The wet weather pattern continued as heavy thunderstorm activity once again moved across south central Iowa. Widespread rainfall occurred over already wet soils.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 DMX wrote it up.
The wet weather pattern continued as heavy thunderstorm activity once again moved across south central Iowa. Widespread rainfall occurred over already wet soils. The heaviest totals on the morning of the 24th was a rainfall of 8.18 inches reported at the Creston Airport. Significant flooding occurred along the Thompson, Middle, and Chariton Rivers with the rivers cresting several feet above flood stage. The Middle and Thompson Rivers fell back within their banks within a couple days. The Chariton River remained above flood stage for the duration of the month.
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 Des Moines, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 24, 1:40 AM CST, 6 hours 11 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 240 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008 .SHORT TERM...TODAY EVOLUTION OF CURRENT MCS IS OBVIOUSLY PRIMARY FORECAST CONCERN THIS MORNING WHICH LINES UP QUITE WELL WITH DECENT MOISTURE CONVERGENCE ASSOCIATED WITH 30-40KT LLJ NOTED ON 305/310K ISENT SFCS. THIS CONVERGENCE REACHES S CENTRAL/SE SECTIONS BY 12Z-15Z SO HAVE BOOSTED POPS TO CATEGORICAL IN THOSE LOCATIONS AND DIMINISHED NRN PORTIONS. CONVECTION SHOULD HAVE NO PROBLEM SUSTAINING ITSELF AND WILL LIKELY INCREASE SOMEWHAT. LIFTING PARCELS FROM VARIOUS ELEVATED LEVELS ON THE RUC DEPICT STEADY 1500-2000 J/KG CAPES WITH DECREASING CIN AND CONVECTION BEING ROOTED LOWER. EFFECTIVE SRH AND ESPECIALLY EFFECTIVE SHEAR SUFFICIENT FOR ORGANIZATION AS WELL...ESPECIALLY IF STORMS BECOME ROOTED LOWER AS CINS SUGGEST SO MAY SEE A GRADUAL INCREASE IN SVR THREAT TOWARD DAYBREAK. HEAVY RAINS WILL BE A CONCERN AS WELL WITH PWS AROUND TWO INCHES...13KFT WCDS...AND CELLS TRACKING OVER SAME LOCATIONS. AIRMASS SHOULD STABILIZE SOMEWHAT DURING THE AFTERNOON WITH NO REAL FORCING MECHANISM NOTED SO HAVE SLIGHTS/CHANCES LINGERING BY THEN...MAINLY SRN PORTIONS. SREF AND ESPECIALLY NAM RAW TEMPS ARE NOT TOO BULLISH ON TEMPS WITH NAM SUGGESTING AREAS OF POST-PCPN STRATUS SO WENT AT OR JUST BELOW GUIDANCE...LOWER END NE. .LONG TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY FRONTAL BOUNDARY TO BE IN PLACE FROM NORTHEAST TO SOUTHWEST ACROSS THE CWA BY THIS EVENING...WITH MUCH OF CWA IN THE WARM SECTOR. FAIR AMOUNT OF INSTABILITY WITH BEST SFC BASED CAPE SITUATED ACROSS THE SOUTHWESTERN CWA. MAY SEE SOME ISOLATED STORMS INITIALLY WITH DAYTIME HEATING...BUT EXPECT MAJORITY OF CONVECTION WITH APPROACHING SHORTWAVE THROUGH INTO THE LATER EVENING/OVERNIGHT HOURS AS LLJ STRENGTHENS. MOISTURE EXPECTED TO POOL AHEAD OF APPROACHING WEAK COOL FRONT SITUATED ACROSS ERN NE/WC IOWA...WITH PWATS APPROACHING TWO INCHES. MAIN ACTIVITY STILL EXPECTED ALONG THE FRONTAL BOUNDARY THROUGH THE EARLY EVENING...WITH EVERYTHING PUSHING EASTWARD OVERNIGHT. FRIDAY INTO SATURDAY...MAIN FRONTAL BOUNDARY TO BE SOMEWHAT WASHED OUT...BUT IN VICINITY OF THE SRN CWA. NORTHWEST FLOW PATTERN CONTINUES...WITH MAIN WEAK DISTURBANCES DROPPING SOUTHEAST OUT OF THE NORTHERN ROCKIES INTO THE AREA. HARD TO NAIL DOWN TIMING AND PLACEMENT...BUT INSTABILITY TO REMAIN GREATEST ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE CWA INTO FRIDAY NIGHT AND SATURDAY...AS SFC HIGH PRESSURE/DRIER AIR BEGINS TO BUILD SOUTHEASTWARD INTO NORTHERN IOWA. LITTLE CHANGES MADE INTO THE EXTENDED RANGE...AS WESTERN/CENTRAL US UPPER RIDGING FLATTENS SOME. HOWEVER STILL LOOKS LIKE TREND FOR WEAK WAVES TO TRAVERSE THE RIDGE...AND IMPACT THE AREA ALLOWING FOR UNSETTLED CONDITIONS TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE WEEKEND INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. && .AVIATION...24/06Z LIGHT SHOWERS CONTINUE MOVE OVER CENTRAL IOWA THOUGH IS FALLING WITH VFR CONDITIONS. THUNDERSTORMS DEVELOPING WEST OF THE MISSOURI RIVER AND WILL MOVE INTO WRN IA LATER TONIGHT. MAIN SITES AFFECTED WILL BE DSM THEN LATER OTM. MVFR CEILINGS EXPECTED FOR A PERIOD ALL SITES AS THIS SYSTEM PASSES. ADDITIONAL MVFR CEILINGS MAINLY NORTH EXPECTED AFTER 00Z. && .DMX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...NONE. && SHORT TERM...BSS LONG TERM...MJA AVIATION...DONAVON
