DES MOINES, Iowa – Multiple tornadoes struck Iowa on Tuesday, one of which caused several deaths and at least a dozen injuries in a small town, after severe weather brought numerous showers and thunderstorms across the Plains and Midwest.
The tornado touched down Tuesday afternoon in Greenfield, a city about 60 miles southwest of Des Moines, Iowa. Iowa State Police confirmed that several deaths occurred after the tornado almost completely shut down the city of more than 2,000 residents, the Des Moines Register, part of the USA TODAY Network, reported.
Sergeant Alex Dinkla, spokesman for the Iowa State Patrol, said at a news conference Tuesday evening that authorities were working to confirm the exact number of deaths or injuries but estimated at least a dozen people had been hospitalized.
Several other tornadoes were reported to have touched down in Iowa on Tuesday, including one “large and dangerous” near Fontanelle that raced northeast at 60 mph, the National Weather Service said. The weather service is asking people in tornado warning areas to take cover. “You are in a life-threatening situation,” the weather service said.
In all, more than 25 million people from Nebraska to Michigan live in the path of a powerful storm system and face a “likely” threat of tornadoes, heavy rain, hail and damaging winds, according to the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center .
AccuWeather warned that areas between northern Missouri and southern Wisconsin are at a high risk for severe thunderstorms through Tuesday evening.
“We are concerned about damaging winds and tornadoes. No two weather events are the same, but this has similar characteristics to the severe weather threat on April 26. More than 100 tornadoes were reported that day,” said meteorologist AccuWeather. said Bernie Rayno.
A tornado watch was issued Tuesday afternoon for much of eastern Nebraska and most of Iowa, along with parts of Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota. This means weather conditions are prime for tornado formation, according to the Storm Prediction Center. Much of Iowa was under an “extremely hazardous situation” tornado watch, a warning used only in the most extreme situations.
Severe thunderstorms led to reports of road flooding in at least seven Iowa counties Tuesday afternoon. The weather service received a report of 3 inches of rain in Mason City, Iowa, in Cerro Gordo County. Flooding was also reported in Bremer and Grundy counties.
The storm system was expected to reach peak intensity — with the formation of supercells, the most powerful type of thunderstorm — in the afternoon and early evening as it reaches the Missouri and Mississippi valleys and the Lake Michigan area.
The latest wave of storms to move through the central US last weekend and early this week spawned tornadoes and dropped damaging hail up to 2.5 inches in diameter. Possible tornadoes were reported in Colorado and Nebraska on Monday, although damage appeared limited. A day earlier, at least four people were injured in Oklahoma and dozens of buildings were damaged during storms that ravaged the Plains region.
Tornadoes move through Iowa amid powerful thunderstorms
Multiple thunderstorms spread across Iowa on Tuesday, resulting in a dangerous tornado outbreak. Tuesday evening, residents of communities in western and central Iowa worked to clean up and survey the damage.
Drone footage on social media showed destroyed homes, overturned cars, uprooted trees and downed power lines in Greenfield. According to former Iowa State Representative Clel Baudler, local authorities have restricted traffic in and out of Greenfield.
“Ambulances are running like crazy north and south,” Baudler said. “It’s all rescue and recovery now.”
The Adair County Health System hospital was also damaged and the hospital has been evacuated, a MercyOne spokesperson told the Des Moines Register.
According to AccuWeather, a tornado near Prescott, Iowa, destroyed several wind turbines. One turbine was seen falling to the ground on fire.
Volunteer weather spotters from the National Weather Service in Iowa also reported infrastructure damage, high winds and hail in other communities. Gov. Kim Reynolds has authorized a state of emergency for 15 counties: Adair, Adams, Cass, Clay, Hardin, Harrison, Jasper, Kossuth, Marshall, Montgomery, Page, Palo Alto, Pottawattamie, Tama and Warren.
Central America is facing more severe weather this week
The center of the system will reach southern Canada on Wednesday morning. However, a cold front will “remain nearly stationary over the Southern Plains, where the next phase of severe weather and excessive rainfall is expected to occur,” the weather service warned, adding that weather threats, including thunderstorms, will extend into mid-year. -Mississippi Valley on Wednesday evening.
On Thursday, persistent storms that could produce hail and “a few tornadoes” could hit Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and parts of Texas, the weather service’s Storm Prediction Center said. Isolated strong to severe thunderstorms will be possible across the Central Plains into South Dakota and across the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern coastal areas.
It’s already been a rough spring for tornadoes: There have been more than 830 preliminary reports of tornadoes so far this year, well above the historical average of 626 tornadoes this time of year, according to AccuWeather.
The death toll from the storm in Houston has risen to eight
An eighth person has died after a series of storms ripped through the Houston region on Thursday, leaving widespread damage including massive power outages due to an intense heat wave.
Officials discovered the body of a man they believe died of carbon monoxide poisoning, multiple media outlets reported, citing the Houston Fire Department.
Samuel Peña, the fire chief, went to X on Monday and called carbon monoxide poisoning a “silent killer.” He said his department has responded to 80 poisoning-related calls since last Thursday, including one that hospitalized four children because of a running generator, he said.
As authorities rush to restore power across the city, many schools remain closed due to outages and damage. Officials have also warned against travel due to debris from smashed downtown windows and damaged traffic lights.
Rising temperatures and record power consumption
In the meantime, temperatures have risen considerably. According to the National Weather Service, the afternoon heat index, or what it feels like temperature, is expected to reach triple digits through Friday, prompting a warning from the weather and local authorities.
According to an outage tracker from USA TODAY, more than 136,000 utility customers were still without power as of Tuesday afternoon. That’s down from the more than 946,000 customers without service in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi on Friday.
Power consumption in Texas broke a record for the month of May on Monday and is likely to reach that high in the coming week as homes and businesses keep their air conditioners on to escape the spring heat wave.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) said energy demand reached a preliminary 72,261 megawatts on May 20, surpassing the previous record for the month of May of 71,645 megawatts set in 2022.
US Weather Watches and Warnings
National weather radar
Contributors: Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez and Kate Kealey, Des Moines Register; Reuters
