Iowa, 1960

Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, April 16, 1960

April 16, 1960 · 13 events in 13 counties and zones

6 hail, 5 tornado, 2 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
1
Injuries
5
Property damage
$800,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
13

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

6 hail, 5 tornado, 2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Marion

When
April 16, 11:30 AM CST
Where
Marion County
Measured
2.75 in hail
Coordinates
41.280, -93.080

Hail, Calhoun

When
April 16, 12:57 PM CST
Where
Calhoun County
Measured
1.5 in hail
Coordinates
42.280, -94.780

Thunderstorm Wind, Webster

When
April 16, 1:35 PM CST
Where
Webster County
Measured
65 kt (75 mph)
Coordinates
42.500, -94.180

Hail, Marshall

When
April 16, 2:00 PM CST
Where
Marshall County
Measured
0.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.080, -92.900

Hail,

When
April 16, 2:15 PM CST
Where
County
Measured
2 in hail
Coordinates
40.500, -94.580

Tornado, Grundy

When
April 16, 2:30 PM CST
Where
Grundy County
Rating
F3
Path length
2.3 mi
Path width
800 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
42.330, -92.580

Tornado, Black Hawk

When
April 16, 2:45 PM CST
Where
Black Hawk County
Rating
F3
Path length
23.7 mi
Path width
800 yd
Deaths
1 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries
5 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
42.370, -92.530

Tornado, Buchanan

When
April 16, 3:15 PM CST
Where
Buchanan County
Rating
F3
Path length
3.8 mi
Path width
800 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
42.470, -92.080

Thunderstorm Wind, Iowa

When
April 16, 3:15 PM CST
Where
Iowa County
Coordinates
41.700, -92.280

Hail, Ringgold

When
April 16, 3:35 PM CST
Where
Ringgold County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
40.700, -94.280

Hail, Bremer

When
April 16, 3:45 PM CST
Where
Bremer County
Measured
2 in hail
Coordinates
42.700, -92.500

Tornado, Wayne

When
April 16, 4:30 PM CST
Where
Wayne County
Rating
F2
Path length
9.5 mi
Path width
200 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
40.800, -93.300

Tornado, Van Buren

When
April 16, 6:30 PM CST
Where
Van Buren County
Rating
F1
Path length
15.8 mi
Path width
500 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
40.830, -91.830

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

EventDateAgeSexWhereKind
Tornado, Black Hawk1960-04-16Direct

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.
Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Iowa in 1960Every state in 1960This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Iowa, 1960

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10018151, 10018152, 10018153, 10018154, 10018155, 10018156, 10018157, 10018158, 10018159, 10018160, 10018161, 10018162, 10018163.