Northwest Iowa — Severe thunderstorms threatened northwest Iowa on the Fourth of July, with Mother Nature making a few fireworks of her own.
At 10:22 a.m, a severe thunderstorm warning was posted for northeastern Osceola, northwestern Dickinson, southwestern Jackson and southeastern Nobles counties until 10:45 a.m. The main hazards listed were strong winds and quarter-sized hail. It was forecast to be in the Harris area around 10:40 a.m. At 10:36 a.m., a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for eastern Osceola, all of Dickinson, southern Jackson and southeastern Nobles counties, until 11:15 a.m. That warning mentioned 70-mile-per-hour wind gusts and even larger — ping-pong-ball-sized — hail. It said hail damage, tree damage, and wind damage to buildings was possible. At 11:07 a.m., the warning was continued for points east of our area including the Iowa Great Lakes and Spencer, but Osceola County was no longer listed. This time the warning included the fact that “torrential rainfall” had been reported with the storms, which could lead to flash flooding.
There were no more warnings until late afternoon. At 5:45 p.m., the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for northern Cherokee, southeastern Sioux, northeastern Plymouth, and southwestern O’Brien counties until 6:15 p.m. They said a severe storm was found south of Orange City. Sixty-mile-per-hour wind gusts and quarter-sized hail was predicted. It said the towns of Marcus, Granville, Paullina, Larrabee, Calumet, Oyens, and Meriden could be affected. At 6:17 p.m., a severe thunderstorm warning was issued for northeastern Cherokee, northwestern Buena Vista, southwestern Clay and southeastern O’Brien counties until 6:45 p.m. Again the main threats were strong winds and quarter-sized hail. It said Sutherland, Peterson, Royal, Calumet, Rossie, and Meriden could be affected. As the storms left our area another severe thunderstorm warning was issued at 6:46 p.m. for northern Buena Vista and southeastern Clay counties.
The Emergency Management Directors from Lyon, O’Brien, and Sioux Counties say they knew of no reports of damage in their areas. At last report, Osceola County Emergency Management Director Dan Bechler was not available for comment.
