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Aurora, IA Natural Disasters and Weather Extremes

 
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The chance of earthquake damage in Aurora is about the same as Iowa average and is much lower than the national average. The risk of tornado damage in Aurora is higher than Iowa average and is much higher than the national average.

Topics:Earthquake IndexVolcano IndexTornado IndexOther Weather Extremes EventsVolcanos NearbyHistorical Earthquake EventsHistorical Tornado Events

Earthquake Index, #484

Aurora, IA
0.00
Iowa
0.00
U.S.
1.81

The earthquake index value is calculated based on historical earthquake events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the earthquake level in a region. A higher earthquake index value means a higher chance of an earthquake.

Volcano Index, #1

Aurora, IA
0.0000
Iowa
0.0000
U.S.
0.0023

The volcano index value is calculated based on the currently known volcanoes using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the possibility of a region being affected by a possible volcano eruption. A higher volcano index value means a higher chance of being affected.

Tornado Index, #325

Aurora, IA
252.53
Iowa
236.74
U.S.
136.45

The tornado index value is calculated based on historical tornado events data using USA.com algorithms. It is an indicator of the tornado level in a region. A higher tornado index value means a higher chance of tornado events.

Other Weather Extremes Events

A total of 4,220 other weather extremes events within 50 miles of Aurora, IA were recorded from 1950 to 2010. The following is a break down of these events:

TypeCountTypeCountTypeCountTypeCountTypeCount
Avalanche:0Blizzard:26Cold:74Dense Fog:11Drought:11
Dust Storm:0Flood:492Hail:1,352Heat:15Heavy Snow:57
High Surf:0Hurricane:0Ice Storm:23Landslide:0Strong Wind:63
Thunderstorm Winds:1,627Tropical Storm:0Wildfire:0Winter Storm:124Winter Weather:50
Other:295 

Volcanos Nearby

No volcano is found in or near Aurora, IA.

Historical Earthquake Events

No historical earthquake events that had recorded magnitudes of 3.5 or above found in or near Aurora, IA.

No historical earthquake events found in or near Aurora, IA.

Historical Tornado Events

A total of 95 historical tornado events that had recorded magnitude of 2 or above found in or near Aurora, IA.

