Meteorological Investigation – Hail Damage

Background

Hail damage was reported to have occurred to several buildings within a large condominium complex. Evidence collected during the property inspection indicated that the north and east elevations of several buildings had been damaged by hail but that the hail damage was likely not caused by a recent storm event.

Services Provided

Rimkus was retained to determine hail occurrence at the property location on the reported loss date and/or during the previous 3-year period.  During the course of our investigation, we collected and examined storm report data and National Weather Service weather warning data in conjunction with site-specific radar data.  Based on our investigation and analysis, we were able to formulate the following opinions:

  • A hail-producing storm did not occur at the property location on the reported loss date.
  • An examination of the meteorological data indicated that a large-sized hail event (between 1 and 2-inch diameter hail) occurred at the property location 16 months prior to the reported hail event.
  • The size of hail and directionality of hail impact produced by the prior hail occurrence at the property location was consistent with the information gathered during our site inspection.
  • Our investigation of the meteorological data indicated that the hail damage at the property location was consistent with a prior hail event and was not caused by a storm cell on the reported date of loss.