Storm Records: Iowa
Every storm the National Weather Service has filed in Iowa: its floods, heat, cold, winter storms, hail, wind, lightning and tornadoes, year by year and county by county, each episode with its narrative.
The worst in Iowa on the map
The deadliest and costliest episodes on record here, colored by kind of event.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The record
- Events
- 69,606
- Deaths
- 223
- Injuries
- 3,433
- Damage
- $15 billion
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.
Every year
Tap a year for every episode in it.
Deaths each year
By kind of event
| Kind of event | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 17,986 | 21 | 549 | $563 million |
| Hail | 15,950 | 4 | 134 | $585 million |
| Flood | 4,756 | 8 | 123 | $3.3 billion |
| Winter Storm | 3,848 | 11 | 32 | $88 million |
| Heavy Rain | 3,554 | 0 | 0 | $1.7 million |
| Tornado | 3,501 | 100 | 2,341 | $2.9 billion |
| High Wind | 2,700 | 2 | 22 | $75 million |
| Flash Flood | 2,627 | 10 | 14 | $443 million |
| Drought | 2,602 | 0 | 0 | $6.0 billion |
| Winter Weather | 2,490 | 22 | 32 | $770,000 |
| Heavy Snow | 1,737 | 3 | 3 | $112 million |
| Blizzard | 1,703 | 9 | 29 | $25 million |
| Extreme Cold/Wind Chill | 1,153 | 5 | 0 | |
| Cold/Wind Chill | 991 | 2 | 0 | $21 million |
| Ice Storm | 957 | 2 | 3 | $50 million |
| Funnel Cloud | 753 | 0 | 0 | |
| Frost/Freeze | 604 | 0 | 0 | $284 million |
| Excessive Heat | 515 | 0 | 28 | $7.2 million |
| Heat | 373 | 4 | 22 | $500 |
| Lightning | 366 | 7 | 46 | $26 million |
| Dense Fog | 228 | 9 | 36 | $467,000 |
| Strong Wind | 168 | 2 | 7 | $185,000 |
| Wildfire | 22 | 0 | 7 | $1.5 million |
| Sleet | 11 | 0 | 0 | |
| Freezing Fog | 9 | 2 | 0 | |
| Dust Devil | 2 | 0 | 5 | $10,000 |
The deadliest
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 15, 1968
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 25, 2008A very intense upper low was located over the southwest U.S. and lifted northeast during the weekend of the 24th into the morning of the 26th.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, March 5, 2022On March 5, 2022 a total of 15 tornadoes occurred across the state of Iowa as a warm front lifted across the area. Supercells initially developed across southwest Iowa in the vicinity of the triple point of the surface low with strong, rotating updrafts.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 7, 1984
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, October 14, 1966
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, September 16, 1978
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 28, 1979
- Tornadoes in Iowa, May 21, 2024PLEASE NOTE, for hail, wind, heavy rain and flooding, please see separate Storm Data entry for May 20-22. Numerous tornadoes occurred on this day with numerous injuries and four fatalities at Greenfield in Adair County.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 17, 1991
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Iowa, June 11 to 13, 2008A very strong and unseasonably cold upper level low pressure system that was tracking across the northern plains brought a strong low level jet to the region during the early morning hours of June 11th.
- Dense Fog in Iowa, December 28, 2024Dense fog blanketed the area on the the morning of December 28th with a dense fog advisory in effect for visibility under a quarter mile. Unfortunately a car accident that morning resulted in three fatalities and three injuries.
- Flooding in Iowa, June 20 to 30, 2024A multi-day significant heavy rainfall event from June 20-22 resulted in widespread rain totals between 5 and 10 inches across portions of southeast South Dakota, northwest Iowa, and southwest Minnesota.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 18, 1974
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 30, 1985
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, June 27, 2008A bow echo that developed northwest of Omaha produced a 5 to 7 mile wide swath of significant damage surrounded by a larger area of lesser damage from about 40 miles northwest of Omaha to 50 miles to the southeast.