Distance (miles)DateMagnitudeStart Lat/LogEnd Lat/LogLengthWidthFatalitiesInjuriesProperty DamageCrop DamageAffected County
0.32001-09-06242°37'N / 91°44'W42°37'N / 91°43'W1.00 Mile50 Yards00300K0Buchanan
 Brief Description: Tornado reported by emergency manager Event Summary for 09/06/01: A strong short wave trough in the upper level atmosphere, moved northeast through Iowa and Wisconsin during the afternoon and evening hours. This wave of energy helped thunderstorms, which were moving along a warm front in northeast Iowa, become strong. Despite the lack of convective available potential energy, ample moisture and wind shear along the front allowed thunderstorms within this area of rain to rotate and produce a few short lived tornadoes. One storm in Buchanan County Iowa, produced two tornadoes as it quickly moved northeast along the warm front. Here is a summary of the tornadoes which struck northeastern Buchanan County Iowa. At 605 pm CDT, an F0 tornado touched down 5 miles southwest of Aurora, Iowa, producing damage to the Ralph Kramer farm site. Several out buildings were damaged or destroyed. One empty grain bin was moved off of its foundation. The home only had minor damage, with some siding blown off. The tornado continued moving northeast, producing crop and tree damage as it crossed 142 street. At 625 pm, the tornado struck the Lonnie McAllister farm site, again damaging or destroying farm out buildings. This is also where the most significant crop damage was observed. The tornado then lifted, leaving a trail of some tin and other debris, as the storm moved northeast. This tornado was on the ground for 3.5 miles and was 40 yards wide at its widest point. At 630 pm CDT, an F2 tornado touched down 0.25 miles southwest of Aurora and quickly moved across Aurora, producing damage to the roof of the American Legion building in Aurora. The tornado then struck the Ken Mosher home just east of Aurora. The tornado totally ripped off the roof and two car garage of this newer frame dwelling. The tornado then lifted 0.75 miles northeast of Aurora, and no other tornadoes from this storm touched down again until it had moved about a mile north into Fayette County, Iowa. This tornado was on the ground for 1 mile, and was 50 yards wide.
4.72008-05-25342°36'N / 92°01'W42°34'N / 91°36'W21.00 Miles1232 Yards031.0M0KBuchanan
 Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: A tornado developed just east of the county lines southwest of Fairbank and moved east. The tornado cross the southern part of Hazelton and continued east into Delaware County. Over ten homes, about 50 non-anchored mobile homes at a dealership, and numerous outbuildings were destroyed. Several other homes sustained structural damage. Numerous trees and utility poles were also blown down. An SUV was flipped over in Hazelton injuring the driver and some passengers. EPISODE NARRATIVE: Heavy rain-producing showers and thunderstorms moved across much of eastern Iowa and northwest and west central Illinois from the evening of May 25th to the early morning of May 26th. Some of the stronger storms also produced tornadoes, damaging winds, and large hail. Buchanan, Delaware, and Dubuque counties in Iowa were hardest hit with the heavy rains, where rainfall totals of 3 to 8 inches fell resulting in flash flooding.
5.01954-04-30242°38'N / 91°38'W1.00 Mile200 Yards000K0Buchanan
7.41964-05-07342°36'N / 91°54'W42°38'N / 91°51'W2.30 Miles200 Yards01250K0Buchanan
7.91998-06-18242°29'N / 92°03'W42°36'N / 91°38'W20.00 Miles25 Yards00800K0Buchanan
 Brief Description: A farm south of Jesup sustained massive damage from a tornado and severe thunderstorm winds which passed across Buchanan County. Most of the out buildings were damaged or destroyed and every tree on the farm was lost. A double car garage was blown into a cornfield, the tool shed was pushed off it's foundation, gas barrels were gone, and a Morton Building was destroyed. There was also serious damage to the the barn roof. In the home glass was driven into the woodwork. Closet doors and the access door to the attic were blown off, and attic insulation was driven down into the house. At another farm three grain wagons were lifted off the ground. One landed vertically across the road in a ditch and another landed in a ditch near the farmhouse. Shingles and shutters were blown off this house, and 60 feet of roof was torn off the cattle shed. At the Cedar Crest and St Athansius Cemetaries east of Jesup 46 trees were destroyed.
8.51964-05-07242°40'N / 91°53'W2.00 Miles250 Yards002.5M0Fayette
12.61968-05-15542°40'N / 91°56'W42°51'N / 91°51'W13.10 Miles500 Yards515625.0M0Fayette
12.71995-07-27342°36'N / 91°41'W42°27'N / 91°21'W20.50 Miles150 Yards001.0M330KBuchanan And Delaware
13.91954-04-30442°06'N / 91°45'W43°11'N / 91°10'W80.40 Miles200 Yards000K0Linn
15.11950-07-01242°27'N / 91°55'W14.00 Miles33 Yards000K0Buchanan
15.41990-06-02242°24'N / 91°41'W42°25'N / 91°35'W5.50 Miles67 Yards00250K0Buchanan
16.11990-06-02242°25'N / 91°35'W42°27'N / 91°30'W5.00 Miles67 Yards00250K0Delaware
16.41988-11-15242°29'N / 91°28'W42°36'N / 91°23'W11.00 Miles63 Yards00250K0Delaware
18.11991-03-22242°21'N / 91°32'W42°35'N / 91°21'W17.00 Miles80 Yards01250K0Delaware
