Iowa, 1982

Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 17, 1982

May 17, 1982 · 10 events in 9 counties and zones

6 tornado, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail, 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
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$578,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
10

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 tornado, 3 thunderstorm wind, 1 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Greene

When
May 17, 1:00 PM CST
Where
Greene County
Coordinates
42.020, -94.380

Hail, Story

When
May 17, 1:13 PM CST
Where
Story County
Measured
1.75 in hail
Coordinates
42.030, -93.620

Tornado, Webster

When
May 17, 1:28 PM CST
Where
Webster County
Rating
F1
Path length
1.2 mi
Path width
17 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
42.270, -94.380

Tornado, Webster

When
May 17, 1:28 PM CST
Where
Webster County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.6 mi
Path width
10 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
42.280, -94.380

Tornado, Kossuth

When
May 17, 2:45 PM CST
Where
Kossuth County
Rating
F1
Path length
4 mi
Path width
30 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
43.120, -94.130

Tornado, Hancock

When
May 17, 2:50 PM CST
Where
Hancock County
Rating
F2
Path length
2 mi
Path width
80 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
43.220, -93.820

Tornado, Winnebago

When
May 17, 2:55 PM CST
Where
Winnebago County
Rating
F2
Path length
11 mi
Path width
80 yd
Property damage
$250,000
Coordinates
43.250, -93.800

Thunderstorm Wind, Benton

When
May 17, 3:05 PM CST
Where
Benton County
Measured
59 kt (68 mph)
Coordinates
42.170, -92.030

Thunderstorm Wind, Buchanan

When
May 17, 3:40 PM CST
Where
Buchanan County
Coordinates
42.630, -91.880

Tornado, Howard

When
May 17, 4:00 PM CST
Where
Howard County
Rating
F1
Path length
0.2 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
43.450, -92.280

What these are

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.
Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
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 1982Every state in 1982This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for Iowa, 1982

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: 10013800, 10013801, 10013802, 10013803, 10013804, 10014018, 10014019, 10014020, 10014021, 10014022.