Event Summary for 7/24/01:An east-west frontal boundary was positioned near the Highway 20 corridor by late afternoon. This boundary was the dividing line between slightly cooler and drier air to the north ( temperatures in the 80s and dewpoints in the middle 60s), with hot and humid conditions to the south (temperatures in the lower 90s and dewpoints in the middle to upper 70s).
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS DVN wrote it up.
Event Summary for 7/24/01:An east-west frontal boundary was positioned near the Highway 20 corridor by late afternoon. This boundary was the dividing line between slightly cooler and drier air to the north ( temperatures in the 80s and dewpoints in the middle 60s), with hot and humid conditions to the south (temperatures in the lower 90s and dewpoints in the middle to upper 70s). This contrast in airmasses fueled a line of severe thunderstorms during the late afternoon. This line developed a bowing segment which moved across portions of Jones, Jackson and Clinton counties, producing wind damage. Winds were estimated between 60 mph and 70 mph, downing trees and power lines.
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 Jul 24, 1:21 PM CST, 1 hour 39 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 221 PM CDT TUE JUL 24 2001 18Z SURFACE ANALYSIS SHOWS FRONT EXTENDING ACROSS NORTHWEST IOWA THROUGH THE QUAD CITIES AREA...WITH ABUNDANT MOISTURE CONVERGENCE ALONG BOUNDARY AND AREA OF PRESSURE FALLS CENTERED IN SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA. THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX HAD PROGRESSED INTO NORTHERN IOWA/SOUTHERN MINNESOTA AIDED BY UPPER-LEVEL WAVE. ANOTHER WEAK SURFACE BOUNDARY STRETCHED ACROSS NORTHERN MISSOURI. MUCH COOLER AND DRIER CANADIAN AIR WAS SPILLING INTO THE DAKOTAS AND MINNESOTA. FORECASTS CHALLENGES THIS PACKAGE ARE TWOFOLD. THE FIRST IS THE TIMING/LOCATION OF PRECIPITATION THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. SECOND...DAY TWO (THURSDAY) TEMPERATURES WITH CANADIAN HIGH PRESSURE BUILDING IN. 12Z ETA INITIALIZED SLIGHTLY BETTER THAN NGM/AVN ON PLACEMENT OF PRECIPITATION AND 500 MB VORTICITY CENTER. HOWEVER...AVN MOVES VORT MAX THROUGH AREA FASTER THAN ETA/NGM...AND THIS SOLUTION IS FAVORED IN CURRENT FLAT WESTERLY PATTERN. ALL MODELS ARE SHOWING A QUICKER TREND IN BRINGING IN PRECIPITATION...AND FIRST PERIOD OF ZONES WILL REFLECT THIS. I ALSO AGREE WITH AVN/ETA...WHICH DUMP THE HEAVIEST RAIN ALONG AND NORTH OF I-80 THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. MODELS SHOWING POTENTIAL FOR 1-2 INCH RAINFALL AMOUNTS BY WEDNESDAY MORNING...AS EVIDENCED BY FORECASTING SOUNDINGS SHOWING 2 INCH PRECIPITABLE WATER VALUES OVERNIGHT. LOCAL AMOUNTS OF 3 OR MORE ARE POSSIBLE IN THE HEAVY RAIN BAND ACROSS THE NORTHERN CWA. FLASH FLOOD GUIDANCE INDICATING LOWEST 3-HOUR VALUES OVER NORTHWEST CWA. ISOLATED WATER PROBLEMS POSSIBLE TONIGHT...BUT WILL HOLD OFF ON FLASH FLOOD WATCH AND LET EVENING SHIFT MONITOR. WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR COMPLEX PUSHING EAST ACROSS NORTHERN IOWA UP TO ISSUANCE TIME... BUT AM LEANING TOWARDS KEEPING CATEGORICAL POPS ACROSS THE NORTH... WITH 60/70 POPS CENTRAL...AND 50 POPS WITH MORE SCATTERED ACTIVITY EXPECTED IN THE SOUTH. EXPECT RAIN TO LINGER INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING...MAINLY EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER. WILL STAY CLOSE TO GUIDANCE WITH WEDNESDAY MORNING TEMPS...BUT WILL SHADE TEMPS LOWER THAN FWC IN THE NORTH...WHICH WILL BE NORTH OF THE BOUNDARY. MIDDLE OF THE ROAD MAV TEMPS LOOK MOST REASONABLE FOR WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON... WITH CLOUDS/PRECIPITATION TEMPERING THE HIGH FWC NUMBERS. FWC ALSO LOOKS TOO WARM FOR THURSDAY...GIVEN THE CURRENT AIRMASS IN PLACE UPSTREAM IN MINNESOTA/NORTH DAKOTA...SO WILL STICK CLOSE TO MAV NUMBERS. IN THE EXTENDED...MEDIUM RANGE MODELS IN GOOD AGREEMENT KEEPING CWA DRY FOR FRIDAY AND SATURDAY...WITH MAIN STORM TRACK SHUNTED TO THE NORTH. WILL LEAN TOWARD WARMER MEX NUMBERS BOTH DAYS...WITH DRIER AIR IN PLACE. ECMWF AND MRF AGREE ON SETTING UP A BOUNDARY ACROSS THE AREA LATE SATURDAY/SUNDAY...WITH AN UPPER WAVE TRAVERSING THE CWA ALONG THE SOUTHERN EDGE OF THE STORM TRACK. MODELS DIVERGE SOMEWHAT ON MONDAY...WITH THE ECMWF AND UKMET BOTH AMPLIFYING CENTRAL CONUS UPPER RIDGE...WHICH WOULD KEEP CWA WARM AND DRY. MRF PUSHES ANOTHER FRONT THROUGH THE REGION TUESDAY. WILL GO ABOVE GUIDANCE FOR TEMPS SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY...WITH RETURN FLOW SETTING UP. .DVN... IA...NONE. IL...2NONE. MO...NONE. KINNEY/JDH
