On the evening of April 8th until the morning of the 9th, strong winds, heavy rain, and hail swept through the central and eastern parts of Hubei province. A total of 398 towns in 52 counties and cities experienced heavy rain, with 58 towns receiving over 100 millimeters of rainfall. Across 175 towns in 49 counties and cities, thunderstorm winds of levels 8 to 14 were recorded. In addition, the city of Wuhan was hit by hail the size of eggs, with localized wind speeds reaching up to level 13.
According to a report by the “Hubei Daily” on April 9th, the strongest rainfall of the year arrived as scheduled on the night of the 8th, bringing with it strong winds, heavy rain, and hail. By 10 a.m. on April 9th, the accumulated rainfall had exceeded 100 millimeters in Tianmen, Xiantao, Hanchuan, and Wuhan, among other areas.
The meteorological department reported that by the morning of April 9th, 398 towns in 52 counties and cities such as Xiaogan, Shayang, Huanggang, Qianjiang, Wuhan, Xiantao, Jingzhou, Yichang, Tianmen, Jiayu, and Ezhou experienced heavy rain. Among them, 58 towns including Changyang, Zhijiang, Wufeng, Jingzhou, Shayang, Tianmen, Xiantao, Qianjiang, Xiaonan, Huangpi, Hong’an, and Macheng experienced extreme rainfall of over 100 millimeters.
In addition to heavy rain, strong winds were also reported. Thunderstorm winds of levels 8 to 14 swept through 175 towns in 49 counties and cities across the province. In some areas, like Liangzi Lake in Ezhou where winds reached level 14, and in localized parts of Wuhan with wind speeds of up to level 13.
Hefeizhongying Town, Yanzhen Town, Wufengyuyuanguan Town, Xiantao, Hanchuan Xinhe, and northern parts of Wuhan also experienced small hailstones.
From the night of the 8th to the morning of the 9th, extreme convective weather hit Wuhan, bringing hail the size of eggs exceeding 5 centimeters in various areas of the city along with thunderstorm winds up to level 13 and torrential rainfall.
The sound of hail hitting windows woke up numerous residents. Wuhan netizens took to social media to share videos and photos taken at night, expressing shock and calling it a “night of disaster” and “like the end of the world”, with some experiencing the terrifying power of nature for the first time.
On the morning of April 9th, a resident of Huangpi District in Wuhan told reporters that trees were knocked down and blocked roads on their way out in the morning. Another netizen from Dongxihu District mentioned experiencing hail on the 9th in their area.
A resident in the Jiujiang urban area said that living in a high-rise building, they felt the building swaying at night. Their car was also hit by debris, leading to a broken rear window.
The report indicated that multiple areas within Wuhan suffered extensive damage, with many residential windows shattered by hail in Jiang’an and Qiaokou districts, leaving shattered glass everywhere. The storm caused power outages in some areas, with fallen trees blocking roads. Huangpi District recorded over 100 millimeters of rainfall in just 3 hours, resulting in flooding exceeding 10 centimeters in low-lying areas and several cars stalling due to the flooded conditions.