18.51960-04-16342°28'N / 92°05'W42°30'N / 92°00'W3.80 Miles800 Yards00250K0Buchanan
19.01960-11-15242°28'N / 91°28'W42°34'N / 91°18'W10.50 Miles70 Yards00250K0Delaware
19.21969-06-26242°22'N / 91°34'W42°39'N / 91°12'W26.90 Miles300 Yards00250K0Delaware
19.81961-09-02242°39'N / 92°07'W1.00 Mile40 Yards0025K0Howard
21.01971-07-12242°53'N / 92°03'W42°49'N / 91°57'W6.40 Miles100 Yards00250K0Fayette
22.22000-05-11242°34'N / 92°10'W42°30'N / 92°08'W5.00 Miles150 Yards00300K2KBlack Hawk
 Brief Description: Two houses destroyed The seasons first tornado outbreak took place during the late afternoon and early evening hours of the 11th. During the day, very strong warm air advection took place. Temperatures warmed rapidly during the day with highs reaching the mid to upper 90s over about the southwest half of the state. Dew point temperatures were in the upper 60s to low 70s. This combination produced CAPE values in excess of 8000 J/kg. During the afternoon, a strong cap was in place with 700 mb temperatures around +16 C. This prevented convection from firing during the afternoon. Toward evening, thunderstorms broke through the cap over northeast Iowa. The storms went from initial echo to tornadic storms in less than 50 minutes. A supercell formed west of the Waterloo area. This cell became a splitting cell and produced a brief tornado in Grundy County as the right moving cell split off, and golf ball size hail in Bremer County from the left moving cell. The cell moved off quickly, however additional supercells back developed over the same area. the strongest tornado developed in the Cedar Falls area and tracked across the northern portions of Waterloo. This cell produced a strong tornado which was actually a multi-vortex tornado based on reports from storm chasers in the area. At one point, west of Dunkerton, three tornadoes each one quarter mile wide were on the ground with this storm. The tornado damaged several houses and a few farmsteads along the way. Reports indicated between 5 and 10 houses in Black Hawk County were totally destroyed, and another 15 to 20 sustained significant damage. A total of at least 41 structures sustained at least some damage. In addition to the tornado, damage also occurred south of the track as RFD winds estimated as high as 100 MPH were observed. Dunkerton was hard hit as the tornado moved through. Heavy damage was reported at a coop elevator in Dunkerton, with 10 of 16 grain elevators damaged. A roof was removed from a church as well, resulting in about $500,000 damage. The City Hall building was destroyed in Dunkerton. The City Hall was housed in a series of double wide trailers since ironically the former City Hall building was destroyed just last year in the floods of '99. As the tornado moved through the fairly densely populated area, numerous injuries were reported. Some of the injuries were severe with limbs being cut off by flying debris. One woman lost both one arm and one hand, and had her back broken. She passed away 17 days after her injuries occurred. Six of the injuries occurred at a nursing home that was hit by the tornado. They occurred as the 139 residents were being evacuated. Reports indicated the width of the tornado was up to three-quarters of a mile at its widest. The damage path from the storm was around one and one half miles wide. The tornado continued moving east and crossed into Buchanan County, about 4 miles northeast of Dunkerton. A short time later, another cell developed in the Dunkerton area and dropped a tornado. That tornado struck a farm northwest of town, destroying the farm house and seven outbuildings. In addition to the damage that occurred to the structures, the family dog and one of the five horses on the farm were killed. Reports indicate a letter from one of the farm houses destroyed was found 60 miles away from Dunkerton in the town of Monona in Clayton County. Polly Mill's rural Dunkerton farmhouse was shredded by the tornado. She lost some of her late husband's military medals, pages out of the family Bible, and part of her collection of letters and first-issue stamps. Sixty miles away, on a farm east of Monona, the letter was found in an envelope carrying a first-day issue, 5-cent stamp commemorating the Battle of New Orleans. There was yet a third round of tornadic storms in the Dunkerton area. The last tornado touched down near Dunkerton and developed southward. Two houses in the town of Dunkerton were destroyed by this tornado. In addition to the tornadoes, very heavy rain fell in a narrow area of Black Hawk County. Reports of 3 inches or more of rain was received from the area. Soil conditions were very dry at the time. The dry soil conditions helped preclude any significant flooding. By the afternoon of the 12th, Iowa Governor Vilsack had declared Black Hawk County a state disaster area.
22.51974-08-12442°21'N / 91°29'W5.00 Miles400 Yards0122.5M0Delaware
22.91971-07-12242°50'N / 92°06'W42°50'N / 92°03'W00250K0Bremer
23.61976-06-12242°32'N / 92°13'W42°38'N / 92°10'W6.90 Miles100 Yards0225K0Black Hawk
23.91981-04-10242°50'N / 92°06'W0.80 Mile100 Yards002.5M0Bremer
24.02000-05-11242°34'N / 92°14'W42°36'N / 92°10'W3.60 Miles120 Yards00350K5KBlack Hawk