- Blizzard in Iowa, December 20, 2012Part 2 of 2: The seasons first major winter storm moved into Iowa during the late afternoon and evening of the 19th and continued into the day on the 20th and became a blizzard for much of the Des Moines CWA.
- Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in Iowa, June 7 to 11, 2008Low pressure developed over Kansas with a strong southerly flow of very moist air streaming into Iowa ahead of it. Surface temperatures warmed into the 80s with dew point readings in the low to mid 70s.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, April 11, 2001A very powerful storm system moved through the southern Rockies during the night of the 10th and early morning of the 11th. Intense surface low pressure formed over western Kansas with a central pressure by sunrise on the 11th of 977 Mb.
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, August 28, 1979
- Tornado and Hail in Iowa, April 16, 1967
- Tornado in Iowa, May 16, 1999The stronger of the 2 tornadoes that ripped through Harrison county the afternoon of 5/16/99 killed 2 people and destroyed 6 homes and a bridge before it dissipated a couple of miles east of Logan.
- Heavy Snow in Iowa, January 26, 1996
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 18, 1973
- Winter Storm in Iowa, January 1 to 2, 1999The seasons first winter storm struck Iowa during the New Years Weekend. A complex weather situation unfolded during the day on the first. The upper level system was broken in two pieces.
- Ice Storm and Winter Storm in Iowa, November 9 to 10, 2020Unusual warmth with a week of temperatures mainly in the 70s (even 50s and 60s on November 9 less than a day before this storm) was brought to an abrupt end as a deep trough of low pressure moved out of Rockies and into the Plains.
The costliest
- Drought in Iowa, July 1 to 31, 2012
- Flooding in Iowa, June 1 to 30, 2008
- Flooding in Iowa, June 12 to 30, 2010
- Drought in Iowa, August 1 to 31, 2013
- Drought in Iowa, August 1 to 31, 2003
- Drought in Iowa, August 1 to 23, 2001
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, July 28, 1986
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, July 19, 2018
- Drought in Iowa, August 1 to 31, 2003
- Drought in Iowa, August 1 to 31, 2012
- Flooding in Iowa, June 1 to 25, 2008
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, June 7, 1984
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 24, 1989
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, March 5, 2022
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Iowa, August 9, 2009
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 8, 1988
- Drought in Iowa, September 1 to 6, 2000
- Drought in Iowa, July 1 to 31, 2005
- Drought in Iowa, August 14 to 31, 2000
- Frost and Freeze in Iowa, October 10 to 11, 2009
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, March 13, 1990
- Drought in Iowa, July 20 to 30, 1999
- Tornadoes and Hail in Iowa, May 25, 2008
- Flooding in Iowa, April 1 to 30, 2019
- Heavy Snow and Lightning Strike in Iowa, October 26, 1997
Counties
Every storm event filed in each county, including the zone-filed ones that covered it.
