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How to read a Storm Events narrative like an adjuster

Each Storm Events entry carries structured fields (begin/end date-time and coordinates, magnitude, county/zone) plus two prose layers: the episode narrative (the day's meteorology across the region) and the event narrative (what this hail did at this place — "golf ball hail dented vehicles at the Highway 287 interchange"). The event narrative is where claim-relevant specifics live: named roads, neighborhoods, described damage.

Conventions worth knowing: hail magnitude is inches of diameter; wind magnitude is knots with MG/EG measured/estimated codes; older records may carry county-level locations without precise coordinates (render them honestly as county-level, never fake a distance); times are local standard time as filed by the office.

What is the difference between the episode and event narrative?

The episode narrative describes the meteorological setup for the whole outbreak; the event narrative describes one event at one location. Cite the event narrative for address-level argument and the episode narrative for "a damaging storm system crossed the area that evening" context.

Why do some old events have no coordinates?

Pre-mid-1990s records were filed by county. They still document the event but cannot support a miles-from-address figure — a report should say "county-level record" instead of inventing precision the source lacks.

Who writes these narratives?

The local NWS forecast office that worked the event, during post-storm quality control. They are official descriptions, which is what makes a quoted narrative effective in a claim file.

Sources and standing caveat

Official records referenced throughout: NCEI Storm Events Database (the official NWS storm record, 1950–present) and SPC daily storm reports (preliminary, same-day). NWS records are point and path observations. The absence of a nearby report does NOT prove that no hail fell at this address — it means no observation was logged nearby. A report of nearby hail documents the event; it does not by itself prove damage to a specific structure. Nothing on this page is legal, insurance, or public-adjusting advice — deadlines, coverage and remedies are policy- and state-specific.

Put the record in the file

A per-address verification report compiles every NWS-recorded hail and wind event within 1, 3 and 10 miles of any US address — distances, official narratives, citations, provenance labels — formatted as an insurance-appeal attachment, hosted on HailEvidence (the neutral evidence surface).

Unlimited reports — Pro $99/mo Single report $29