Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 27 to 28, 1995

Multiple vortex at times.

Twin vortex tornado.

Small hail accumulated up to six inches. Damage was mainly to tomato and other garden plants. Although corn was exposed to the hail, little damage occurred as the growing point of the corn plants had not yet emerged to the surface.

Border crosser from Missouri at beginning point.

A powerful storm system developed over the southern Rockies and moved northeast into the central United States during the Memorial Day weekend. The storm brought with it a significant cold pool with 500 mb temperatures falling to around -15° C during the late afternoon hours of the 27th. The surface low pressure area moved across north-central Kansas into northeast Nebraska. Aloft, the dry slot punched into western Iowa. This set the stage for a major tornado outbreak as the jet stream dynamics were also very strong. During the afternoon, temperatures warmed into the 70s F. with dew point temperatures in the middle to upper 60s F. This combination produced a CAPE by the late afternoon hours in the 2500 J-kg-1. The lifted indices were in the -7° to -9° C range with helicity values approaching 600 m2-s-2. Strong thunderstorms fired over eastern Nebraska along the surface dry line. The storms quickly became tornadic as the moved into Iowa. There were several major tornadoes in Iowa. One tornado of F4 strength moved from near Carroll to near Fonda. This tornado caused extensive damage. Many farmsteads were damaged along its path, some of which were totally wiped out. The tornado was between one-fourth and one-half mile wide during part of its path. Reports also indicate that the tornado took on a multiple vortex structure as it passed north of Mt. Carmel. Another tornado of lesser strength moved from near Glidden towards Lanesboro. There was some house damage with this tornado. It was about 200 meters wide. Carroll County was also clipped by another F4 strength tornado. This tornado moved from near Coon Rapids to near Churdan. It was at least 200 meters wide during much of its path. At one point between Bayard and Scranton it was three-fourths of a mile wide. The tornado picked up a car and tossed it more than one-fourth mile out into a field. Debris from houses could be found one-half mile from their origin. In addition, one girls homework papers were found some 55 miles away in the town of Gilmore City. A receipt was also found in Gilmore City from the Bates residence, 75 miles to the south. There was one injury from this tornado. This tornado alone caused $2 million in damage. Another tornado, and the one with the longest track, touched down near Creston and tracked north to near Perry. This tornado had an interesting feature. Aside from the fact that it was one-half mile wide at times, the tornado took on a double vortex structure around 2050 CST and continued this way for some time. The double structure lasted at least 20 minutes and was captured on film as it crossed Interstate 80 between the 94 and 95 mile marker at 2058 CST. Aerial photography revealed a definite split in the tornado track over Adair County. The Iowa State Patrol closed off a four mile section of the Interstate to allow the half mile wide tornado to pass. The track of this, as well as several other of the stronger tornadoes, was clearly visible from the air as striations in the soil of many fields. Many farmsteads were also damaged or completely leveled by this tornado. It resulted in at least one injury as a woman fled to her basement as the tornado approached. The tornado hit her house, completely destroying it. As the house collapsed she was struck with a fuel oil tank. The tank broke her hip. She was taken to a hospital in Greenfield, treated and released the next day. The other two members of the family reported struggling to remain in the basement as the suction of the tornado nearly pulled them out. There were also other minor injuries reported around the Greenfield area. Another woman was injured in Stuart as she was thrown by the tornado while attempting to flee. There was also one injury in Carroll County. As the tornado moved through, there was one farmstead that lost five of the six buildings on it. Two cars were destroyed almost beyond recognition. A strong tornado set down in Decatur County near Lamoni. This tornado moved into south-central Clarke County before dissipation. Damage from it was relatively minor as it traversed open country as it paralleled Interstate 35 for some time. The other tornadoes in the state were fairly small and did not cause catastrophic damage. Some preliminary damage estimates from the harder hit counties include: $2 million in Greene County, $1.2 million in Carroll County, $1,146,000 in Union County, $828,000 in Adair County, $642,000 in Sac County, and $160,000 in Guthrie County. Six counties were declared disaster areas. They were Greene, Adair, Carroll, Guthrie, Sac, and Union. A quick run down of damages indicated a total of 52 homes were damaged, 13 of which were destroyed with 16 receiving heavy damage, and 10 businesses damaged or destroyed in the six named counties. A total of 41 farmsteads reported damage caused by the tornadoes. Several of the farm buildings were completely wiped off the map. A break down by county showed seven homes and three businesses damaged in Sac County, 18 homes and two businesses damaged or destroyed in Carroll County, eight homes and two business damaged or destroyed in Greene County, two homes and two businesses damaged or destroyed in Guthrie County, seven homes and one business damaged or destroyed in Adair County, and ten homes damaged or destroyed in Union County. Home and business damage alone in these counties amounted to between $4 and $5 million. Iowa was very fortunate the tornadoes did not move directly into any large population areas. In spite of the significant advance warning provided for these tornadoes, there would almost certainly have been significant loss of life has a major population area taken a direct hit. The closest call was when the tornado headed for a state park in southern Iowa. There was enough advance warning that officials evacuated the park before the tornado hit. The park was hit and this could have been a disaster since it was a holiday weekend and all. There was a significant loss of livestock along the tornadoes paths. Numerous accounts were received of either dead or seriously injured livestock. At the time of this writing there was on official tally of livestock loss. As amazing as it may seem, there was not a great deal of severe weather associated with the storms. One news report indicated that the title papers from a persons car in Creston was found in tact over 50 miles away in the town of Adel. The freezing level was relatively low, 10,500 msl, yet there were only scattered reports of large hail. Golf ball-size hail pelted the southeast side of Leon as well as the Greenfield area. Hail of an inch diameter was also reported in the Ellsworth area. Most of the hail was pea- to marble-size, and even at that, there were few reports. Winds also were not a major problem. There were some reports, such as the 60 mph wind gust at Churdan in Greene County. The most significant wind occurred near Cromwell in Union County. Eighty to 90 mph winds caused structural damage to several buildings there. The storms produced some locally heavy rainfall in the state. The scattered nature of the storms helped to reduce the amount of flash flooding. Guthrie County did have some problems with the water as two and one-half inches of rain fell in Guthrie Center in two hours. Flooding was reported in the Lake Panora area as well. Storm total rainfall approached two inches in parts of the county. The flooding was relatively minor and generally just ditches overtopping roads in spots.