Help · Storm reports
Storm reports.
Data sources, hail size interpretation, verification, and the report PDF format.
Data sources
NOAA Storm Events Database, NWS Local Storm Reports, NEXRAD, MRMS / MESH, SPC reports, and ASOS / wind observations. Source availability varies by event; reports cite the records used.
Hail size interpretation
MESH gives an estimated maximum hail size per radar pixel (~1 km grid). Storm events database gives hail size as ground-truthed by trained spotters or aftermath surveys. The two often differ — the SkyCanvass storm report shows both, with the source flagged.
Storm date verification
Every storm event in a SkyCanvass report links to the NOAA Storm Events record by event_id. The link is verifiable — anyone can pull the official record and see the same date, location, and intensity.
Property-radius search
Storm history search returns events that affected a property — within a configurable radius (default 1 mile). Returns include the event date, type (hail, wind, tornado), magnitude, and the official record ID.
Time-range filtering
Filter by date range to surface storms in a specific window. Default is 24 months. Extend to 5 years to cover the typical storm-restoration scope window. Older data available on Enterprise.
Report PDF format
A standard SkyCanvass storm report includes: property header, time-range cover, storm event table with sources, MESH overlay map for the date(s) in question, and a footer with the data provenance for each line.
Why three sources
A single source can be wrong. NOAA Storm Events relies on spotter reports — accurate where there is a spotter network, sparse otherwise. NEXRAD radar covers the country but gives signatures (not ground truth). MESH derives from radar but applies a model — accurate at scale, sometimes off in specific cases.
When independent sources agree, the storm event is well documented across sources. When they disagree, the report shows the available records and lets the reader weigh them. That is the format an audit-grade record needs. A SkyCanvass storm report is meant to document the storm — it does not make legal or coverage determinations.
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