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA 500 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008 IAZ004>007-015>017-023>028-033>039-044>050-057>062-070>075- 081>086-092>097-251000- EMMET-KOSSUTH-WINNEBAGO-WORTH-PALO ALTO-HANCOCK-CERRO GORDO- POCAHONTAS-HUMBOLDT-WRIGHT-FRANKLIN-BUTLER-BREMER-SAC-CALHOUN- WEBSTER-HAMILTON-HARDIN-GRUNDY-BLACK HAWK-CRAWFORD-CARROLL-GREENE- BOONE-STORY-MARSHALL-TAMA-AUDUBON-GUTHRIE-DALLAS-POLK-JASPER- POWESHIEK-CASS-ADAIR-MADISON-WARREN-MARION-MAHASKA-ADAMS-UNION- CLARKE-LUCAS-MONROE-WAPELLO-TAYLOR-RINGGOLD-DECATUR-WAYNE- APPANOOSE-DAVIS- 500 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL IOWA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORM CHANCES ARE EXPECTED TO CONTINUE THROUGH THE DAY...INTO TONIGHT AS A FRONTAL BOUNDARY REMAINS STALLED OUT ACROSS THE AREA. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER WITH ANY OF THE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY...WITH DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL THE MAIN SEVERE THREATS. HEAVY RAINFALL IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH THE THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY TODAY INTO TONIGHT. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY THUNDERSTORM CHANCES WILL CONTINUE ACROSS MUCH OF THE AREA FRIDAY INTO THE WEEKEND AND EARLY NEXT WEEK...AS THE AREA REMAINS IN AN UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE WEATHER FRIDAY INTO FRIDAY NIGHT...BUT THE CHANCES FOR SEVERE WEATHER INTO THE UPCOMING WEEKEND AND EARLY NEXT WEEK ARE STILL UNCERTAIN AT THIS TIME. THE MAIN SEVERE THREATS FOR FRIDAY INTO FRIDAY NIGHT ARE DAMAGING WINDS AND LARGE HAIL. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS EVENING INTO TONIGHT...AND AGAIN FRIDAY AFTERNOON INTO FRIDAY NIGHT. ALBRECHT
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
731 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0719 AM HEAVY RAIN BEACONSFIELD 40.81N 94.05W
07/24/2008 M4.32 INCH RINGGOLD IA CO-OP OBSERVER
&&
PODRAZIKPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
736 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0730 AM HEAVY RAIN 12 S FONTANELLE 41.12N 94.56W
07/24/2008 M5.80 INCH ADAMS IA BROADCAST MEDIA
FROM KCCI TV VIEWER. SMALL CREEK NEAR THEIR FARM WELL
OVER ITS BANKS WHICH EVENTUALLY FEEDS THE EAST NODAWAY
RIVER.
&&
SMALLPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
802 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0800 AM HEAVY RAIN MOUNT AYR 40.71N 94.24W
07/24/2008 M4.26 INCH RINGGOLD IA CO-OP OBSERVER
&&
PODRAZIKPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
823 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0700 AM HEAVY RAIN 2 SW CRESTON 41.04N 94.39W
07/24/2008 M4.50 INCH UNION IA CO-OP OBSERVER
&&
PODRAZIKPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
837 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0836 AM HEAVY RAIN LAMONI 40.62N 93.94W
07/24/2008 M4.75 INCH DECATUR IA BROADCAST MEDIA
REPORT FROM KCCI SCHOOLNET.
0824 AM HEAVY RAIN CRESTON 41.06N 94.36W
07/24/2008 M4.16 INCH UNION IA BROADCAST MEDIA
REPORT FROM KCCI SCHOOLNET.
&&
PODRAZIKPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DES MOINES IA
847 AM CDT THU JUL 24 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0846 AM HEAVY RAIN NE CRESTON 41.06N 94.36W
07/24/2008 M4.75 INCH UNION IA COCORAHS
&&
MS JUL 08The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 flood. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Iowa in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, July 2008
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: 111995, 111996, 111994.