Northwest Iowa — Severe thunderstorms packing hail, heavy rain and gusty winds made their way through northwest Iowa Sunday afternoon, leaving some damage in their wake.
Peter Rogers is a Meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls, and he tells us about the storms that passed through the area.
(As above) “Those storms were mainly high winds. So we did have some reports of damage mainly to trees, but it’s also a few small structural damage from the winds that went through that northwest corner of Iowa.”
According to the National Weather Service, at 3:25 Sunday afternoon, a 58-mile-per-hour wind gust was observed near Hawarden in Sioux County, and things took off from there. At 3:57 Sunday afternoon a 55-mile-per-hour wind gust, along with reports of small branches down near Rock Rapids. Two minutes later, at 3:59, trees were observed to be down south-southwest of Hull. There was damage to trees and a power pole down northeast of Ashton at 4:15. At 4:16 pm, 62 mph straight-line winds partially took the roofs off a couple of buildings on the Tim Kamstra farm northeast of Sheldon. The peak wind gust measured during Sunday’s storms was 65-miles-per-hour, which happened at 4:37 Sunday afternoon northeast of Melvin. In addition to the strong winds and heavy rains, hail up to an inch in diameter fell at the Lakes as that storm passed through Sunday evening.
According to the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office, law enforcement and fire departments responded to several reports of damage caused by a severe thunderstorm that affected areas in northern Sioux County.
The communities of Rock Valley, Hull and Boyden reported that straight line winds of 60-70 miles per hour caused damage to several trees, branches, residences and power lines. There were also reports of minor damage caused when trees and branches struck several vehicles. Thankfully, no injuries were reported.
Rogers says we should get something of a reprieve from any nasty weather over the next few days.
(As above) “Tuesday, Wednesday they’re looking pretty good. We’re dry, temperatures seasonal for this time of year, with highs generally in the mid seventies to upper eighties. By the time we get into Thursday and Friday, rain chances return it also looking quite a bit warmer, with highs back into the upper eighties and maybe even a few nineties, as well.”
Below are some photos of damage from Sunday’s storms. Photos courtesy of Tim Kamstra and the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office.
First Set of Photos Courtesy of Tim Kamstra
Photos below courtesy of the Sioux County Sheriff’s Office