- Adair County612
- Adams County424
- Allamakee County469
- Appanoose County563
- Audubon County447
- Benton County989
- Black Hawk County1,062
- Boone County806
- Bremer County583
- Buchanan County822
- Buena Vista County712
- Butler County734
- Calhoun County609
- Carroll County691
- Cass County724
- Cedar County737
- Cerro Gordo County854
- Cherokee County708
- Chickasaw County495
- Clarke County549
- Clay County1,017
- Clayton County716
- Clinton County833
- Crawford County627
- Dallas County1,181
- Davis County416
- Decatur County476
- Delaware County697
- Des Moines County709
- Dickinson County845
- Dubuque County965
- Emmet County624
- Fayette County634
- Floyd County621
- Franklin County602
- Fremont County536
- Greene County557
- Grundy County558
- Guthrie County707
- Hamilton County683
- Hancock County567
- Hardin County693
- Harrison County698
- Henry County502
- Howard County493
- Humboldt County551
- Ida County556
- Iowa County600
- Jackson County578
- Jasper County776
- Jefferson County450
- Johnson County901
- Jones County739
- Keokuk County482
- Kossuth County835
- Lee County722
- Linn County1,436
- Louisa County457
- Lucas County490
- Lyon County774
- Madison County585
- Mahaska County622
- Marion County919
- Marshall County748
- Mills County516
- Mitchell County484
- Monona County516
- Monroe County405
- Montgomery County454
- Muscatine County726
- O'Brien County826
- Osceola County607
- Page County509
- Palo Alto County580
- Plymouth County1,017
- Pocahontas County595
- Polk County2,373
- Pottawattamie County774
- Poweshiek County554
- Ringgold County461
- Sac County513
- Scott County1,273
- Shelby County480
- Sioux County1,046
- Story County1,320
- Tama County625
- Taylor County580
- Union County570
- Van Buren County515
- Wapello County770
- Warren County1,065
- Washington County583
- Wayne County493
- Webster County1,007
- Winnebago County542
- Winneshiek County627
- Woodbury County1,213
- Worth County513
- Wright County598
Counties and zones as filed
The places filed most often, as the offices named them.
| County or zone | Events | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk | 2,154 | 6 | 211 | $343 million |
| Linn | 1,178 | 6 | 248 | $804 million |
| Story | 1,099 | 1 | 32 | $132 million |
| Scott | 1,020 | 1 | 24 | $51 million |
| Dallas | 965 | 0 | 9 | $52 million |
| Woodbury | 897 | 2 | 65 | $301 million |
| Warren | 884 | 1 | 10 | $63 million |
| Black Hawk | 861 | 2 | 82 | $110 million |
| Webster | 759 | 0 | 26 | $85 million |
| Benton | 756 | 2 | 25 | $39 million |
| Dubuque | 714 | 0 | 16 | $78 million |
| Marion | 713 | 0 | 31 | $157 million |
| Plymouth | 701 | 0 | 10 | $30 million |
| Sioux | 699 | 2 | 4 | $33 million |
| Johnson | 661 | 2 | 67 | $353 million |
| Clay | 653 | 1 | 1 | $66 million |
| Cerro Gordo | 604 | 1 | 14 | $37 million |
| Buchanan | 598 | 1 | 12 | $24 million |
| Wapello | 596 | 2 | 65 | $68 million |
| Boone | 594 | 0 | 13 | $59 million |
| Jasper | 579 | 2 | 6 | $87 million |
| Clinton | 579 | 2 | 30 | $51 million |