 Brief Description: Farm and several outbuildings destroyed The seasons first tornado outbreak took place during the late afternoon and early evening hours of the 11th. During the day, very strong warm air advection took place. Temperatures warmed rapidly during the day with highs reaching the mid to upper 90s over about the southwest half of the state. Dew point temperatures were in the upper 60s to low 70s. This combination produced CAPE values in excess of 8000 J/kg. During the afternoon, a strong cap was in place with 700 mb temperatures around +16 C. This prevented convection from firing during the afternoon. Toward evening, thunderstorms broke through the cap over northeast Iowa. The storms went from initial echo to tornadic storms in less than 50 minutes. A supercell formed west of the Waterloo area. This cell became a splitting cell and produced a brief tornado in Grundy County as the right moving cell split off, and golf ball size hail in Bremer County from the left moving cell. The cell moved off quickly, however additional supercells back developed over the same area. the strongest tornado developed in the Cedar Falls area and tracked across the northern portions of Waterloo. This cell produced a strong tornado which was actually a multi-vortex tornado based on reports from storm chasers in the area. At one point, west of Dunkerton, three tornadoes each one quarter mile wide were on the ground with this storm. The tornado damaged several houses and a few farmsteads along the way. Reports indicated between 5 and 10 houses in Black Hawk County were totally destroyed, and another 15 to 20 sustained significant damage. A total of at least 41 structures sustained at least some damage. In addition to the tornado, damage also occurred south of the track as RFD winds estimated as high as 100 MPH were observed. Dunkerton was hard hit as the tornado moved through. Heavy damage was reported at a coop elevator in Dunkerton, with 10 of 16 grain elevators damaged. A roof was removed from a church as well, resulting in about $500,000 damage. The City Hall building was destroyed in Dunkerton. The City Hall was housed in a series of double wide trailers since ironically the former City Hall building was destroyed just last year in the floods of '99. As the tornado moved through the fairly densely populated area, numerous injuries were reported. Some of the injuries were severe with limbs being cut off by flying debris. One woman lost both one arm and one hand, and had her back broken. She passed away 17 days after her injuries occurred. Six of the injuries occurred at a nursing home that was hit by the tornado. They occurred as the 139 residents were being evacuated. Reports indicated the width of the tornado was up to three-quarters of a mile at its widest. The damage path from the storm was around one and one half miles wide. The tornado continued moving east and crossed into Buchanan County, about 4 miles northeast of Dunkerton. A short time later, another cell developed in the Dunkerton area and dropped a tornado. That tornado struck a farm northwest of town, destroying the farm house and seven outbuildings. In addition to the damage that occurred to the structures, the family dog and one of the five horses on the farm were killed. Reports indicate a letter from one of the farm houses destroyed was found 60 miles away from Dunkerton in the town of Monona in Clayton County. Polly Mill's rural Dunkerton farmhouse was shredded by the tornado. She lost some of her late husband's military medals, pages out of the family Bible, and part of her collection of letters and first-issue stamps. Sixty miles away, on a farm east of Monona, the letter was found in an envelope carrying a first-day issue, 5-cent stamp commemorating the Battle of New Orleans. There was yet a third round of tornadic storms in the Dunkerton area. The last tornado touched down near Dunkerton and developed southward. Two houses in the town of Dunkerton were destroyed by this tornado. In addition to the tornadoes, very heavy rain fell in a narrow area of Black Hawk County. Reports of 3 inches or more of rain was received from the area. Soil conditions were very dry at the time. The dry soil conditions helped preclude any significant flooding. By the afternoon of the 12th, Iowa Governor Vilsack had declared Black Hawk County a state disaster area.
25.11976-06-13242°25'N / 92°16'W42°36'N / 92°08'W14.00 Miles100 Yards0025K0Black Hawk
25.21971-07-12342°18'N / 91°31'W42°18'N / 91°28'W022.5M0Delaware
26.01966-06-05242°17'N / 91°30'W000K0Linn
26.31985-05-30342°51'N / 91°32'W42°53'N / 91°08'W20.00 Miles500 Yards22525.0M0Clayton
26.71990-06-13242°51'N / 91°24'W42°53'N / 91°15'W8.00 Miles67 Yards00250K0Clayton
26.81966-04-19242°51'N / 92°07'W42°55'N / 92°07'W4.60 Miles250 Yards0025K0Bremer
27.31972-09-28242°12'N / 91°47'W42°17'N / 91°22'W21.90 Miles2200 Yards032.5M0Linn
28.52000-05-11342°31'N / 92°27'W42°36'N / 92°07'W18.50 Miles400 Yards1251.8M10KBlack Hawk
