Hail and Damaging Wind in Iowa, August 8, 1995

Name: Hail and Damaging Wind in Iowa, August 8, 1995
Start: 1995-08-08T08:18
End: 1995-08-08T11:35
Location: Iowa

August 8, 1995 · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

2 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: $105,000
Crop damage: $101,000
Events: 3

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.

The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 68 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 14:17 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 hail, 1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Marion

When: August 8, 8:18 AM CST
Where: Marion County, Pleasantville
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $15,000
Crop damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 41.334, -93.099 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Hail, Johnson

When: August 8, 9:25 AM CST
Where: Johnson County, Hills
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Property damage: $15,000
Crop damage: $50,000
Coordinates: 41.672, -91.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Thunderstorm Wind, Des Moines

When: August 8, 11:35 AM CST
Where: Des Moines County, Burlington
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $1,000
Coordinates: 40.923, -91.181 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

A very unstable air mass was over Iowa in advance of an approaching warm front. CAPE values were around 4000 J-kg-1 with lifted indices already -7° C. at sunrise. Surface dew point readings were in the middle 70s. Thunderstorms fired and produced heavy rain and hail. One cell dropped golf ball-size hail on the town of Pleasantville. The area of thunderstorm continued to spread and develop east into eastern Iowa. They dumped heavy rains and generally small hail as the moved southeast. A couple of the cells did become severe over the east central and southeast counties of the state. Golf ball-size hail fell in Johnson County at Hills. Another storm produced high winds as it passed through the Burlington area. Numerous trees were downed and windows were blown out of a few buildings. Three to four inches of rain fell in under two hours over both counties. Flooding was reported, but for the most part it was restricted to urban areas. Lightning struck a tree on a farm south of Dubuque. Several head of cattle were standing beneath the tree, 14 head were killed. Several others were downed, but were able to be revived.

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 1995 Every state in 1995 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, August 1995

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: 10323732, 10324328, 10321707.