Hailstorm blankets Boston prompting residents to post videos online
Boston saw a deluge of hailstorms on Tuesday which caught the attention of numerous people who took out cellphones to document the extreme weather conditions.
Videos show hail blanket yards and roads -- so much in one neighborhood it was rushing down the street.
In Tewksbury, the quiet summer afternoon was abruptly interrupted by persistent pinging and pelting of hail, CBS Boston reports.
"I was working up in my office and it was threatening and loud and thunder. No precipitation," Steve Murthey told CBS Boston. "All the sudden just bam. Down came the hail and within a minute and a half, two minutes we had a coating of hail."
And just like a handful of Dippin' Dots ice cream, the hail melted away as quickly as it came.
"If you don't like the weather, wait. Within ten minutes it was sunny again," Murthey said.
It took a bit longer for things to return to normal in Concord where a huge, rotted tree cracked in half, ripping wires and knocking out power.
"I took a lot of trees down because I was always worried about having one on my head," said Bob Ellis. "They're dangerous because they look really good but they're not. This one here has huge holes in the center."
"Thank God nobody got hurt," said Lori Ellis. "No cars were crossing under at the time."
Meanwhile, a severe thunderstorm watch was issued for western Nebraska and southern South Dakota. The primary risk is damaging winds (possibly in excess of 75 mph) and baseball size or larger hail. The watch runs until midnight ET.
On Wednesday, severe weather moves into larger areas, including cities in Nebraska including Omaha and Lincoln, as well as Des Moines, Iowa. Damaging wind and hail are the primary threats while a couple of tornadoes are possible.
On Thursday, there's a severe weather threat that stretches all the way from Kansas City to Cleveland. Damaging wind and hail is again the greatest threat, but changes in the forecast are possible.
In the West, brush fires are still threatening residents and their homes in Highland, California, CBS Los Angeles reports.
