Damaging storms brought strong winds and possible tornadoes to Iowa on Tuesday afternoon, killing multiple people and causing significant destruction in the latest round of severe weather to hit Iowa. Midwest public sector in recent weeks.
Sergeant Alex Dinkla of the Iowa State Patrol said multiple people were killed and at least a dozen injured in the storm that hit Greenfield, Iowa, a small city of about 2,000 residents in Adair County, about 10 miles from Des Moines is about 50 miles southwest. at a press conference. Sergeant Dinkla said officials could not yet provide a death toll because search and rescue operations were still ongoing Tuesday night.
Footage circulating on social media appears to show extensive damage in a residential area in Greenfield. Videotapes captured by a storm chaser showed a series of homes reduced to piles of wood and rubble, and people being escorted away by emergency officials.
In nearby Adams County, a woman died as a result of the storm, according to Lisa Brown, the county’s medical examiner.
Images shared on social media and broadcast on local television news showed the destruction left behind by the tornadoes, including three 250-foot-tall wind turbines. overturned in Adams County, about 65 miles southwest of Des Moines. One of the structures appeared to have caught fire, creating a large column of smoke.
The Adair County Health System hospital in Greenfield was evacuated because of storm damage, according to Todd Mizener, a spokesman for the hospital’s affiliate, MercyOne.
Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa issued an emergency disaster declaration in 15 counties, including Adams and Adair, authorizing the use of state resources to respond to the storm. Sergeant Dinkla said patients at the hospital had been transferred to other hospitals.
A large swath of the country, from Kansas City, Missouri, to Milwaukee, is in the path of storm activity, with the potential for tornadoes and damaging winds highest across Iowa, including Iowa City and Davenport.
Pea-sized hail, heavy rain and strong winds swept across Madison County, Iowa, southwest of Des Moines, in the first round of storms Tuesday morning, county emergency management officials said. Residents are warned to avoid the storm, which is expected to peak between 3pm and 8pm
School districts closed early or did not hold classes at all.
This area has been has been no stranger to tornadoes this year, including reports of tornadoes in the Chicago area. There have been more than 150 preliminary reports of tornadoes so far this year in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri. Most of those reports occurred before May and June, typically the peak period of tornado weather in these states.
There was some uncertainty Tuesday about how the morning storms would impact storms expected to form in the afternoon. Morning storms may end early to allow weather conditions to recover and enough energy to occur for damaging storms in the afternoon.
The risk of severe storms will extend to the Upper Great Lakes overnight into Wednesday morning.
Christine Hauser Report contributions.
