Damaging Winds in Iowa, August 2, 2001

Name: Damaging Winds in Iowa, August 2, 2001
Start: 2001-08-02T14:35
End: 2001-08-02T15:22
Location: Iowa

August 2, 2001 · NWS DVN · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

)A surface boundary was in place, extending from southern Wisconsin into southwest Iowa. A moist and very unstable atmosphere interacted with the boundary to produce a line of powerful thunderstorms that raced across eastern Iowa and western Illinois during the afternoon and early evening hours.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 2
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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 DVN wrote it up.

Event Summary for 8/02/01: (For additional details, see individual entries for the date.)A surface boundary was in place, extending from southern Wisconsin into southwest Iowa. A moist and very unstable atmosphere interacted with the boundary to produce a line of powerful thunderstorms that raced across eastern Iowa and western Illinois during the afternoon and early evening hours. The primary threat was severe straight-line winds. There was one isolated report of nickel-sized hail. Numerous funnel clouds developed along the leading edge of the line, but there were no touchdowns reported. A likely downburst produced extensive damage over a two-block area in Burlington. Two people were injured when thunderstorm winds blew their car off the road in rural Scott County.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Quad Cities, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Aug 2, 1:15 PM CST, 1 hour 20 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 2, 1:15 PM CST, 1 hour 20 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
215 PM CDT THU AUG 2 2001

CURRENT DATA SHOWS FRONT HAS ESSENTIALLY WASHED OUT OVER THE CWA
WITH JUST NUMEROUS OUTFLOW BOUNDARIES PRESENT. THIS WILL DRIVE THE
IMMEDIATE SHORT TERM IN TERMS OF CONVECTION. CURRENT TSRA COMPLEX
IS MAINTAINING A STEADY STATE DUE TO A RICH ENVIRONMENT OF
MOISTURE/HEAT.

12Z MODELS SLIGHT MINNESOTA HIGH EASTWARD WHILE UPPER RIDGE
RETROGRESS INTO THE PLAINS. ONCE REACHING THE PLAINS RIDGE AXIS
REMAINS IN PLACE INTO THE EXTENDED PERIOD. MODELS DROP DEW POINTS
OFF QUICKLY BUT AM HAVING TROUBLE BELIEVING THIS WILL HAPPEN AS
QUICKLY AS MODELS SUGGEST. AREAS THAT DID RECEIVE SIGNIFICANT
PRECIP IN NORTHERN PART OF CWA HAVE A FAIRLY GOOD CHANCE OF SEEING
SOME FOG DEVELOPMENT TONIGHT/EARLY FRIDAY MORNING. CURRENT TEMPS/DEW
POINTS ARE BARELY GETTING TO ADVISORY CRITERIA SO WILL ALLOW
ADVISORY TO DROP WITH NEW PACKAGE BUT MENTION HEAT INDICES IN BODY
OF ZONES.

TEMP WISE...GUIDANCE IS SIMILAR ON MINS BUT FAN/MAV ARE COOLER ON
MAXES. WARMER FWC MAXES LOOK BETTER. HEAT INDICES TO REMAIN BELOW
ADVISORY CRITERIA FOR FRIDAY AS WELL BUT WILL MENTION IN ZONES.

EXTENDED nWISE...RIDGE TO REMAIN IN PLACE WITH NOT MUCH CHANCE OF
RAIN. DEW POINTS MAY DROP A LITTLE BIT BUT NOT MUCH.

.DVN...
IA...NONE.
IL...NONE.
MO...NONE.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Aug 2, 1:12 PM CST, 1 hour 23 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
212 PM CDT THU AUG 02 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION..k..

0155 PM    1 SW OXFORD JCT           IA   FUNNEL CLOUD
08/02/01   JONES                          REPORTED BY EMERGENCY
                                          MANAGEMENT.

Local storm report, Aug 2, 1:21 PM CST, 1 hour 14 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
221 PM CDT THU AUG 02 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0140 PM    NORWAY                    IA   .25 INCH HAIL
08/02/01   BENTON                         REPORTED BY EMERGENCY
                                          MANAGEMENT.

Local storm report, Aug 2, 1:24 PM CST, 1 hour 11 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
224 PM CDT THU AUG 02 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION..6..

0201 PM    CEDAR RAPIDS              IA   48 MPH TSTM GUST
08/02/01   LINN                           REPORTED BY MEDIA.

Local storm report, Aug 2, 2:33 PM CST, 2 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL
333 PM CDT THU AUG 02 2001

TIME(CDT)  .....CITY LOCATION..... STATE  ...EVENT/REMARKS...
           ....COUNTY LOCATION....

0329 PM    BETTENDORF                IA   FUNNEL CLOUD
08/02/01   SCOTT                          REPORTED BY STORM
                                          SPOTTER. EVENT DURATION
                                          5 MINUTES.H

The radar

The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 21 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:35 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Scott

When: August 2, 2:35 PM CST
Where: Scott County, 1 mi N of Buffalo
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph)
Injuries: 2 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 41.467, -90.733

Law enforcement officials said winds estimated at 70 mph were the likely cause of an accident that injured two people (directly-related). Thunderstorm winds blew a car off a rural road into a parked pickup truck. The truck then struck a camper, and the car and truck both struck a nearby mobile home. The driver of the car and a passenger were treated for minor injuries at a local hospital.

Thunderstorm Wind, Des Moines

When: August 2, 3:15 PM CST to 3:22 PM CST
Where: Des Moines County, Burlington
Measured: 70 kt (81 mph)
Reported by: FIRE DEPT/RESCUE SQUAD
Coordinates: 40.817, -91.083

Thunderstorm downburst winds are the likely cause of damage to residences and a business in a two-block area of Burlington. Winds estimated at 80 mph blew a portion of the roof off a lumber company onto a nearby home. A lean-to shed at the business was also destroyed. The high winds snapped utility poles, and blew down trees and limbs, which damaged numerous homes and vehicles. There were no directly-related injuries. One person suffered minor injuries after tripping over debris while surveying storm damage after the event.

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

Every storm in Iowa in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, August 2001

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: 5265839, 5265840.