 Brief Description: Multi-vortex, regerative tornado F72PH The seasons first tornado outbreak took place during the late afternoon and early evening hours of the 11th. During the day, very strong warm air advection took place. Temperatures warmed rapidly during the day with highs reaching the mid to upper 90s over about the southwest half of the state. Dew point temperatures were in the upper 60s to low 70s. This combination produced CAPE values in excess of 8000 J/kg. During the afternoon, a strong cap was in place with 700 mb temperatures around +16 C. This prevented convection from firing during the afternoon. Toward evening, thunderstorms broke through the cap over northeast Iowa. The storms went from initial echo to tornadic storms in less than 50 minutes. A supercell formed west of the Waterloo area. This cell became a splitting cell and produced a brief tornado in Grundy County as the right moving cell split off, and golf ball size hail in Bremer County from the left moving cell. The cell moved off quickly, however additional supercells back developed over the same area. the strongest tornado developed in the Cedar Falls area and tracked across the northern portions of Waterloo. This cell produced a strong tornado which was actually a multi-vortex tornado based on reports from storm chasers in the area. At one point, west of Dunkerton, three tornadoes each one quarter mile wide were on the ground with this storm. The tornado damaged several houses and a few farmsteads along the way. Reports indicated between 5 and 10 houses in Black Hawk County were totally destroyed, and another 15 to 20 sustained significant damage. A total of at least 41 structures sustained at least some damage. In addition to the tornado, damage also occurred south of the track as RFD winds estimated as high as 100 MPH were observed. Dunkerton was hard hit as the tornado moved through. Heavy damage was reported at a coop elevator in Dunkerton, with 10 of 16 grain elevators damaged. A roof was removed from a church as well, resulting in about $500,000 damage. The City Hall building was destroyed in Dunkerton. The City Hall was housed in a series of double wide trailers since ironically the former City Hall building was destroyed just last year in the floods of '99. As the tornado moved through the fairly densely populated area, numerous injuries were reported. Some of the injuries were severe with limbs being cut off by flying debris. One woman lost both one arm and one hand, and had her back broken. She passed away 17 days after her injuries occurred. Six of the injuries occurred at a nursing home that was hit by the tornado. They occurred as the 139 residents were being evacuated. Reports indicated the width of the tornado was up to three-quarters of a mile at its widest. The damage path from the storm was around one and one half miles wide. The tornado continued moving east and crossed into Buchanan County, about 4 miles northeast of Dunkerton. A short time later, another cell developed in the Dunkerton area and dropped a tornado. That tornado struck a farm northwest of town, destroying the farm house and seven outbuildings. In addition to the damage that occurred to the structures, the family dog and one of the five horses on the farm were killed. Reports indicate a letter from one of the farm houses destroyed was found 60 miles away from Dunkerton in the town of Monona in Clayton County. Polly Mill's rural Dunkerton farmhouse was shredded by the tornado. She lost some of her late husband's military medals, pages out of the family Bible, and part of her collection of letters and first-issue stamps. Sixty miles away, on a farm east of Monona, the letter was found in an envelope carrying a first-day issue, 5-cent stamp commemorating the Battle of New Orleans. There was yet a third round of tornadic storms in the Dunkerton area. The last tornado touched down near Dunkerton and developed southward. Two houses in the town of Dunkerton were destroyed by this tornado. In addition to the tornadoes, very heavy rain fell in a narrow area of Black Hawk County. Reports of 3 inches or more of rain was received from the area. Soil conditions were very dry at the time. The dry soil conditions helped preclude any significant flooding. By the afternoon of the 12th, Iowa Governor Vilsack had declared Black Hawk County a state disaster area.
28.71964-05-07242°31'N / 92°20'W42°28'N / 92°12'W7.10 Miles200 Yards02725.0M0Black Hawk
29.52008-05-25242°34'N / 92°33'W42°37'N / 92°04'W24.00 Miles2100 Yards02025.0M155KBlack Hawk
 Brief Description: EVENT NARRATIVE: Tornado moved in from Butler County and became very broad as it headed toward Fairbank. Tornado lifted on the Buchanan County border. EPISODE NARRATIVE: A very intense upper low was located over the southwest U.S. and lifted northeast during the weekend of the 24th into the morning of the 26th. The seasons first strong push of deep moisture moved into Iowa on the 25th with surface temperatures warming into the mid 80s and dew points surging into the upper 60s to low 70s. Precipitable water values were near 1.5 inches. The dry slot pushed north across the area the previous night as the warm front lifted north. The primary surface low was located over northern Minnesota. A cold front extended south from the low into northwest Iowa. The airmass became very unstable by the mid afternoon hours. MUCAPE rose to between 4000 and 5000 J/kg. Lifted indices fell to -8 to -11 C. There was a considerable amount of both DCAPE at 1000-1500 J/kg