This Wednesday evening featured the first somewhat-widespread severe thunderstorm event of 2020 within South Central Nebraska, with several reports of damaging winds and large hail focused primarily near and northeast of a line from Loup City-Grand Island-Hebron. Overall, damaging winds were the bigger issue, highlighted by a measured gust of 79 MPH at the York airport shortly before 10 p.m. CDT. As these winds tore into town, they took down several large tree branches (a few entire trees), causing fairly widespread power outages and even partially-crushing an unoccupied car. About an hour before reaching York, measured winds of 70 MPH struck the Chapman area, flipping over irrigation pivots and taking down a light pole at a convenience store. Later in the evening, shortly before storms completely exited the local area, estimated 70 MPH winds took down a giant tree limb in Alexandria (3 ft. diameter/50 ft. long). Although the majority of wind damage focused within eastern counties, severe-criteria gusts were ongoing even as storms first entered the local area earlier in the evening, including 64 MPH at Ord airport. As for hail, the majority of limited reports were quarter size or smaller, although a few stones up to golf ball size were noted in North Loup.
Breaking down event timing and evolution, the scattered to numerous storms that eventually infiltrated South Central Nebraska first developed as separate storm clusters during the mid-late afternoon, one over northwest Nebraska and another in the NE/KS/CO border area. Between 7-9 p.m. CDT, both of these clusters entered northern and western portions of the local area. The southern one, which had been occasionally severe over southwest Nebraska, lost some steam as it moved east, yielding only slightly sub-severe wind gust reports in Furnas County. Meanwhile, the northern storm complex clearly established itself as dominant, charging southeastward as damaging winds peaked in intensity between 8:30-11:30 p.m. CDT. Shortly before midnight, the back edge of the now linear mesoscale convective system (MCS) exited southeast out of Thayer County, ending all storm activity for the night. Turning to the meteorological setup, this was not a strongly-forced event, with the main feature in the mid-upper levels consisting of a low-amplitude shortwave trough tracking east-southeast across Nebraska out of western SD over the course of the afternoon-evening. Surface features across South Central Nebraska ahead of the storms were fairly nondescript, dominated by weak high pressure and southerly-to-easterly breezes only around 10 MPH or less. However, fairly steep low-mid level lapse rates were in place, with damaging wind potential likely enhanced by fairly large surface dewpoint depressions heading into the evening (on the order of 25-30 degrees F). Evening mesoscale analysis over South Central Nebraska revealed 1000-2000 J/kg mixed-layer CAPE and around 35-40 knots of deep-layer wind shear.

Hail in VALLEY, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:05:00 to 03-JUN-20 19:05:00 (CST-6)
Location: NORTH LOUP
Magnitude: 1.75 
Property damage: 10.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: COOP Observer

Most hail stones were smaller than quarters, but a few were as large as golf ball size.

Thunderstorm Wind in MERRICK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:56:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:01:00 (CST-6)
Location: CHAPMAN
Magnitude: 61.00 MG
Property damage: 500.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Emergency management reported several pivots were flipped over and mangled north of Chapman. At a convenience store in Chapman, a metal light pole was blown down, and a large metal ice chest was moved away from the main building into the parking lot.

Thunderstorm Wind in HOWARD, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:45:00 to 03-JUN-20 19:45:00 (CST-6)
Location: ST LIBORY
Magnitude: 56.00 EG
Property damage: 250.00K
Crop damage: 250.00K
Reported by: Social Media

Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in downed tree limbs up to 5 inches in diameter. Wind-driven hail of unknown size also caused crop damage in the area.

Thunderstorm Wind in YORK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:45:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:45:00 (CST-6)
Location: HENDERSON
Magnitude: 52.00 EG
Property damage: 2.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Wind gusts estimated to be near 60 MPH resulted in a large tree limb being downed in Henderson, blocking a street.

Thunderstorm Wind in YORK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:50:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:52:00 (CST-6)
Location: YORK ARPT
Magnitude: 69.00 MG
Property damage: 100.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: AWOS

A wind gust of 79 MPH was recorded by the York Airport AWOS. Law enforcement reported downed power lines and resultant power outages across town and that 2 homes sustained damage due to fallen trees. The York News-Times reported that an unoccupied car was partially-crushed by a fallen tree on West Sixth Street.

Thunderstorm Wind in THAYER, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 22:01:00 to 03-JUN-20 22:01:00 (CST-6)
Location: DESHLER
Magnitude: 56.00 EG
Property damage: 25.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in downed tree limbs in Deshler. Most branches were around 2 inches in diameter, the largest being approximately 1 foot in diameter and 25 feet long.

Thunderstorm Wind in THAYER, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 22:20:00 to 03-JUN-20 22:20:00 (CST-6)
Location: ALEXANDRIA
Magnitude: 61.00 EG
Property damage: 25.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Wind gusts were estimated to be near 70 MPH. Emergency management reported that a three foot diameter and 50 foot long tree limb and a 1.5 to 2 foot diameter tree limb were blown down and blocking Main Street in the community of Alexandria.

Thunderstorm Wind in VALLEY, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 18:32:00 to 03-JUN-20 18:32:00 (CST-6)
Location: (ODX)SHARP FLD ORD
Magnitude: 56.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: ASOS

Hail in VALLEY, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 18:42:00 to 03-JUN-20 18:42:00 (CST-6)
Location: ORD
Magnitude: 1.00 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Thunderstorm Wind in SHERMAN, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:01:00 to 03-JUN-20 19:05:00 (CST-6)
Location: SHERMAN RES
Magnitude: 56.00 EG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Wind gusts estimated to be near 65 MPH resulted in downed tree limb at the reservoir, the largest up to 6 to 8 inches in diameter.

Thunderstorm Wind in HOWARD, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:34:00 to 03-JUN-20 19:34:00 (CST-6)
Location: ST PAUL
Magnitude: 52.00 EG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Public

Wind gusts were estimated to be near 60 MPH.

Hail in MERRICK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:05:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:05:00 (CST-6)
Location: CHAPMAN
Magnitude: 1.00 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Storm Chaser

Hail in HAMILTON, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:20:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:20:00 (CST-6)
Location: MARQUETTE
Magnitude: 1.00 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Law Enforcement

Thunderstorm Wind in MERRICK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:30:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:30:00 (CST-6)
Location: CLARKS
Magnitude: 52.00 EG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Storm Chaser

Wind gusts were estimated to be near 60 MPH.

Thunderstorm Wind in HAMILTON, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:35:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:35:00 (CST-6)
Location: AURORA MUNI ARPT
Magnitude: 50.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: AWOS

Thunderstorm Wind in YORK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 20:59:00 to 03-JUN-20 20:59:00 (CST-6)
Location: WACO
Magnitude: 54.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in YORK, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 21:03:00 to 03-JUN-20 21:03:00 (CST-6)
Location: WACO
Magnitude: 68.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Thunderstorm Wind in THAYER, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 21:52:00 to 03-JUN-20 21:52:00 (CST-6)
Location: DAVENPORT
Magnitude: 50.00 MG
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Mesonet

Hail in VALLEY, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 21:18:00 to 03-JUN-20 21:18:00 (CST-6)
Location: NORTH LOUP
Magnitude: 0.88 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Emergency Manager

Hail in SHERMAN, NEBRASKA
From 03-JUN-20 19:36:00 to 03-JUN-20 19:36:00 (CST-6)
Location: LOUP CITY
Magnitude: 1.00 
Property damage: 0.00K
Crop damage: 0.00K
Reported by: Public