Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 28, 1979

Name: Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 28, 1979
Start: 1979-06-28T17:12
End: 1979-06-28T22:34
Location: Iowa

June 28, 1979 · 22 events in 12 counties and zones

14 tornado, 4 hail, 4 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 5
Injuries: 70
Property damage: $52 million
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 22

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

14 tornado, 4 hail, 4 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Emmet

When: June 28, 5:12 PM CST
Where: Emmet County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 30 yd
Coordinates: 43.400, -94.480

Tornado, Emmet

When: June 28, 5:25 PM CST
Where: Emmet County
Rating: F1
Path length: 2.3 mi
Path width: 40 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 43.300, -94.480

Tornado, Kossuth

When: June 28, 5:31 PM CST
Where: Kossuth County
Rating: F1
Path width: 40 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 43.250, -94.470

Hail, Emmet

When: June 28, 5:35 PM CST
Where: Emmet County
Measured: 2 in hail
Coordinates: 43.400, -94.430

Tornado, Kossuth

When: June 28, 5:40 PM CST
Where: Kossuth County
Rating: F3
Path length: 15.9 mi
Path width: 300 yd
Deaths: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 34 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $25 million
Coordinates: 43.250, -94.250

Tornado, Palo Alto

When: June 28, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Palo Alto County
Rating: F0
Path length: 0.5 mi
Path width: 40 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 42.900, -94.700

Thunderstorm Wind, Palo Alto

When: June 28, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Palo Alto County
Coordinates: 43.120, -94.700

Tornado, Pocahontas

When: June 28, 6:02 PM CST
Where: Pocahontas County
Rating: F4
Path length: 4.1 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $3,000
Coordinates: 42.630, -94.600

Hail, Kossuth

When: June 28, 6:11 PM CST
Where: Kossuth County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 43.150, -94.230

Tornado, Calhoun

When: June 28, 6:25 PM CST
Where: Calhoun County
Rating: F4
Path length: 10.8 mi
Path width: 333 yd
Deaths: 3 direct, 0 indirect
Injuries: 26 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $25 million
Coordinates: 42.570, -94.580

Tornado, Kossuth

When: June 28, 6:37 PM CST
Where: Kossuth County
Rating: F1
Path length: 3.6 mi
Path width: 33 yd
Property damage: $25,000
Coordinates: 42.970, -94.250

Tornado, Kossuth

When: June 28, 6:40 PM CST
Where: Kossuth County
Rating: F1
Path width: 300 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.920, -94.070

Tornado, Humboldt

When: June 28, 6:42 PM CST
Where: Humboldt County
Rating: F1
Path length: 7.7 mi
Path width: 300 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.900, -94.050

Tornado, Wright

When: June 28, 6:55 PM CST
Where: Wright County
Rating: F1
Path length: 12.6 mi
Path width: 300 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.800, -93.970

Hail, Greene

When: June 28, 7:57 PM CST
Where: Greene County
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Coordinates: 42.030, -94.230

Tornado, Hamilton

When: June 28, 8:01 PM CST
Where: Hamilton County
Rating: F2
Path length: 7.2 mi
Path width: 350 yd
Injuries: 10 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.520, -93.800

Tornado, Hamilton

When: June 28, 8:20 PM CST
Where: Hamilton County
Rating: F2
Path length: 1 mi
Path width: 177 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 42.420, -93.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When: June 28, 8:30 PM CST
Where: Dallas County
Coordinates: 41.850, -94.230

Tornado, Dallas

When: June 28, 8:40 PM CST
Where: Dallas County
Rating: F1
Path length: 12.9 mi
Path width: 40 yd
Property damage: $250,000
Coordinates: 41.670, -94.200

Hail, Warren

When: June 28, 8:55 PM CST
Where: Warren County
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Coordinates: 41.480, -93.750

Thunderstorm Wind, Dallas

When: June 28, 9:05 PM CST
Where: Dallas County
Coordinates: 41.620, -93.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Wapello

When: June 28, 10:34 PM CST
Where: Wapello County
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates: 41.100, -92.450

What these are

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.
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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 1979 Every state in 1979 This day in weather history The tornado archive for Iowa, 1979

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: 10014173, 10014174, 10014175, 10014176, 10014177, 10014178, 10014179, 10014180, 10014181, 10014182, 10014183, 10014184, 10014185, 10014186, 10014187, 10014188, 10014189, 10014190, 10014191, 10014192, 10014193, 10014194.