and cape in the -10 to-30 C. layer of the atmoshpere, between 400 and 600 J/kg. The freezing level was around 13,200 feet. The environment was quite sheared with effective shear in the 40 to 50 kt range. LCL values were between 1000 and 1500 meters. The airmass was initially capped. During the late afternoon hours, a small cluster of thunderstorms formed over north central into northeast Iowa. The storms became severe very quickly. Initially, the storms dropped hail up to golf ball in size. One became a strong super cell and produced a major tornado. This cell, in addition to being tornadic, also produced hail of baseball to softball in size and winds in excess of 90 MPH. The tornado track was from approximately 2 miles south of Aplington to Parkersburg, then continued to New Hartford and across northern Black Hawk County. The average path width ranged from 0.6 to 0.7 miles near Parkersburg to just north of New Hartford. The path constricted to near one quarter mile wide east of New Hartford to north of Waterloo. The width then increased to near 1.2 miles wide north of Dunkerton before dissipating near the Black Hawk and Buchanan County line. The tornado was on the ground for approximately 43 miles. In addition to the main tornado, a satellite tornado was observed by storm chasers and one off duty NWS employee. It was located south of the main tornado and was on the ground for a little over a mile in Grundy County. Initial reports indicated 9 fatalities with 7 in Parkersburg (pop 1889) and 2 in New Hartford (pop 637). There were at least 50 injuries, with 4 of those in critical condition. Two of the fatalities occurred a few days after the tornado from injuries sustained in the tornado. The last fatality occurred on 7 Nov. A 61 year old female sustained injuries in the stairwell of her home when a 2 x 4 was thrown through her right side lung. She was hospitalized and died several months later of complications. Significant structural damage occurred across the southern end of Parkersburg and along a path to just north of New Hartford. Numerous structures completely destroyed from Parkersburg to near New Hartford. The tornado continued eastward to just north of the Waterloo and Cedar Falls area. Significant damage also occurred north of Dunkerton where the tornado increased to its greatest path width. This storm also produced substantial straight line wind damage along the southern periphery of the storm just south of the tornado track. News accounts indicated that a receipt from Parkersburg was found around 1915 CST 3 miles north of Prairie du Chien, WI, 109 miles to the northeast. Receipits were also found in Clayton County at Elkader, and full scrapbook pages and photos were found in far northeast Bremer County at Sumner. Preliminary estimates that straight line winds of 90 to 100 MPH occurred with this storm. At 1637 CST, the Waterloo Airport recorded a 93 MPH wind gust. Survey results suggest that straight line wind damage was the cause of the severe damage at the recreational vehicle dealership north of Cedar Falls. At least 627 homes were damaged, including 288 homes destroyed in Parkersburg, 88 in New Hartford, 15 in Hazelton and another 50 in Black Hawk County. In addition, 58 had major damage, 33 had moderate damage, 2 were inaccessible, and 93 damaged but able to be occupied. There were also 21 businesses destroyed. Governor Chet Culver declared both Butler and Black Hawk disaster areas with both given the State Declaration. A Federal Disaster Declaration occurred two days later for both Butler and Black Hawk Counties. The tornado was rated a low end EF5 by a Quick Response Team (QRT) in portions of Parkersburg and north of New Hartford with peak winds estimated at 205 MPH. For historical reference, the last F5 tornado to hit Iowa was on 13 June 1976 in Boone and Story Counties in the town of Jordan, with a 21 mile path length. The last F4 tornado to hit Iowa was in Union, Madison, and Dallas Counties with a 56 mile path length on 8 April 1999. There was one other smaller tornado during the evening. A tornado touched down in Clarke County and was on the ground for a short time southeast of Osceola. After the initial thunderstorm area developed over north central and northeast Iowa, a large complex developed over southeast Nebraska. The two areas of storms filled in to form a squall line by the mid evening hours. The complex over Nebraska then pushed east and northeast along the squall line. A considerable amount of severe weather was generated during the evening as this occurred. Along the squall line, high winds and hail were common with the dominant mode of severe weather being hail of up to golf ball in size. As the MCS out of Nebraska advanced east, a tail extending south from the centroid took on a bow echo configuration and raced east across Iowa at 65 MPH. Very high winds occurred with this feature with numerous locations reporting winds of 65 to 85 MPH. Some of the higher winds included an 85 MPH wind gust in the Winterset area and numerous reports of 75 to 85 MPH winds from Madison, Dallas, Warren and Polk Counties. Lightning struck a house in Ankeny. The house was set on fire by the strike.
29.61975-11-09342°12'N / 92°28'W42°41'N / 92°03'W39.40 Miles33 Yards002.5M0Tama
