Arizona hail
Every recorded hail report since 1955 · 15 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 1,321 hail reports in Arizona from 1955 through June 30, 2026, about 36 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the March 21, 2011 hail in Mohave County: 1 death and 2 injuries. Arizona ranks 35th of 52 states and territories by count and 44th of 51 per square mile.
Hail in Arizona, 1955 to 2026
Hail records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- 1996: all 48 event types recorded from 1996
- Records
- 1,3211955 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 36average
- Deaths
- 323 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $3.8Bas filed
- Busiest year
- 200565 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are hail reports common in Arizona?
Arizona averages about 36 hail reports a year since 2000, 35th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2005 (65). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Arizona records 116 hail reports since 1955, 44th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1955, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Arizona have the most hail reports?
Per square mile, Santa Cruz County leads Arizona: 35 days with a hail report since 1955, 28.3 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Maricopa County has the most hail records (227 since 1955); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1955 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is hail season in Arizona?
50% of its hail reports since 1955 fell in August and September. The busiest month is August (344 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 6 · Feb 12 · Mar 28 · Apr 8 · May 33 · Jun 62 · Jul 310 · Aug 344 · Sep 318 · Oct 169 · Nov 23 · Dec 8 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1955.
What were the deadliest hail reports in Arizona?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-03-21 | HailBullhead City Airport, Mohave County Graupel and small hail fell on Highway 68, contributing to five accidents involving seven vehicles. One person was killed (indirect fatality) and two were injured. | 0.25 in hail | 1 | 2 | – |
| 2008-12-08 | HailWhetstone, Cochise County Small hail resulted in numerous accidents on Highway 90 south of Benson. One of these accidents resulted in the fatality as a truck slid off the road into a concrete culvert. | 0.50 in hail | 1 | 0 | – |
| 2005-10-23 | HailCordes Junction, Yavapai County Arizona Department of Public Safety reported 5 wrecks due to hail covered road on I-17 near Highway 69. There was one fatality in a wreck on Highway 69 between I-17 and Mayer. | 0.50 in hail | 1 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest hail reports in Arizona
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010-10-05 | HailWest Chandler, Maricopa County One storm episode: 3 records; the totals are the episode's. | 3.00 in hail | 0 | 1 | $3.8B |
| 1999-09-15 | HailPrescott, Yavapai County | 2.75 in hail | 0 | 2 | $32M |
| 2016-10-08 | HailSafford, Graham County | 2.50 in hail | 0 | 0 | $7.4M |
| 2015-06-30 | HailSabino, Pima County | 1.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $2.5M |
| 2018-07-18 | HailWhipple, Yavapai County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | $1.8M |
| 2002-09-07 | HailGoodyear, Maricopa County | 1.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $328K |
| 1999-09-19 | HailCoolidge, Pinal County | 1.25 in hail | 0 | 0 | $266K |
| 1998-07-19 | HailFlagstaff, Coconino County | 3.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | $85K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are hail reports becoming more frequent in Arizona?
Arizona's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Arizona | United States | Arizona's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1955-59 | 4 | 2,477 | 0.16% |
| 1960s | 19 | 7,651 | 0.25% |
| 1970s | 35 | 11,007 | 0.32% |
| 1980s | 60 | 26,555 | 0.23% |
| 1990s | 272 | 75,581 | 0.36% |
| 2000s | 382 | 137,396 | 0.28% |
| 2010s | 327 | 107,281 | 0.30% |
| 2020-26 | 222 | 56,491 | 0.39% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent hail reports in Arizona
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-06-24 | HailFt Huachuca Afb, Cochise County | 1.25 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2026-06-17 | HailDrexel Hgts, Pima County | 0.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-11-19 | HailWest End, Maricopa County | 0.25 in hail | 0 | 0 | $20K |
| 2025-11-19 | HailHelena, Maricopa County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-11-19 | HailTempe, Maricopa County | 0.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-11-19 | HailOro Vly, Pima County | 0.88 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-11-19 | HailWest Chandler, Maricopa County | 1.75 in hail | 0 | 0 | $3K |
| 2025-11-19 | HailTempe, Maricopa County | 0.88 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-11-18 | HailWittmann, Maricopa County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-10-13 | HailPapago Aaf Airport, Maricopa County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-10-13 | HailPalm Spgs, Pinal County | 2.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
| 2025-10-12 | HailNew River, Maricopa County | 1.00 in hail | 0 | 0 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Federal disaster declarations for hail reports in Arizona
FEMA files hail and wind disasters under the incident type Severe Storm: 15 declarations in Arizona, 14 of them major disasters; the latest on May 29, 2026.
| Declared | Number | Title | Areas named |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-05-29 | DR-4911 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2023-04-11 | DR-4703 | Severe Winter Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2022-09-02 | DR-4668 | Severe Storms | 1 |
| 2019-05-21 | DR-4436 | Snowstorm and Flooding | 1 |
| 2018-11-30 | DR-4409 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2010-12-21 | DR-1950 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 1 |
| 2010-10-04 | DR-1940 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 2 |
| 2010-03-18 | DR-1888 | Severe Winter Storms and Flooding | 14 |
| 2010-01-24 | EM-3307 | Severe Winter Storm | 5 |
| 2006-09-07 | DR-1660 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 11 |
| 2005-04-14 | DR-1586 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 12 |
| 2005-02-17 | DR-1581 | Severe Storms and Flooding | 8 |
Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), through October 2, 2026. OpenFEMA dataset page.
Next
- Santa Cruz County: the county's whole recordThe Arizona county with the most hail reports per square mile
- Hail across the United StatesEvery state ranked, by year and month
- Every natural hazard in ArizonaTornadoes, floods, storms, heat and the federal declarations
- Severe thunderstorm wind in Arizona4,106 records
- Floods in Arizona3,896 records
- Heat in Arizona2,676 records