This cycle may repeat itself several times until the frozen water droplets become so large and heavy that the updraft can no longer support their weight. Eventually, the frozen water droplets fall back to earth as hailstones. Storms that produce hailstones the size of a dime or larger can produce dents in the tops of vehicles, damage roofs, break windows and cause significant injury or even death and thus are considered severe. Large hailstones can fall at speeds faster than 100 miles per hour. These severe hail storms cause nearly one billion dollars in damage to property and crops annually.
Thunderstorms produce two types of wind.
The tornado, which is spawned from a severe thunderstorm, is a rotational wind. The other, more predominant wind from a thunderstorm is called a downburst, which is a straight wind. Every thunderstorm produces a downburst. The old adage, what goes up, must come down, holds true for the rising air in every thunderstorm. The typical 25 miles per hour gusty breeze, accompanied by a temperature drop as much as 20 degrees in a few minutes, is the downburst we feel from a distant thunderstorm.