Flooding in Iowa, June 24 to 27, 1998

Name: Flooding in Iowa, June 24 to 27, 1998
Start: 1998-06-24T03:00
End: 1998-06-27T18:00
Location: Iowa

June 24 to 27, 1998 · NWS DMX · 16 events in 16 counties and zones

Heavy rainfall once again visited north central Iowa on the 23rd and 24th. The heaviest rains fell in the upper North Raccoon, Iowa, and upper Des Moines river basins.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 16 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: $1.2 million
Crop damage: $320,000
Events: 16

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.

Heavy rainfall once again visited north central Iowa on the 23rd and 24th. The heaviest rains fell in the upper North Raccoon, Iowa, and upper Des Moines river basins. This initiated a new round of flooding within these basins. Jefferson in the North Raccoon basin crested 5.66 feet above flood stage on the 27th. Other crests were not as great with most 2 to 3 feet above flood stage. The rainfall in the Des Moines River drainage above Saylorville reservoir caused increased inflows into the lake and pushed the elevation to over 870 feet. This caused some problems for recreational activities around the lake and also limited the USGS ability to control future rainfall. Once again, flooding was quite widespread, especially in agricultural lands where damage will not truly be known until the fall harvest. The main rivers affected by this event were the Winnebago, Beaver Creek at New Hartford, Iowa, North Raccoon, Boone, and Des Moines.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

16 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, Hancock

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Hancock forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 43.082, -93.734 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Butler

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Butler forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.732, -92.790 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Calhoun

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Calhoun forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.385, -94.640 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Carroll

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Carroll forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.861 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Cerro Gordo

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Cerro Gordo forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 43.082, -93.261 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Dallas

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Dallas forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 41.685, -94.040 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Emmet

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Emmet forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 43.378, -94.678 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Greene

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Greene forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -94.397 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Hamilton

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Hamilton forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Hardin

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Hardin forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.384, -93.240 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Humboldt

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Humboldt forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.777, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Kossuth

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Kossuth forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 43.204, -94.207 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Marshall

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Marshall forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.036, -92.999 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Pocahontas

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Pocahontas forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.734, -94.679 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Tama

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Tama forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.080, -92.532 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Flood, Webster

When: June 24, 3:00 AM CST to June 27, 6:00 PM CST
Where: Webster forecast zone
Property damage: $75,000
Crop damage: $20,000
Coordinates: 42.428, -94.182 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 1998 Every state in 1998 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, June 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: 5653257, 5653258, 5653259, 5653260, 5653261, 5653262, 5653263, 5653264, 5653265, 5653266, 5653267, 5653268, 5653269, 5653270, 5653271, 5653272.