IAZ040>042-051>054-063>068-076>078-087>089-098-099-ILZ001-002-007- 009-015>018-024>026-034-035-MOZ009-010-251000- SIGNIFICANT WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 1236 PM CDT TUE JUL 24 2001 ...HEAT AND HUMIDITY THIS AFTERNOON AND THUNDERSTORMS THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT... AFTERNOON TEMPERATURES AROUND 90 AND DEWPOINTS IN THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 70S WILL CREATE HEAT INDICES IN THE 100 TO 105 RANGE THIS AFTERNOON. AREAS SOUTH OF HIGHWAY 34 COULD SEE HEAT INDICES OVER 105 FOR A SHORT WHILE THIS AFTERNOON. LESS HUMID CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG AND NORTH OF HIGHWAY 20. DRIER AIR HAS MOVED IN FROM THE NORTHEAST...DROPPING DEW POINTS INTO THE MIDDLE 60S. THE HUMID CONDITIONS WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE NIGHT OVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN SECTIONS. THE HUMIDITY IS EXPECTED TO DROP ON WEDNESDAY. A COMPLEX OF THUNDERSTORMS MOVING INTO CENTRAL AND NORTH CENTRAL IOWA THIS AFTERNOON WILL CONTINUE EAST DURING THE AFTERNOON. IT NOW APPEARS THAT THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL REACH EAST CENTRAL IOWA BY LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE INTO THE NORTHWEST ILLINOIS BY THIS EVENING. THE MAIN THREAT FROM THESE STORMS WILL BE HEAVY RAINS ALONG AND NORTH OF INTERSTATE 80. ADDITIONAL THUNDERSTORM DEVELOPMENT WILL BE POSSIBLE DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. THIS AREA COULD SEE WIDESPREAD AMOUNTS IN EXCESS OF AN INCH AND ISOLATED AMOUNTS AROUND 3 INCHES BY WEDNESDAY MORNING. THERE IS ALSO A THREAT OF DAMAGING WINDS WITH THESE STORMS. SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 80...THE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE MORE SCATTERED...ESPECIALLY DURING THE EVENING. THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP OVER SOUTH CENTRAL IOWA AND NORTH CENTRAL MISSOURI THIS AFTERNOON. THESE STORMS WILL MOVE THROUGH SOUTHEAST IOWA...NORTHEAST MISSOURI AND WEST CENTRAL IOWA THIS EVENING AND OVERNIGHT. THE MAIN THREAT WITH THESE STORMS WILL BE DAMAGING WIND AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN. SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NECESSARY THIS EVE NING AND DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. DLF
The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 141 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:59 UTC.
7 thunderstorm wind, 2 heavy rain, 1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
2.56 inches of rain fell in just over 2 hours. Reported by emergency management.
2.04 inches of rain fell in 90 minutes. Reported by emergency management.
Small creek out of it's banks just west of Jesup, with water covering a county road. Reported by emergency management.
Large tree down blocking city street. Reported by emergency management.
60 mph wind gust. Reported by law enforcement.
Tree blown down on a house. Reported by law enforcement.
Large tree limbs down. Reported by trained storm spotter.
Large tree down, partially blocking street. Reported by law enforcement.
Large trees down. Reported by trained storm spotter.
Power lines down. Reported by law enforcement.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Iowa in 2001Every state in 2001This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, July 2001
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: 5261706, 5262271, 5262272, 5261707, 5261708, 5261709, 5261710, 5261711, 5261712, 5261713.