Kansas City Hail: April 13, 2018

On April 13, 2018, the count mattered more than the size. The largest stones reported that Friday reached 2 inches, well short of baseball size. Yet NOAA's Storm Prediction Center (SPC) logged 11 reports of hail 1 inch or larger within 10 miles of Overland Park that day. Overland Park has golf ball hail on 22 days in the record, more than any other city. None of those days produced more reports than this one. Olathe also logged 11, its own high for a golf ball day.

Heavy in Johnson County

Hail of 1 inch or larger reached 14 of the 20 cities in the metro record. The weight of it sat in Johnson County, Kansas. Of those 14 cities, seven logged golf ball size, 1.75 inches or more. All seven are on the Kansas side.

The 2 inch stones came near Overland Park, Olathe, Lenexa and Leawood. Lenexa had eight reports and Leawood seven. Shawnee, Merriam and Prairie Village topped out at golf ball size, with two or three reports apiece.

Farther southwest, Gardner logged eight reports and stones of 2 inches. Gardner sits outside the 20 city record, so it is not one of the 14. Still, no golf ball day on Gardner's own list beats that count. To the north, Leavenworth and Platte City, also outside the record, logged one report each at 1 inch.

East of State Line Road, the hail ran smaller. Kansas City, Missouri, Grandview, Belton and Raytown each topped out at 1.5 inches. North of the river, Gladstone and Parkville logged two reports each at 1 inch. Kansas City, Kansas, matched them exactly.

Then there are the gaps. SPC's file holds no report of 1 inch or larger for that day near Liberty, Independence, Blue Springs, Grain Valley, Lee's Summit or Raymore. An empty line is not proof that no hail fell. It means nobody logged hail of that size inside the circle. Most of eastern Jackson County sits in that gap.

Middle of the pack for reach

Measured by reach, this was a solid day rather than a giant one. Seven days in the record put 1 inch hail near more cities. Two others tied its 14, August 12, 2021, and May 8, 2024. The widest April days came in 2011 and 2016, each reaching 19 cities.

Measured by size, it was ordinary for a wide day. Baseball size starts at 2.75 inches. The record stone in this file is 5.5 inches, from September 18, 2010.

Measured by density, it stands out in the southwest metro. Overland Park's next busiest golf ball days brought 10 reports each, on May 8, 2024, and May 19, 2025. Each report is a single sighting by one observer. Eleven of them near a single city is still a heavy day on file.

The closest match in shape is May 8, 2024. It also reached 14 cities and also topped out at 2 inches. It also leaned on Johnson County, where Merriam and Prairie Village each logged 18 reports. Every wide day, with its city count, sits on the Kansas City hail history page.

Using an older date

When you open a hail claim, your carrier asks for a date of loss. If your car sat in Johnson County on Friday, April 13, 2018, that date is a fair candidate. A candidate is all it is. The record shows hail reported near a city. It does not show hail on your street, and it proves nothing about your car.

The car carries the evidence. Photos of each panel, taken before any repair, keep that evidence on record. A dent count adds the detail photos miss. What happens at a hail estimate shows how that count gets built.

A gap of eight years raises two questions. The first is timing. Your policy sets a window for reporting a loss. Ask your carrier whether a 2018 loss can still be opened, and what it needs from you.

The second is overlap. Overland Park logged golf ball hail on 11 more days after this one. Olathe logged it on eight more. A car parked outside through those years may carry dents from several storms. A careful count shows the damage. It cannot always split that damage by date, and your carrier decides how to handle that.

Start with a real count

You do not need an exact date to learn what the car took. Call for a free assessment. The crew comes to the car, counts every dent and notes its size. You also hear which dents will not come out with paintless repair, before anything is agreed. If the car has sat outside since 2018, say so. The count covers every dent, whichever storm left it.