31.11990-03-13442°16'N / 91°20'W42°20'N / 91°16'W5.00 Miles200 Yards0025.0M0Jones
31.11971-06-24343°04'N / 91°49'W10250K0Fayette
31.31990-03-13442°14'N / 91°25'W42°16'N / 91°20'W4.00 Miles200 Yards0025.0M0Linn
31.51954-05-23242°10'N / 91°40'W003K0Linn
31.81965-08-26442°18'N / 92°11'W42°15'N / 92°06'W4.70 Miles200 Yards1172.5M0Benton
32.11964-05-04242°20'N / 91°15'W42°23'N / 91°10'W4.70 Miles200 Yards02250K0Delaware
32.31965-08-26442°18'N / 92°12'W42°18'N / 92°11'W002.5M0Black Hawk
32.51990-03-13442°20'N / 91°16'W42°23'N / 91°08'W9.00 Miles200 Yards0025.0M0Delaware
32.61965-07-18242°18'N / 92°12'W0.50 Mile50 Yards000K0Black Hawk
32.61960-04-16342°22'N / 92°32'W42°28'N / 92°05'W23.70 Miles800 Yards15250K0Black Hawk
33.11970-09-09242°30'N / 91°06'W1.00 Mile100 Yards00250K0Dubuque
33.81953-05-10342°57'N / 91°20'W43°03'N / 91°17'W6.60 Miles400 Yards00250K0Clayton
34.31971-07-12443°03'N / 92°03'W43°04'N / 92°03'W1.10 Miles1320 Yards042.5M0Fayette
34.61961-04-23342°04'N / 92°46'W42°15'N / 91°13'W80.30 Miles800 Yards162.5M0Tama
34.61990-03-13442°23'N / 91°08'W42°24'N / 91°07'W1.00 Mile200 Yards0025.0M0Dubuque
35.11965-08-25243°04'N / 91°23'W43°01'N / 91°18'W4.70 Miles100 Yards00250K0Clayton
35.51954-04-30242°13'N / 91°12'W42°27'N / 91°06'W16.60 Miles50 Yards000K0Jones
35.71964-05-04242°07'N / 91°28'W42°09'N / 91°31'W2.30 Miles200 Yards01250K0Linn
36.01988-03-24243°04'N / 92°02'W43°07'N / 92°02'W2.00 Miles100 Yards002.5M0Fayette
36.61973-06-04243°09'N / 91°46'W1.00 Mile100 Yards00250K0Winneshiek
38.41954-04-30241°40'N / 92°00'W42°28'N / 91°18'W65.80 Miles200 Yards000K0Iowa
38.81988-03-24243°07'N / 92°02'W43°11'N / 91°56'W7.00 Miles33 Yards002.5M0Winneshiek
38.92004-05-21342°03'N / 91°49'W42°04'N / 91°46'W3.00 Miles200 Yards00250K50KLinn
 Brief Description: Rated F3 with winds estimated at 175 mph. Tornado developed just east of the Benton-Linn County Line Road and moved Northeast to Palo. The tornado initially caused damage to a farm 2 miles southwest of Palo where a garage and 3 outbuildings were destroyed. As it approached Palo, another farm was severely damaged where the roof and walls were torn off a house and a car was lofted 50 feet. The tornado continued across the southern edge of Palo where it destroyed a mobile home.
39.01977-07-16242°48'N / 92°29'W42°48'N / 92°26'W1.90 Miles20 Yards00250K0Bremer
39.21965-08-26242°32'N / 90°58'W0.50 Mile100 Yards0025K0Dubuque
39.41956-07-17243°04'N / 92°16'W43°02'N / 92°13'W2.30 Miles200 Yards010K0Chickasaw
39.62001-09-06242°42'N / 92°34'W42°47'N / 92°25'W10.00 Miles100 Yards00100K10KBremer
 Brief Description: Tornado moved in from Butler County and touched down again, mostly in open field. A car and garage was damaged in Bremer County. A strong upper level low pressure lifted northeast out of the southern Plains during the afternoon of the 6th. During the heating of the afternoon, thunderstorms erupted in the unstable air. The freezing level was around 15,000 feet, so hail was not a great threat. Surface dew point temperatures were in the upper 60s to low 70s with precipitable water values around 1.75 inches. Thunderstorms fired southwest of the Des Moines metropolitan area. A tornado touched down in rural Madison County. The tornado was about 60 feet wide and produced a half mile long path of damage in open country. As the storms moved northeast they continued to intensity. One cell dropped a tornado at the Glen Oaks Golf Course in West Des Moines, causing some minor damage there. The tornado tracked northeast and flipped a semi tractor-trailer truck in Interstate 35 resulting in one injury. It continued northeast and hit an apartment complex causing damage to the building and destroying an 8-car garage. The path was more intermittent as it continued northeast into the city. There were numerous reports of trees and power lines being downed. The tornado lifted as the event transitioned into a high wind event. The storms produced wind damage in Johnston as it moved through the area. High winds of 80 to 85 MPH occurred in northern Polk and southern Story Counties before they weakened. A grain bin was flattened, along with tree and crop damage, as the storm moved through the Elkhart area. Just northwest of that, in Slater, high winds took the roof off of a house in southern Story County. One person in the house was injured. The storms continued to track northeast, eventually dropping another tornado in Butler and Bremer Counties. The tornado had a somewhat intermittent track touching down south of Shell Rock and lifting northeast of Waverly. For the most part the tornado tracked through corn fields there. One farmstead was hit in Butler County. A grain bin was destroyed and blown one quarter of a mile across a field, another was blown off its foundation, a shed was destroyed, and crops were damaged. In Bremer County, one car and a garage were damaged along the tornadoes path. Another farmstead was hit north of Waverly. Part of a machine garage was destroyed and blown about 30 feet off of its foundation.
39.71971-05-31242°24'N / 92°27'W1.00 Mile200 Yards0025K0Black Hawk
39.91966-10-14242°03'N / 91°36'W5.00 Miles33 Yards00250K0Linn
40.11969-06-29242°24'N / 91°00'W0025K0Dubuque
