Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, July 28 to 29, 2024

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, July 28 to 29, 2024
Start: 2024-07-28T00:00
End: 2024-07-29T09:30
Location: Iowa

July 28 to 29, 2024 · NWS DMX · 20 events in 12 counties and zones

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: 0
Property damage: $2,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 20

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.

The remains of an MCV that tracked across Nebraska earlier in the day moved into Iowa in the late afternoon. These remnants moved into a deeply unstable environment with 2000+ J/kg of SBCAPE and intensified through the early evening, transitioning to a loosely organized bowing segment in the evening. Steep mid and low level lapse rates and DCAPE of 750-1000 J/kg were also available. This combination resulted in a handful of hail and damaging wind gusts across the area. Heavy rain also occurred as a line of training convection developed behind the bowing segment lasting late into the night. A swath of 3 to 5 inches of rain occurred with the system in central to southern Iowa, however no flood impacts were noted.

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 Des Moines, IA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 27, 10:55 PM CST, 1 hour 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 27, 10:55 PM CST, 1 hour 5 minutes before

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The radar

The Des Moines radar (KDMX), 136 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 05:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

15 heavy rain, 3 thunderstorm wind, 2 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Rain, Wapello

When: July 28, 12:00 AM CST to July 29, 4:00 AM CST
Where: Wapello County, 2.2 mi ENE of Rutledge
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 40.990, -92.430

A personal weather station reported 3.19 inches of rain since midnight.

Heavy Rain, Webster

When: July 28, 9:30 AM CST to July 29, 9:30 AM CST
Where: Webster County, 0.69 mi N of Moorland
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 42.440, -94.300

A 24 hour rain total of 7.1 inches.

Heavy Rain, Webster

When: July 28, 4:00 PM CST to July 29, 5:44 AM CST
Where: Webster County, 0.69 mi S of Dayton
Reported by: Broadcast Media
Coordinates: 42.260, -94.070

Report of 5.5 inches of rain storm total from WHO TV.

Heavy Rain, Calhoun

When: July 28, 4:00 PM CST to July 29, 8:22 AM CST
Where: Calhoun County, 0.51 mi W of Manson
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.530, -94.540

Storm total of 5.5 inches.

Heavy Rain, Webster

When: July 28, 4:30 PM CST to 8:22 PM CST
Where: Webster County, Dayton
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 42.270, -94.070

Personal weather station reported 4.02 inches storm total with rain still in progress.

Heavy Rain, Hamilton

When: July 28, 4:30 PM CST to 8:21 PM CST
Where: Hamilton County, 3.49 mi N of Stratford
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 42.320, -93.920

Personal weather station reporting 3.7 inches storm total with rain still in progress.

Thunderstorm Wind, Polk

When: July 28, 5:02 PM CST
Where: Polk County, 5.17 mi NW of Polk City
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 41.830, -93.780

Strong winds with large tree branch down. Time estimated by social media time and radar.

Heavy Rain, Marshall

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to 11:53 PM CST
Where: Marshall County, Marshalltown Arpt
Reported by: ASOS
Coordinates: 42.120, -92.920

Marshalltown ASOS reported 3.03 inches of rain in 6 hours.

Heavy Rain, Story

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to July 29, 8:16 AM CST
Where: Story County, 4.33 mi ESE of Gilbert
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.100, -93.570

Report of 3.5 inches of rain storms total north of McFaland Park.

Heavy Rain, Story

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to July 29, 8:16 AM CST
Where: Story County, Roland
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.170, -93.500

A report of 3.5 inches of rain storm total.

Heavy Rain, Story

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to July 29, 8:16 AM CST
Where: Story County, 0.69 mi S of Zearing
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.160, -93.300

Reports of 3.5 to 4 inches of rain in several locations around Zearing.

Heavy Rain, Story

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to July 29, 8:16 AM CST
Where: Story County, 0.51 mi E of Story City
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.180, -93.590

A report of 4 inches of rain on the south side of Story City.

Heavy Rain, Warren

When: July 28, 6:00 PM CST to July 29, 9:13 AM CST
Where: Warren County, 1.48 mi SSW of Indianola
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 41.350, -93.580

A rain total of 5 inches.

Hail, Jasper

When: July 28, 7:43 PM CST
Where: Jasper County, 1.24 mi NE of Colfax
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 41.680, -93.230

Hail up to ping pong ball sized and wind gusts estimated up to 40 mph.

Hail, Jasper

When: July 28, 7:50 PM CST
Where: Jasper County, 0.86 mi NE of Colfax
Measured: 1.75 in hail
Reported by: Broadcast Media
Coordinates: 41.680, -93.240

Photo of hail from KCCI viewer. Size estimated based on photo.

Thunderstorm Wind, Tama

When: July 28, 9:01 PM CST
Where: Tama County, 0.86 mi NW of Garwin
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) estimated gust
Property damage: $2,000
Reported by: Emergency Manager
Coordinates: 42.110, -92.690

Powerline down and an out building destroyed. Time estimated by radar.

Heavy Rain, Marion

When: July 28, 11:00 PM CST to July 29, 4:01 AM CST
Where: Marion County, 1.73 mi NW of Nepas
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 41.300, -93.270

A personal weather station reported 4.48 inches of rain since midnight.

Heavy Rain, Warren

When: July 28, 11:00 PM CST to July 29, 4:02 AM CST
Where: Warren County, 1.48 mi SSW of Ackworth
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 41.350, -93.490

A personal weather station reported 4.75 inches of rain since midnight.

Heavy Rain, Warren

When: July 28, 11:00 PM CST to July 29, 4:03 AM CST
Where: Warren County, 1.04 mi E of Indianola
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 41.370, -93.550

A personal weather station recorded 4.4 inches of rain since midnight.

Thunderstorm Wind, Mahaska

When: July 29, 12:25 AM CST to 12:35 AM CST
Where: Mahaska County, Oskaloosa Muni Arpt
Measured: 54 kt (62 mph) measured gust
Reported by: AWOS
Coordinates: 41.230, -92.500

The Oskaloosa AWOS statin reported a 62 mph gust in the 10 min period ending at 135 am CDT.

What these are

Heavy Rain: Rainfall totals unusual for the place and season that did not produce a flood.
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.
Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Iowa in 2024 Every state in 2024 This day in weather history Warnings in Iowa, July 2024

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1199277, 1199289, 1199282, 1199287, 1199272, 1199273, 1199269, 1199275, 1199283, 1199284, 1199285, 1199286, 1199288, 1199270, 1199271, 1199274, 1199278, 1199279, 1199280, 1199276.