Hailstorms in North Carolina

One of the significant dangers associated with thunderstorms that frequently rock North Carolina is hail. Sudden bouts of hail can grow into full-blown hailstorms in their own right. Hail is an incredibly destructive meteorological phenomenon and can pose a danger to human and animal life, not to mention significant property damage.

Contact All Dry USA if a hailstorm has damaged your property. We offer water damage restoration and mold remediation services for North Carolinians in need.

Does North Carolina Get Hail?

The website Interactive Hail Maps reports that the Charlotte, North Carolina area alone has experienced 37 reports of hail in the past 12 months. When a state has weather as consistently turbulent as North Carolina, you can put money on the fact that you will have to deal with hail damage at some point.

Hail combined with thunderstorms impacts public utilities like the electrical grid, water systems, and more. The force by which hail stones rocket to the ground should not be taken lightly.

Sometimes hail is as harmless as a shower of pea-sized flecks of ice. But other times, people have reported hailstones the size of grapefruits raining down on their homes and cars, causing damage to windows, livestock, people, and property.

Is Hail Common in North Carolina?

Local news station WCNC Charlotte reports that every year, there is an average of 5,000 major hail events. Whether the hailstones are the size of golf balls or dimes, severe hailstorms can cause significant damage.

Hail is common in North Carolina because the state is in a thunderstorm-prone region of the country. As thunderstorms swell, cold air can be sucked into the storm cell and freeze clumps of rain droplets together to form hail stones.

Hail can be forecasted as quickly as thunderstorms themselves. But it also can arrive without warning. So if you live in North Carolina and a thunderstorm is predicted, make sure you always leave the house with a reinforced umbrella.

What Are the Hazards Associated With Hailstorms?

Hailstorms can be incredibly destructive weather events. With thunderstorms and hurricanes, the danger doesn’t come from the storm itself. It comes from debris picked up by high winds, riptides forming in the water, or storm surges pushed over breakwaters and onto the land.

Hailstorms, however, are dangerous in and of themselves. Here are the top hazards associated with hailstorms.

Hazardous to Driving

While they are sometimes unforeseeable and thus unavoidable, hailstorms are highly hazardous to drivers. Hail can damage not only car windows and pelt under the hood and into car engines, they drastically worsen sight conditions on the road.

Hail often comes down in a flurry of thousands of pellets at once. It can feel like you’re suddenly driving in a blizzard, except the snowflakes have the power to knock you unconscious.

If you drive during a hailstorm, pull off to a safe location as quickly as possible. Protect your face from glass shatter from the windshield and driver’s side. Pulling your car into a garage or otherwise out of the storm is best. But if you can’t, make sure to protect yourself.

Can Cause Damage to Humans and Animals

Plenty of people own and operate farms in North Carolina. Hail isn’t just dangerous to human beings but to animals as well. If you own a farm where cows, goats, chickens, and horses roam freely outside, ensure they’re sheltered as soon as a thunderstorm gathers overhead.

Protect your face and head if you’re caught outside during a hailstorm. Hailstones threaten our eyes and heads when they fall at high speeds.

Property Damage

Hailstones come in a range of sizes from pea, mothball, and penny, all smaller than an inch, to tea cup, softball, and grapefruit, all three inches and above.

The larger the hailstone, the more damage your North Carolina property will take. Hail can knock out windows and damage roofs.

Downed Powerlines

Hail can even strike powerlines the wrong way and sever cords. They can even down entire electrical towers. Towns in North Carolina have been known to experience utility failure due to hailstorms.

Preparing for a Hailstorm

• Take care of your trees so that hailstones won’t cause rickety tree branches to crash through your home’s roof.
• Consistently maintain your roof and clear your storm gutters. Roofs take the brunt of hailstorm damage. They can tear off shingles and even cause significant structural damage.
• Fortify your windows to make them impact resistant. You may even want to board them up from the outside before the thunderstorm begins.

Staying Safe During a Hailstorm

• Do not go outside during a North Carolina hailstorm. If you are already out, immediately seek the nearest cover you can find.
• Avoid windows as they can burst inward.
• Account for all family and pet members to ensure no one is caught outside.

What To Do Following a Hailstorm

• Check on every family member and your friends to ensure the hail storm has injured no one.
• Take pictures of your property’s damage, and timestamp them.
• Contact your insurance company and let them know your home has suffered damage and that you have photos of it.

Suffering From Hailstorm Damage in North Carolina? ADU Can Help

If a hailstorm has damaged your property, contact All Dry USA. We offer comprehensive water damage and mold remediation services to North Carolina residents. As the area’s top general contractor, we can help restore your home or property to perfect shape after a hailstorm.