| Pottawattamie | 574 | 5 | 106 | $120 million |
| Kossuth | 568 | 2 | 42 | $115 million |
| Clayton | 557 | 3 | 28 | $103 million |
| Cass | 551 | 0 | 11 | $40 million |
| Lee | 532 | 1 | 15 | $42 million |
| Marshall | 528 | 0 | 50 | $516 million |
| Guthrie | 514 | 0 | 0 | $38 million |
| Butler | 509 | 11 | 58 | $122 million |
| Cedar | 504 | 1 | 24 | $16 million |
| Des Moines | 501 | 0 | 32 | $33 million |
| Harrison | 498 | 2 | 20 | $31 million |
| Dickinson | 497 | 0 | 20 | $21 million |
| Muscatine | 495 | 3 | 24 | $33 million |
| Jones | 494 | 0 | 6 | $77 million |
| O'Brien | 487 | 0 | 2 | $25 million |
| Hardin | 469 | 0 | 25 | $141 million |
| Delaware | 468 | 0 | 22 | $97 million |
| Carroll | 460 | 0 | 89 | $51 million |
| Taylor | 444 | 0 | 18 | $52 million |
| Fayette | 444 | 6 | 172 | $86 million |
| Crawford | 444 | 0 | 6 | $54 million |
| Winneshiek | 440 | 0 | 4 | $42 million |
| Lyon | 439 | 1 | 2 | $38 million |
| Hamilton | 439 | 2 | 17 | $71 million |
| Tama | 432 | 1 | 35 | $65 million |
| Adair | 431 | 6 | 42 | $73 million |
| Mahaska | 428 | 1 | 37 | $66 million |
| Floyd | 425 | 14 | 459 | $52 million |
| Appanoose | 412 | 0 | 12 | $36 million |
| Union | 405 | 0 | 7 | $63 million |
| Madison | 402 | 6 | 6 | $110 million |
| Cherokee | 395 | 0 | 4 | $16 million |
| Bremer | 392 | 0 | 12 | $39 million |
| Buena Vista | 389 | 0 | 8 | $15 million |
| Emmet | 374 | 0 | 0 | $42 million |
| Poweshiek | 374 | 6 | 60 | $42 million |
| Washington | 374 | 0 | 29 | $71 million |
| Iowa | 372 | 0 | 22 | $39 million |
| Calhoun | 370 | 4 | 33 | $97 million |
| Franklin | 367 | 0 | 0 | $55 million |
| Page | 366 | 2 | 53 | $16 million |
| Fremont | 366 | 3 | 29 | $164 million |
| Clarke | 358 | 0 | 3 | $28 million |
| Pocahontas | 356 | 0 | 2 | $48 million |
| Mills | 351 | 0 | 8 | $8.9 million |
| Wright | 351 | 7 | 173 | $55 million |
| Grundy | 350 | 1 | 3 | $51 million |
| Dickinson zone | 348 | 0 | 1 | $14 million |
| Sioux zone | 347 | 3 | 8 | $36 million |
| Palo Alto | 345 | 1 | 1 | $38 million |
| Clay zone | 345 | 1 | 5 | $18 million |
| O'Brien zone | 339 | 0 | 5 | $15 million |
| Monona | 338 | 4 | 64 | $265 million |
| Osceola zone | 338 | 0 | 1 | $14 million |
| Greene | 337 | 4 | 2 | $28 million |
| Lyon zone | 335 | 0 | 1 | $18 million |
| Wayne | 333 | 0 | 57 | $71 million |
| Jackson | 331 | 0 | 8 | $41 million |
| Van Buren | 327 | 3 | 20 | $18 million |
| Buena Vista zone | 323 | 0 | 11 | $4.5 million |
| Hancock | 318 | 0 | 28 | $36 million |
| Winnebago | 317 | 0 | 6 | $35 million |
| Chickasaw | 316 | 1 | 5 | $27 million |
| Plymouth zone | 316 | 4 | 3 | $49 million |
| Woodbury zone | 316 | 2 | 21 | $50 million |
| Ringgold | 314 | 5 | 5 | $70 million |
| Cherokee zone | 313 | 0 | 0 | $13 million |
| Humboldt | 312 | 0 | 37 | $34 million |
| Decatur | 310 | 0 | 7 | $82 million |
| Allamakee | 309 | 1 | 5 | $24 million |
| Howard | 308 | 0 | 30 | $23 million |
| Henry | 304 | 1 | 7 | $5.6 million |
| Shelby | 303 | 0 | 0 | $8.2 million |
| Montgomery | 302 | 0 | 1 | $3.6 million |
