StormProof → hail seasons → Chicago → 1996
Chicago hail season 1996
26 NWS-recorded hail reports ≥1″ within 45 miles, across 5 storm days, max 1.75". Every one of those reports is a dated, located, citable official record — the context behind this market's 1996 claim volume.
Biggest storm days (1996, final record)
| Date | ≥1″ reports | Max hail | Areas named in the record |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 12, 1996 | 13 | 1.75" | WILL, COOK, KANE, DU PAGE |
| April 19, 1996 | 6 | 1.75" | COOK, KENDALL, WILL |
| May 16, 1996 | 3 | 1.75" | WILL |
| May 9, 1996 | 3 | 1.75" | PORTER, WILL, LAKE |
| July 15, 1996 | 1 | 1.00" | WILL |
When it fell
Apr 19 · May 6 · Jul 1
Wind context: the record also holds 12 thunderstorm-wind events ≥50 kt (≈58 mph, the NWS severe criterion) in this radius for 1996 — relevant where the dispute is wind vs hail causation.
Working a Chicago claim from 1996?
These are aggregates. A claim file needs the per-address record: every recorded event within 1, 3 and 10 miles of the property, distances, official narratives, and citations an adjuster can check line by line. That's the report — generated in seconds, hosted on HailEvidence (the neutral evidence surface), formatted as an insurance-appeal attachment.
Unlimited reports — Pro $99/mo Single report $29
Provenance
Final counts: NCEI Storm Events Database, file vintage c20260527, hail events with recorded magnitude ≥1.00″ and point coordinates within 45 miles of the Chicago anchor. 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. Spotted an error? Email the address on our terms page and we correct against the source.