A softball-size hailstone doesn’t fall from the sky quietly. On April 28, chunks of ice measuring up to 4.75 inches in diameter hammered the St. Louis metropolitan area, killing an emu at the Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield, injuring a rhea at the same facility, smashing windows on hundreds of vehicles, knocking out power to thousands of homes, and forcing flight cancellations at Lambert St. Louis International Airport. The National Weather Service logged the event in its Storm Events Database, the federal government’s authoritative record for severe weather, confirming hailstones that rank among the largest recorded in the region’s recent history.
An emu killed, a rhea injured
The storm’s most striking casualty was an emu struck and killed by hail at the Dickerson Park Zoo. A rhea at the same facility was also injured, according to an Associated Press report that cited named officials, including a National Weather Service meteorologist. “It sounded like someone was throwing bowling balls on the roof,” one Springfield resident told the AP, describing the moments the storm arrived. Both species are large, flightless birds that stand several feet tall, and their outdoor enclosures offered little protection against ice falling at terminal velocity.
No publicly available veterinary report has detailed the rhea’s condition or prognosis, and it remains unclear whether other animals at the facility were harmed or whether enclosures sustained structural damage that could leave additional species exposed. The zoo had not released a detailed incident summary as of early May 2026. Animal welfare advocates and accrediting organizations typically review such events to assess whether emergency shelter protocols were adequate.
Hundreds of vehicles damaged, thousands without power
Across the metro area, the hail left a trail of shattered windshields, dented hoods, and cracked siding. The AP reported hundreds of vehicles damaged, though no insurer or municipal authority has released a consolidated dollar estimate for repairs. Comprehensive auto insurance policies generally cover hail damage, but owners without that coverage face out-of-pocket costs that can run into thousands of dollars per vehicle.
Power outages spread across the region as the storm knocked down lines and damaged equipment. The precise number of affected households has not been confirmed in the federal storm record, and utility restoration timelines have not yet appeared in public after-action reports. Residents should verify outage figures through their local utility’s official channels rather than relying on unverified social media posts…