All hail to the storm

For two nights in a row last week, severe weather rolled its way through Eddy County, offering a downpour of much needed rain, an epic lightning show and a fair sprinkling of hail.

During the early morning hours of Monday, Aug. 5, the National Weather Service issued a severe storm warning for Eddy and surrounding counties. The severe thunderstorm was reported near Fessenden at 1:06 a.m., and was moving east at 40 mph. The storm posed hazards such as 60 mph wind gusts and hail up to an inch, or about the size of a quarter. The warning remained in effect until 7 a.m.

On the evening of Tuesday, Aug. 6, the National Weather Service issued another severe thunderstorm warning for western Eddy County at 7:03 p.m. At 7:16 p.m., half-dollar sized hail (1 ¼ inch) was reported 0.2 miles east of New Rockford. Wind gusts clocked speeds up to 60 mph. By 7:30, the storm had dissipated.

Tyler Wobbema of New Rockford captured this photo of an ominous shelf cloud as it passed over New Rockford on Tuesday night around 7 p.m.