Statewide Iowa — Weather experts are still studying the powerful derecho that hit Iowa two months ago and they’ve determined the wind storm spawned a record number of tornadoes in several categories.
Rod Donavon, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Johnston, says that single storm spun off more than five-dozen twisters, a startling number, especially in one day.
One person in eastern Iowa was killed in the December 15th storms, which caused extensive damage in multiple Iowa counties. Donavon says there’s an unusual coincidence with the two previous dates for single-day tornado records in Iowa.
Not only did December 15th set a single day record for tornadoes in Iowa, it set a record for the most tornadoes in a month.
The December 15th storm set yet another record for the highest number of EF-2 tornadoes in a single day — at 21. The storm was the second derecho to hit Iowa in recent years. The first tore across the state on August 10th of 2020.
