Lightning, Worth
- When
- July 13, 3:00 AM CST
- Where
- Worth County, Manly
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Coordinates
- 43.377, -93.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Lightning Strike in Iowa, July 13, 1997
A weak cold front was approaching Iowa from the northwest. A squall line formed ahead of the front well after sunset.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $5,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS DMX wrote it up.
A weak cold front was approaching Iowa from the northwest. A squall line formed ahead of the front well after sunset. The line produced winds of up to 70 MPH, causing some spotty damage. The event was rather isolated and reports of damage were quite spotty. As the storms moved through Manly, lightning struck a school building. A large section of bricks was blown off the building by the lightning strike.
The radar
The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 165 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 08:59 UTC.
Event by event
1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- Lightning
- A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Heat in District of Columbia, July 13 to 19, 1997
- Heat in Maryland, July 13 to 19, 1997
- Tornadoes and Hail in Minnesota, July 13, 1997
- Hail in South Dakota, July 13, 1997
- Tornado in Kansas, July 13, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Minnesota, July 13, 1997
- Lightning Strike in Louisiana, July 13, 1997
- Flood and Hail in Minnesota, July 13, 1997
- Hail in South Dakota, July 13, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Iowa, July 13, 1997
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in North Dakota, July 13, 1997
- Damaging Wind and Lightning Strike in Kansas, July 13, 1997
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, July 1997
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: 5603138.