Thursday, May 12, 2016

Large Hail, Strong Winds Damage Homes and Cars in St. Louis Area

Sean Breslin
Published: May 12,2016

Large hail has fallen on parts of the Plains and Midwest multiple times this week, but on Wednesday, hailstones as big as grapefruits fell on the St. Louis metro area, putting thousands in danger of property damage.
Photos showed vehicles with shattered windows after hail fell on the greater St. Louis area. An estimated 120 of the 150 cars in the Plaza Motors West dealership lot were damaged by falling hail in the O'Fallon area Wednesday afternoon. Most of the cars suffered broken windows and dents, according to a local photographer.
car damage in O'fallon MO @ksdknews @KMOV @FOX2now @weatherchannel @NWSStLouis @ErikaMartinWx

All across western St. Louis, residents scattered to get indoors as the large hailstones began to crash to the ground.
"Get away from it all. I mean it was really bad. It was very loud and couldn't even get the dog to go out obviously. Would have knocked him out," Weldon Spring resident Ben Thomas told KSDK.com.
(MORE: Large Hail is an Underrated Danger | Check the Latest Severe Weather Forecast)
The National Weather Service said grapefruit-sized hail fell near Cottleville, northwest of downtown St. Louis, according to storm reports. In nearby Weldon Spring, massive hailstones were well-documented on social media.
Wow. HUGE hail reported in Weldon Spring. (via @TomMLemon)

View image on Twitter
Weldon Spring. Thanks @PinkstonWesly

View image on Twitter
Weldon Spring hailstones.

The strong storms also knocked out power to thousands on Wednesday. According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, more than 18,000 Ameren customers remained without power late Wednesday night, mostly in St. Louis County. The hailstorm did not injure anyone, the report added.
As the storms rolled through, strong winds also led to some downed trees and power lines. One large tree fell on three homes, St. Louis County Fire Department officials told NBC News, but nobody was injured in any of the homes.
MORE: Severe Weather Strikes the Plains

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