A cold front swept across the Mid Mississippi Valley during the day on May 28, 2012. Scattered showers and thunderstorms developed ahead of this cold front producing isolated severe hail and wind as they moved through eastern Iowa.
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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.
A cold front swept across the Mid Mississippi Valley during the day on May 28, 2012. Scattered showers and thunderstorms developed ahead of this cold front producing isolated severe hail and wind as they moved through eastern Iowa. These thunderstorms produced pea to quarter sized hail in Washington, Muscatine, and Scott Counties. These thunderstorms also produced wind damage in eastern Scott County with several tree limbs down in eastern Scott County.
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 May 28, 2:10 PM CST, 45 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 310 PM CDT MON MAY 28 2012 .SYNOPSIS... ANALYSIS AT 2 PM SHOWS A DIFFUSE FRONT JUST ENTERING THE FORECAST AREA WITH SSW TO SW WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH AND ISOLATED SHOWERS AND STORMS OCCURRING. NOWCAST TOOLS INDICATE ISOLATED TO SCATTERED STORMS AND SHOWERS TO CONTINUE TO PERCOLATE ALONG AND AHEAD OF THIS BOUNDARY UNTIL IT MOVES SOUTHEAST OF THE BY 8 TO 9 PM. AN ISOLATED STRONG TO POSSIBLY SEVERE STORMS IS POSSIBLE UNTIL THEN. UPPER AIR ANALYSIS SHOWS COOLER AND DRIER CONDITIONS ON NW WINDS TO MOVE IN THE NEXT DAY OR SO. A CHANCE FOR A DECENT RAIN EVENT IS INCREASING FOR THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY WITH VERY COOL TEMPERATURES. && .SHORT TERM...TONIGHT AND TUESDAY... TONIGHT...WILL KEEP SLIGHT CHANCE POPS FAR EAST UNTIL 10 PM BUT OTHERWISE LIKELY ALL PRECIPITATION WILL MOVE EAST OF THE AREA AROUND 7 PM. THESE ISOLATED TO SCATTERED STORMS AND SHOWERS WILL BE ALONG AND AHEAD OF THE PASSING COOL FRONT. SKIES TO CLEAR WITH MUCH LOWER DEWPOINTS BY MID EVENING WITH LOW IN THE 50S WITH SOME UPPER 40S POSSIBLE IN NW SECTIONS. TUESDAY...MILD AND BREEZY WITH NW WINDS OF 15 TO 30 MPH WITH LOW DEWPOINTS AND MOSTLY CLEAR TO CLEAR SKIES. HIGHS TO RISE INTO THE MIDDLE TO UPPER 70S NW SECTIONS TO THE LOWER 80S SE SECTIONS. HIGH PRESSURE FROM CANADA WILL RESULT IN DEWPOINTS LOWER INTO THE 30S AND 40S IN THE AFTERNOON HOURS. NICHOLS .LONG TERM...TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH NEXT MONDAY... FORECAST FOCUS ON WIDESPREAD SOAKING RAINS ON THURSDAY THEN WARMING UP NEXT WEEKEND. GFS THE OUTLIER IN KEEPING THURSDAY DRY. TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY...COOL AIRMASS DROPPING INTO THE REGION BUT DRY. MAX TEMPS WILL RANGE FROM THE MID 60S NORTH TO THE MID 70S FAR SOUTH. MIN TEMPS IN THE 40S NORTH TO LOWER 50S SOUTH. WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY...IMPRESSIVE TROUGH SEEN ON WATER VAPOR LOOPS CURRENTLY APPROACHING THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. THIS TROUGH DEVELOPS INTO A VERY HEALTHY SYSTEM WHEN IT ARRIVES INTO THE MIDWEST. ECM DEVELOPS A NICE CLOSED UPPER LOW AND A SURFACE LOW THAT TRACKS FROM THE OZARKS ON THURSDAY TO NEAR CHICAGO BY EARLY FRIDAY. EVEN THOUGH METEOROLOGICAL SUMMER BEGINS THIS FRIDAY THE INTENSE SYSTEM LATE THIS WEEK APPEARS MORE WINTER LIKE. STRONG ISENTROPIC LIFT OVER THE COOL AIRMASS SHOULD PROVIDE WIDESPREAD SOAKING RAINS OF OVER AN INCH IN MANY AREAS. THIS WILL BE THE BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR WIDESPREAD RAINS WE HAVE SEEN SINCE THE FIRST WEEK OF MAY. WILL BRING IN CHANCE POPS IN OUR WEST WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND SPREAD LIKELY POPS OVER ALL THE CWA THURSDAY...WITH LIKELY POPS IN OUR EAST THURSDAY NIGHT. WILL LINGER CHANCE POPS INTO FRIDAY. VERY COOL THURSDAY AND FRIDAY WITH MAX TEMPS ONLY IN THE LOWER 60S AT MOST LOCATIONS. AS STATED EARLIER THE GFS SEEMS TO SLOW THE SYSTEM WAY DOWN COMPARED TO THE ECM/NAM/GEM SO HAVE LEANED AGAINST IT. NEXT WEEKEND AND MONDAY...ZONAL FLOW RETURNS WITH WARMING TEMPERATURES INTO THE 80S BY MONDAY. THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR THUNDERSTORMS AS THE HEAT RETURNS BUT THE TIMING IS DIFFICULT A WEEK AWAY. RIGHT NOW THE GRIDS WILL HAVE SMALL POPS FOR SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY. HAASE && .AVIATION... A BROAD AND DIFFUSE COOL FRONT WILL PASS EAST OF ALL THE TERMINALS BY 23Z. UNTIL THEN...AN ISOLATED TO SCATTERED...HIGHER BASED SHOWER OR