May 18, 2026 Storm Near Beatrice, NE: Reported Hail and Peak Gusts

On May 18, 2026, storm reports placed hail up to 1.75 in. (golf ball size) and wind gusts up to 81 mph within 25 miles of Beatrice, Nebraska. 10 reports meet National Weather Service severe criteria: hail 1.00 in. or larger, or a gust of 58 mph or more.

Hail and wind reports near Beatrice on May 18, 2026

12 ground reports fall within 25 miles of the Beatrice city center on May 18, 2026: 8 hail reports and 4 wind reports. The closest value meeting NWS severe criteria came from Beatrice, 0.3 miles southwest of Beatrice: 1.00 in. hail (quarter size).

  • 81 mph reported gust — 3 ESE Lewiston, 21.2 mi E — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.75 in. hail (golf ball size) — 2 NNW Pickrell, 8.8 mi N — NWS Local Storm Report (Trained Spotter, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 70 mph measured gust — 4 SW Wymore, 13.5 mi S — NWS Local Storm Report (Mesonet, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.50 in. hail (ping pong ball size) — Fairbury, 24.2 mi W — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 66 mph reported gust — 2 NE Crab Orchard, 19.7 mi E — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.25 in. hail (half dollar size) — 1 NW Fairbury, 24.9 mi W — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.00 in. hail (quarter size) — Beatrice, 0.3 mi SW — NWS Local Storm Report (Emergency Mngr, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 58 mph reported gust — 2 N Blue Springs, 8.5 mi SE — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.00 in. hail (quarter size) — Harbine, 13.1 mi SW — NWS Local Storm Report (Trained Spotter, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 1.00 in. hail (quarter size) — 4 SE Lewiston, 21.3 mi E — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX) — meets NWS severe criteria
  • 0.75 in. hail (penny size) — 1 NE Beatrice, 0.4 mi SE — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX)
  • 0.75 in. hail (penny size) — 5 S Beatrice, 5.1 mi S — NWS Local Storm Report (Public, NWS office OAX)

Measured station gusts near Beatrice

No airport weather station (ASOS/AWOS) within 25 miles of Beatrice logged a gust of 50 mph or more on May 18, 2026. The measured gusts on this page come from automated mesonet stations listed in NWS Local Storm Reports.

What the May 18, 2026 numbers mean

The National Weather Service defines a severe thunderstorm as one that produces hail at least 1 inch in diameter, winds of at least 58 mph, or a tornado (NWS glossary). The same 58 mph gust mark triggers an NWS High Wind Warning for wind outside thunderstorms. The largest hail reported near Beatrice that day, 1.75 in., meets the NWS hail criterion. The strongest gust, 81 mph, meets the NWS wind criterion.

StormAuditor also uses lower screening thresholds — hail 0.75 in. and wind 45 mph — to flag dates worth researching at an address. Screening thresholds are not NWS severe criteria. Hail sizes compare to everyday objects in the Hail Size Guide; gust speeds are explained in the Wind Speed Guide.

Check your Beatrice address for May 18, 2026

Storm reports are points on a map; a property sits somewhere between them. Run the Free Report Snapshot for any Beatrice address: a free YES/NO on whether the public record shows estimated wind of 45 mph or more or hail of 0.75 in. or larger at the property itself. Those are StormAuditor screening thresholds.

For the numbers, the Single Weather Report ($2.99) lists the estimated peak gust and estimated maximum hail size for every qualifying storm date at one address, including May 18, 2026 when the estimate there clears the screening thresholds. The Audit Report shows the evidence and arithmetic behind the estimate for a single date.

Other Nebraska cities with NWS severe reports on May 18, 2026

No other Nebraska city that StormAuditor tracks had a report meeting NWS severe criteria within 25 miles on May 18, 2026.

More storm days near Beatrice and in Nebraska

How these numbers are counted

This page and the Beatrice city page share one set of definitions:

  • This page (NWS severe): Every NWS hail and wind report within 25 miles of Beatrice that day (StormAuditor records reports from hail 0.50 in. and wind 40 mph), plus airport weather-station gusts of 50 mph or more. The page exists because at least one report or station gust met NWS severe criteria (hail 1.00 in.+ or wind 58 mph+), at least two separate observations were logged, and the day ranks among the most significant.
  • Each observation counts once: A storm report that relays an airport weather station's reading (the same station, the same gust and the same time) counts once, as the station reading. Reports merge only when they are copies of one report: the identical report repeated, or the same report arriving through another feed (SPC or NCEI). Different reports from the same spot, such as two hail sizes reported at one place, count separately.
  • Beatrice storm-day table: The city page lists storm days: hail 0.75 in.+ or wind 45 mph+ within 25 miles in the last 12 months (StormAuditor screening thresholds; reports and station gusts, never warnings alone). When this date is in that table, it shows the same largest hail and strongest gust as this page; a value below the screening thresholds shows as a dash.
  • Events (12-month counts): The Beatrice city page also counts events, which include NWS warnings. Events measure how busy the area was, not whether a storm hit, so they are not compared with the report counts here.

Full method: Methodology and Data Sources.

Sources for this page

Reports come from NWS Local Storm Reports. StormAuditor merges copies of the same report that arrive through more than one feed, counts a storm report that relays an airport station's reading once, as the station reading, measures each distance from the Beatrice city center, and compiled this record on October 6, 2026. See Data Sources and Methodology.

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