| Worth | 300 | 0 | 6 | $40 million |
| Lucas | 297 | 1 | 7 | $55 million |
| Sac | 292 | 0 | 1 | $71 million |
| Mitchell | 290 | 0 | 0 | $85 million |
| Ida zone | 286 | 1 | 0 | $17 million |
| Keokuk | 283 | 3 | 45 | $36 million |
| Davis | 276 | 0 | 0 | $58 million |
| Adams | 273 | 1 | 6 | $59 million |
| Audubon | 270 | 0 | 1 | $27 million |
| Ida | 269 | 0 | 5 | $8.9 million |
| Osceola | 269 | 0 | 14 | $26 million |
| Kossuth zone | 267 | 2 | 0 | $161 million |
| Jefferson | 258 | 0 | 3 | $30 million |
| Linn zone | 258 | 2 | 14 | $25 million |
| Clinton zone | 253 | 1 | 0 | $39 million |
| Scott zone | 253 | 0 | 41 | $31 million |
| Dubuque zone | 251 | 2 | 11 | $22 million |
| Emmet zone | 250 | 1 | 0 | $108 million |
| Hancock zone | 249 | 1 | 3 | $108 million |
| Cerro Gordo zone | 249 | 0 | 1 | $88 million |
| Louisa | 248 | 2 | 6 | $63 million |
| Webster zone | 248 | 2 | 0 | $107 million |
| Jackson zone | 247 | 1 | 0 | $29 million |
| Wright zone | 247 | 2 | 7 | $108 million |
| Jones zone | 245 | 1 | 0 | $29 million |
| Hamilton zone | 244 | 2 | 2 | $106 million |
| Johnson zone | 240 | 4 | 4 | $33 million |
| Pocahontas zone | 239 | 0 | 0 | $151 million |
| Humboldt zone | 239 | 0 | 1 | $106 million |
| Calhoun zone | 239 | 0 | 0 | $106 million |
| Palo Alto zone | 235 | 0 | 0 | $104 million |
| Franklin zone | 235 | 0 | 1 | $109 million |
| Benton zone | 233 | 1 | 1 | $21 million |
| Cedar zone | 233 | 1 | 1 | $43 million |
| Muscatine zone | 231 | 1 | 1 | $28 million |
| Carroll zone | 230 | 0 | 0 | $119 million |
| Monroe | 229 | 0 | 8 | $53 million |
| Delaware zone | 229 | 1 | 0 | $18 million |
| Iowa zone | 228 | 1 | 1 | $20 million |
| Winnebago zone | 225 | 0 | 2 | $87 million |
| Butler zone | 225 | 1 | 0 | $89 million |
| Hardin zone | 224 | 0 | 0 | $105 million |
| Buchanan zone | 223 | 0 | 0 | $16 million |
| Sac zone | 221 | 0 | 1 | $117 million |
| Greene zone | 220 | 0 | 0 | $116 million |
| Marshall zone | 220 | 0 | 0 | $119 million |
| Story zone | 219 | 0 | 2 | $120 million |
| Polk zone | 219 | 5 | 3 | $136 million |
| Dallas zone | 216 | 0 | 0 | $129 million |
| Worth zone | 213 | 3 | 3 | $86 million |
| Boone zone | 212 | 0 | 1 | $118 million |
| Washington zone | 209 | 0 | 0 | $29 million |
| Louisa zone | 209 | 3 | 1 | $27 million |
| Des Moines zone | 208 | 0 | 4 | $26 million |
Every year
- 2026
- 2025
- 2024
- 2023
- 2022
- 2021
- 2020
- 2019
- 2018
- 2017
- 2016
- 2015
- 2014
- 2013
- 2012
- 2011
- 2010
- 2009
- 2008
- 2007
- 2006
- 2005
- 2004
- 2003
- 2002
- 2001
- 2000
- 1999
- 1998
- 1997
- 1996
- 1995
- 1994
- 1993
- 1992
- 1991
- 1990
- 1989
- 1988
- 1987
- 1986
- 1985
- 1984
- 1983
- 1982
- 1981
- 1980
- 1979
- 1978
- 1977
- 1976
- 1975
- 1974
- 1973
- 1972
- 1971
- 1970
- 1969
- 1968
- 1967
- 1966
- 1965
- 1964
- 1963
- 1962
- 1961
- 1960
- 1959
- 1958
- 1957
- 1956
- 1955
- 1954
- 1953
- 1952
- 1951
- 1950
More
Every tornado in IowaEvery warning in Iowa since 1986River gauges in IowaEvery state
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.