THUNDERSTORM IS POSSIBLE. THE PROBABILITY OF PRECIPITATION AFFECTING ANY TERMINAL IS TOO LOW TO PUT IN ANY TERMINAL AREA FORECAST. ANY STORM THAT OCCURS OVER A TERMINAL MAY CAUSE A BRIEF PERIOD OF MVFR CONDITIONS. SOUTHWEST WINDS OF 15-30 MPH WILL SHIFT TO THE WEST AND NORTHWEST AND DECREASE TO 5-15 MPH BY 29/00Z. CLEAR TO MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES WILL THEN PERSIST THROUGH TUESDAY. WEST TO NORTHWEST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 15-30 MPH FOR SEVERAL HOURS MID DAY TUESDAY. THE ONGOING VFR CONDITIONS WILL LAST FOR AT LEAST THE NEXT 24 HOURS....PROBABLY MUCH LONGER. NICHOLS && .DVN WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... IA...NONE. IL...NONE. MO...NONE. && NICHOLS/HAASE
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 423 AM CDT MON MAY 28 2012 IAZ040>042-051>054-063>068-076>078-087>089-098-099-ILZ001-002-007- 009-015>018-024>026-034-035-MOZ009-010-290930- BUCHANAN-DELAWARE-DUBUQUE-BENTON-LINN-JONES-JACKSON-IOWA-JOHNSON- CEDAR-CLINTON-MUSCATINE-SCOTT-KEOKUK-WASHINGTON-LOUISA-JEFFERSON- HENRY IA-DES MOINES-VAN BUREN-LEE-JO DAVIESS-STEPHENSON-CARROLL- WHITESIDE-ROCK ISLAND-HENRY IL-BUREAU-PUTNAM-MERCER-HENDERSON- WARREN-HANCOCK-MCDONOUGH-SCOTLAND-CLARK- 423 AM CDT MON MAY 28 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL ILLINOIS...NORTHWEST ILLINOIS...WEST CENTRAL ILLINOIS...EAST CENTRAL IOWA...NORTHEAST IOWA...SOUTHEAST IOWA AND NORTHEAST MISSOURI. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL MOVE ACROSS EASTERN IOWA THIS MORNING. THESE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE. THIS AFTERNOON...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ALONG AND AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT THAT WILL MOVE THROUGH EASTERN IOWA AND NORTHWEST ILLINOIS. THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE STORMS... ESPECIALLY ALONG AND EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER FROM MID TO LATE AFTERNOON. THE MAIN THREAT WILL BE DAMAGING WINDS...WITH A LESSER POTENTIAL FOR LARGE HAIL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY RAIN WITH A FEW THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE AGAIN WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. THE POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE WEATHER APPEARS LOW AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE NEEDED THIS AFTERNOON. DLS/LE
SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE QUAD CITIES IA IL 323 PM CDT MON MAY 28 2012 IAZ063>065-067-077-078-282100- CEDAR-IOWA-JOHNSON-LOUISA-MUSCATINE-WASHINGTON- 323 PM CDT MON MAY 28 2012 ...STRONG THUNDERSTORM POSSIBLE... AT 317 PM CDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A STRONG THUNDERSTORM NEAR WELLMAN...OR 10 MILES NORTHWEST OF WASHINGTON...MOVING NORTHEAST AT 45 MPH. * THE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR... RICHMOND AND KALONA AROUND 325 PM CDT... RIVERSIDE AROUND 330 PM CDT... HILLS AND LONE TREE AROUND 340 PM CDT... 7 MILES NORTHWEST OF NICHOLS AROUND 350 PM CDT... WEST LIBERTY AND WEST BRANCH AROUND 355 PM CDT... ATALISSA AND ROCHESTER AROUND 400 PM CDT... ONE HALF INCH DIAMETER HAIL...WINDS GREATER THAN 35 MPH...BRIEF HEAVY RAIN...ARE EXPECTED WITH THIS STORM. IF YOU HEAR THUNDER, MOVE IMMEDIATELY TO A STURDY BUILDING OR CAR UNTIL THE STORM HAS PASSED. LAT...LON 4187 9107 4152 9085 4132 9180 4148 9191 TIME...MOT...LOC 2020Z 244DEG 39KT 4144 9174 NICHOLS
The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 84 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:56 UTC.
3 hail, 3 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A trained spotter reported quarter sized hail along with small limbs down and zero visibility in very heavy rain.
An NWS employee reported 6 inch diameter tree limbs down near old Highway 61 and Black Hawk Trail. The time of the event was estimated using radar.
An NWS employee reported several trees down near Territorial Road north of LeClaire. The time of the event was estimated by radar and other nearby reports.
Tree limbs were reported down in the area. This caused 4 power lines to be downed from the limbs. Time of this event was estimated from radar.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Iowa in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Iowa, May 2012
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: 386821, 386824, 386822, 386823, 386825, 386826.