-scene images indicate concentrated surface impacts rather than widespread, uniform damage. Roadways near Wheatland were reported covered in small hail at 5:40 PM MDT, creating slick driving conditions in those corridors. Spotter photographs submitted at 8:01 PM MDT show intact 1.75-inch stones at two locations; those images were provided with the observer reports.

NOAA employee observations at 7:57 PM MDT recorded multiple 1.25-inch measurements near municipal reporting points. Radar-detected cores later in the evening passed over the same general area, producing additional large stones in localized swaths. There are no broad, field-verified reports of structural collapse or widespread property loss in the immediate Wheatland reports. Damage indicators in the data set consist primarily of roadway coverage and photographic documentation of hail specimens.

What Contractors Should Know

Prioritize inspections for properties and vehicles that were within Wheatland between late afternoon and early evening, specifically from about 5:30 PM to 8:15 PM MDT. Focus first on locations nearest the 7:00–7:45 PM MDT radar and spotter activity. Use the 7:57 PM and 8:01 PM MDT spotter locations as starting points for ground checks.