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A powerful storm swept through the D.C. area, bringing heavy rain, damaging winds, and hail.
WASHINGTON — A powerful line of storms barreled through the D.C. area Sunday evening, bringing heavy rain, damaging winds, and even hail to some neighborhoods. Reports of hail came in from Middletown, Maryland and parts of D.C. as intense thunderstorms rumbled through the region.
The severe weather threat began in the late afternoon as storms developed west of the metro area, quickly strengthening as they moved eastward. Wind gusts reached up to 60 mph, toppling small tree branches and sending lightweight objects flying. By 10 p.m., the most intense storms had moved out, with the severe threat diminishing by 11 p.m.
What causes hail?
Hail forms inside powerful thunderstorms with strong updrafts—columns of air that lift raindrops high into the storm, where temperatures are well below freezing. These droplets freeze and get tossed around in the storm, collecting more layers of ice as they rise and fall. Eventually, when they become too heavy for the updraft to support, they fall to the ground as hailstones.
Thankfully, the worst of the storms have passed, and Monday will bring clearing skies and calmer conditions — just in time for St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.
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