Northwest Iowa — Severe weather rumbled through the tri-state area on Wednesday morning, leaving some damage and significant rain in its wake.
According to the National Weather Service:
As the storm entered our area, at 6:40 a.m., thunderstorm winds broke a large tree limb, which fell on top of a car at Beresford. A little later, as the storm hit an area seven miles southwest of Rock Valley, winds struck a machine shed, blew the doors in and blew out the back wall, with debris going out into the field. About that same time, Sioux County Emergency Management Director Nate Huizenga reported that ten mature trees were blown over, with the tops broken in that same area southwest of Rock Valley.
A few minutes later, some large trees reportedly were downed by winds four miles northwest of Sioux Center.
About 7:15 a.m., winds jackknifed a semi, which then blocked the road for a while on 390th Street between Dipper and Dogwood Avenues, about nine miles west of Sioux Center.
The Weather Service says a medium-sized tree was also blown over one mile northeast of Sheldon at around 7:55 a.m.
Precip wise, at KIWA in downtown Sheldon, we received a storm total of 2.08 inches, with 0.61″ of that between 7 and 8 a.m. In Rock Rapids, the total was 2.44 inches. Hospers only had 0.60″, and Sibley had 1.2 inches. Huizenga reports that between Sioux Center and Hawarden, they received between an half inch and 0.7″.
According to radar, the area west of George got 2.5 inches, as did parts of the Sibley area. Areas around Sheldon got around an inch and a half. Central Sioux County got less than an inch. The Paullina area got a little more, around 2 inches.
Flood warnings remain in effect for the Rock River at Rock Rapids and the Big Sioux River over most of its length from north of Brookings to Sioux City.
Picture of jackknifed semi west of Sioux Center, provided by a listener