40.21969-06-04242°46'N / 91°00'W42°44'N / 90°55'W4.10 Miles200 Yards00250K0Grant
40.61998-06-27242°40'N / 92°34'W42°42'N / 92°29'W5.00 Miles75 Yards003K1KBremer
 Brief Description: Iowa was located in the warm sector of a developing storm system to the west. The warm front had moved to the northern Iowa border during the afternoon of the 27th with dew point temperatures in the mid 70s to around 80 blanketing the state in the warm sector. Initially, the airmass was capped, preventing thunderstorms from forming during the afternoon. Slightly cooler air moved in during the evening hours. In addition to the slightly cooler air moving in aloft, a cold front was poised over eastern Nebraska ready to move east into the state. Thunderstorms erupted rapidly by early evening with hail and high winds reported over northern Iowa. There were numerous reports of hail of an inch or larger in diameter, with a few reports of golf ball size hail. High winds were also a problem with many of the storms producing 60 to 70 MPH wind gusts. Reports of tree and power line damage were widespread. There were a few tornadoes as well. One tracked across open country in Cerro Gordo County before damaging a house south of Clear Lake. Another tornado touched down near Swaledale in Cerro Gordo County and passed southeast of Mason City. Much of the track was over open country, however one house was destroyed near Swaledale by this tornado. The longest track tornado moved across Butler and Bremer Counties. It also passed through open country, causing damage to crops and out buildings. In addition to these, there were a few brief touchdowns reported. Iowa soil remained very saturated with numerous rivers at or near flood stage. Heavy rainfall of near 4 inches in a couple hours time caused flash flooding in Cerro Gordo County. A widespread area of north central into northeast Iowa received heavy rainfall. Many areas picked up two to four inches of rain in a few hour period. This resulted in urban and small stream flooding, and ultimately general river flooding in the days that followed. As the storms moved through Worth County, lightning struck an outbuilding west of Kensett. The building was set on fire and destroyed.
41.41971-05-31342°06'N / 92°18'W42°12'N / 92°10'W9.40 Miles600 Yards00250K0Tama
41.41971-05-18342°00'N / 91°52'W42°03'N / 91°48'W4.30 Miles200 Yards00250K0Benton
42.01985-05-30342°53'N / 91°08'W42°56'N / 90°52'W14.00 Miles1500 Yards022.5M0Grant
42.61994-07-07242°58'N / 92°29'W43°04'N / 92°16'W9.50 Miles100 Yards00500K5KChickasaw
42.71987-07-29243°13'N / 91°38'W43°14'N / 91°29'W7.00 Miles30 Yards002.5M0Allamakee
42.92003-07-20242°00'N / 91°46'W42°00'N / 91°46'W1.00 Mile300 Yards00500K45KLinn
 Brief Description: Tornado developed in a corn field about 0.5 miles north of Covington. The tornado moved South Southeast crossing North Glen and Michael Road in Covington and then lifted in another corn field just north of Ellis Road.
43.01987-07-29243°16'N / 91°43'W43°13'N / 91°38'W3.00 Miles30 Yards002.5M0Winneshiek
43.01970-09-09242°51'N / 92°32'W42°53'N / 92°29'W2.30 Miles150 Yards0025K0Bremer
43.02003-07-20242°00'N / 91°39'W42°00'N / 91°39'W0.30 Mile200 Yards002.0M0Linn
 Brief Description: Strong F2...winds estimated at 140 mph. Tornado touched down near the intersection of Zelda Drive and E Avenue Northwest. The tornado moved southeast for 0.25 miles across Peace Avenue and then lifted on Floral Avenue. The tornado reached peak intensity on Peace Avenue where F2 winds unroofed 3 homes, and 26 other homes were heavily damaged. This was the first tornado inside the Cedar Rapids city limits since 1965.
43.21961-09-01442°52'N / 92°33'W42°53'N / 92°28'W3.30 Miles27 Yards002.5M0Bremer
43.51972-09-28242°17'N / 91°22'W42°25'N / 90°33'W42.60 Miles2200 Yards002.5M0Jones
43.51965-08-25243°19'N / 91°59'W43°10'N / 91°46'W14.70 Miles150 Yards01250K0Winneshiek
44.01967-03-30243°11'N / 92°06'W43°14'N / 92°02'W4.10 Miles100 Yards0025K0Howard
44.31966-04-19242°27'N / 92°36'W42°29'N / 92°33'W2.30 Miles200 Yards0025K0Grundy
44.61971-07-12443°13'N / 92°23'W43°05'N / 92°05'W17.50 Miles1320 Yards002.5M0Chickasaw
44.71992-07-13342°11'N / 91°08'W42°11'N / 91°02'W5.00 Miles73 Yards002.5M0Jones
44.71953-05-20341°59'N / 91°34'W42°01'N / 91°23'W9.40 Miles400 Yards040K0Linn
44.81965-04-11441°51'N / 90°56'W42°52'N / 90°55'W70.20 Miles200 Yards102.5M0Cedar
44.91967-04-30242°24'N / 90°54'W2.00 Miles400 Yards00250K0Dubuque
45.51958-07-29242°20'N / 91°05'W42°17'N / 90°48'W14.50 Miles200 Yards0025K0Dubuque
45.51993-08-09243°04'N / 92°27'W43°04'N / 92°20'W5.00 Miles55 Yards02500K50KChickasaw
45.71965-05-26241°52'N / 91°54'W42°03'N / 91°36'W19.80 Miles33 Yards014250K0Linn
46.11960-04-16342°20'N / 92°35'W42°22'N / 92°32'W2.30 Miles800 Yards00250K0Grundy
47.31966-04-19342°02'N / 92°17'W42°05'N / 92°14'W3.00 Miles400 Yards00250K0Benton
47.71953-05-20342°01'N / 91°23'W42°05'N / 91°01'W19.20 Miles400 Yards030K0Jones
48.81958-07-14242°12'N / 92°30'W0025K0Tama
49.61959-05-09242°06'N / 92°24'W0025K0Tama


* The information on this page is based on the global volcano database, the U.S. earthquake database of 1638-1985, and the U.S. Tornado and Weather Extremes database of 1950-2010.


 
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