Thunderstorm Wind, Polk
- When
- August 10, 1:58 AM CST
- Where
- Polk County, Des Moines Arpt
- Measured
- 61 kt (70 mph)
- Property damage
- $100,000
- Reported by
- ARPT EQUIP(AWOS,ASOS)
- Coordinates
- 41.530, -93.670
Damaging Wind in Iowa, August 10, 1998
A cold front moved slowly south into Iowa. The airmass was fairly unstable during the afternoon with temperatures around 90 degrees F.
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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $100,000
- 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 cold front moved slowly south into Iowa. The airmass was fairly unstable during the afternoon with temperatures around 90 degrees F. and dewpoint temperatures in the low to mid 70s. CAPE values were around 5000 J/Kg. Thunderstorms fired initially along the front, but weakened during the evening. After midnight a small cluster of thunderstorms formed in central Iowa. The were not severe as inflow and dynamics were weak. One storm produced a downburst over the Des Moines Airport with 70 MPH winds. The winds blew two parked Delta Comair jets that were parked together. One jet had extensive tail damage and the cockpit window broken out of it. The event appeared to be quite isolated as reports from around the airport indicated winds below 40 MPH.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
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.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- Lightning Strike in Wyoming, August 10, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, August 10, 1998
- Damaging Winds and Lightning Strike in Michigan, August 10, 1998
- Flash Flood in Ohio, August 10, 1998
- Lightning Strike in Virginia, August 10, 1998
- Lightning Strike in Ohio, August 10, 1998
- Lightning Strikes in Maryland, August 10, 1998
- Flash Flood in Ohio, August 10, 1998
- Tornado and Hail in Oklahoma, August 10, 1998
- Damaging Wind in Texas, August 10, 1998
- Flash Flood in Missouri, August 10, 1998
- Damaging Winds in Arkansas, August 10, 1998
More
Every storm in Iowa in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, August 1998
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: 5657403.