The First Big Storm of 2026 Hit Central Texas — Here Is What Homeowners Should Do Right Now
The April 18 storm cut a 30+ mile hail swath from north of Georgetown through Round Rock and into South Austin, with hailstones reported up to the size of a baseball. Another round of severe weather is rolling through this week. Here is your HAAG-certified post-storm playbook.
What Happened on April 18
Saturday afternoon a strong cold front swept through Central Texas and fired off the most damaging hail producers we have seen so far this year. Storms dropped quarter-sized hail on Georgetown and Round Rock, and a tighter core pushed south into Pflugerville and parts of Austin with reports of hail as large as a baseball.
This is the pattern we prepared homeowners for in our 2026 Storm Season Prep Guide and in our April roof checklist. After a relatively quiet 2025, the 2026 season is front-loaded, and the forecast for the rest of the week keeps more storms in play.
Were You in the Path? Check These Zip Codes
If your home is in or near any of the following areas, you should assume your roof took at least some impact and plan a close inspection this week:
Williamson County
Georgetown, Round Rock, Hutto, Taylor, Jonah, Jarrell, Leander, Cedar Park, Brushy Creek
Travis County
Pflugerville, North Austin (78758, 78727, 78753), Central Austin, Mueller, Parts of South Austin (78745)
For a block-by-block view of where hail fell, the Interactive Hail Maps report for Round Rock is a good starting point. If you see your street inside the shaded swath, treat it as confirmation to get eyes on the roof.
The 7-Day Homeowner Playbook
The first week after a hail event is the highest-leverage window you have. Damage is documentable, the timeline is fresh, and your carrier has not yet been buried under a flood of regional claims. Run this playbook in order.
Day 1 — Walk the property and document everything you can safely see
Stay on the ground. Photograph dents in vehicles, A/C fins, gutters, downspouts, window screens, fence tops, and mailboxes. These soft-metal surfaces are the first things a HAAG-certified inspector will look at, because they tell us how hard the hail was hitting. Our first-24-hours guide walks through exactly what to capture.
Day 1–2 — Check your attic and top-floor ceilings
Head into the attic during the day. Turn off the lights and look for any daylight coming through the decking. Check for fresh water staining on the underside of the decking and rafters. New interior water spots on top-floor ceilings are a strong signal that something in the roof system failed during the storm.
Day 2–3 — Tarp only what is actively leaking
If you have an active leak, get a reputable contractor or your insurer's emergency service out to place a temporary tarp. Do not let a door-knocker climb your roof to "tarp it for free" in exchange for signing anything. Emergency mitigation protects your home; it is not a contract.
Day 3–5 — Book a professional inspection
Get a licensed, local roofer on the roof. At Hive we send a HAAG-certified inspector, take photos of every slope, mark hits on a diagram, and document everything in a written report. You get that report regardless of whether you move forward with us. It is your record of the roof's condition as of this week.
Day 5–7 — Talk to your insurance carrier
If damage is documented, contact your carrier and ask what their process is for a potential claim. Every policy is different; only your carrier can tell you whether a claim makes sense and what your deductible and timeline look like. We will hand you the inspection report so you can have an informed conversation, but we are not your adjuster and we never promise an outcome on your behalf.
What Quarter- to Baseball-Sized Hail Actually Does to a Roof
Most homeowners assume that if the roof is not leaking, it is fine. That is not how hail damage works. Hail rarely punches a hole straight through a shingle. What it does is strip the granules, fracture the mat underneath, and break the adhesive seals that keep shingles bonded. Those failures turn into leaks months or years later, not the day of the storm.
Rule of thumb: if your vehicle has dents, your A/C fins are flattened, or your patio furniture has new dings, your roof almost certainly has matching damage. Soft metal is the canary — it takes hits at the same angle and force your shingles do.
For a deeper look at how inspectors separate storm damage from age-related wear, see our complete guide to hail damage and our explainer on wind storm damage, which usually arrives alongside the hail.
What Not to Do This Week
Do not climb on your roof.
Wet shingles after a hail event are slick, and loosened shingles can let go underfoot. Every inspection we do is performed by a trained crew with fall protection. A free inspection is not worth an ER visit.
Do not sign anything a door-knocker puts in front of you.
After every major storm, out-of-state storm chasers canvass Central Texas neighborhoods. They will knock within hours and ask you to sign an "authorization to inspect." That paper is often an assignment of benefits that hands your insurance claim to them. Our 5 red flags of roofing scams piece covers exactly what to watch for.
Do not file a claim before you know what the damage is.
A claim filed without supporting evidence can be denied, and denied claims sometimes stay on your record. Get the inspection first, then decide with your carrier whether a claim is the right move.
Do not wait out the next storm.
Additional severe weather is possible this week. Every follow-on storm makes the initial damage harder to document cleanly and harder to separate from cumulative wear. The between-storms window is the best time for an inspection.
Why Timing Matters More Than You Think
In Central Texas, insurance carriers generally expect storm claims to be reported in a reasonable window after the event. The exact window depends on your policy, which is why step 5 in the playbook is talking to your carrier, not to us. What we can tell you is that documentation gathered within the first 7 to 14 days is cleaner, more specific, and easier to tie to the April 18 event than anything documented a month from now, when it will compete with whatever storm comes next.
HAAG-certified inspection reports hold up because they are tied to a specific date, a specific storm, and a specific damage pattern. That is the standard we work to, and it is why we push homeowners to get on the calendar early in the week after a named event.
Our 2-Hour Storm-Season Response Commitment
From March through June, Hive Roofing & Solar operates a 2-hour response window for storm-related calls from Central Texas homeowners. If you call us during business hours this week, you will hear back the same afternoon and we will get an inspector on the calendar within a few business days.
We are based in Round Rock, we live on the same roads you do, and we were out in the field Saturday evening as soon as the last cell cleared. Our storm damage restoration page walks through the full process, from first call to roof completion.
Free Post-Storm Inspection — This Week
Hive Roofing & Solar is booking free, no-obligation inspections across Georgetown, Round Rock, Pflugerville, and Austin this week. You get a HAAG-certified walkthrough, a photo-documented report, and a straight answer about what your roof needs — whether that is nothing, a targeted repair, or a replacement conversation with your carrier.
HAAG-certified • RCAT licensed • BBB A+ accredited • Round Rock based
Keep Reading
Central Texas just had its loudest reminder of the year that storm season is not theoretical. If the April 18 cell rolled over your block, do not guess at what your roof looks like — get eyes on it. We are here all week.