Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, April 19, 1993

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, April 19, 1993
Start: 1993-04-19T02:15
End: 1993-04-19T20:20
Location: Iowa

April 19, 1993 · 9 events in 6 counties and zones

6 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 9 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $225,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 9

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

Hail, Montgomery

When: April 19, 2:15 AM CST
Where: Montgomery County, Red Oak
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 41.030, -95.156 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Warren

When: April 19, 3:31 AM CST
Where: Warren County, New Virginia
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.561 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A warm front was moving northward into Iowa. Thunderstorms fired up ahead of the front. Many of the storms produced gusty winds and small hail. Hail reportedly covered the ground in several places. Creston was one example, where they reported pea-size hail covering the ground. A few of the storms produced dime-size hail. Red Oak and New Virginia both reported 0.75-inch diameter hail.

Thunderstorm Wind, Des Moines

When: April 19, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Des Moines County, Danville
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Henry

When: April 19, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Henry County, Olds
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 40.988, -91.544 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Des Moines

When: April 19, 4:45 PM CST
Where: Des Moines County, Danville
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Property damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Jones

When: April 19, 5:20 PM CST
Where: Jones County to Martelle
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 42.121, -91.131 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

An intense low pressure system moved across Iowa during the afternoon of the 19th. A variety of weather occurred with this system. As the cold front, or more accurately the dry line, extending south from the low moved into southeast Iowa, strong thunderstorms erupted. They produced hail and gusty winds. Two funnel clouds were observed during the afternoon. One funnel cloud was observed south of Winfield, near Columbus Junction. The second was near Muscatine. No tornados occurred as neither of these funnel clouds touched down. One thunderstorm produced a microburst southwest of Danville. Damage occurred to one farmstead there in the amount of approximately $20,000. High winds also blew in two windows of another old farm house near Danville and also destroyed two pole buildings there. Golf ball-size hail fell in Jones County south of Martelle. The storms were scattered in nature and thus was the severe weather associated with them.

Thunderstorm Wind, Lee

When: April 19, 7:45 PM CST
Where: Lee County, Bloomfield
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 40.642, -91.479 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

After the passage of the thunderstorms caused by the dry line, a secondary area of thunderstorms developed over northern Missouri and tracked across southeast Iowa. They were ahead of the actual cold front associated with the low pressure system mentioned above. The storms produced strong winds. Winds gusted to around 60 mph in a few areas. Several barn doors were ripped off a barn southeast of Bloomfield. Other damage was very minor.

Thunderstorm Wind, Lee

When: April 19, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Lee County, Bloomfield
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 40.642, -91.479 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Lee

When: April 19, 8:20 PM CST
Where: Lee County, Donnellson
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $5,000
Coordinates: 40.642, -91.479 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

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.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 1993 Every state in 1993 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, April 1993

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: 10323944, 10323700, 10321705, 10324514, 10321706, 10324367, 10324361, 10324362, 10324376.