Tornadoes · United States · Iowa · 2026

EF1 tornado, Delaware County, Iowa, August 11, 2026

This EF1 tornado ran 2.4 miles across Delaware County on August 11, 2026, touching down at 7:31 AM CDT and reaching 150 yards wide. It killed nobody.

Preliminary. This is NWS DVN's damage survey, filed in the Damage Assessment Toolkit as West of Greeley Tornado. The rating, the path and the casualties are the survey's and can change while it is revised. The Storm Prediction Center compiles the official record of 2026 from these surveys and publishes it in the spring of 2027; this page moves to that tornado's permanent address when it does.

The rating scale

Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The Enhanced Fujita scale rates the damage rather than measuring the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.

  1. EF065 to 85 mph

    Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.

  2. EF186 to 110 mphthis tornado

    Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.

  3. EF2111 to 135 mph

    Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.

  4. EF3136 to 165 mph

    Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.

  5. EF4166 to 200 mph

    Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.

  6. EF5over 200 mph

    Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.

  7. Unrated

    The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.

The survey

Rating, as surveyed
EF1, preliminary
Date
August 11, 2026
Touchdown
7:31 AM CDT (12:31 UTC)
Lifted
7:33 AM CDT (12:33 UTC)
On the ground
2 minutes
Path length
2.4 miles (3.9 km)
Path width
150 yards (137 m)
Deaths
0
Injuries
0
County
Delaware County
Touchdown point
42.589, -91.433
Lift-off point
42.586, -91.387
Highest wind the damage implies
110 mph
Surveyed by
NWS DVN
The office's name for it
West of Greeley Tornado
Survey last edited
August 11, 2026
Record number
None yet. SPC numbers 2026 in the spring of 2027.

What the survey found

A high-end EF1 with peak gusts of 110 MPH caused significant damage to two farmsteads at the beginning of its 2.4 mile long path. Here two farm outbuildings were destroyed along with numerous snapped trees. A power pole was also snapped at this location. The tornado was roughly 150 yards wide at this location. As the tornado moved east, it began to become smaller causing mostly tree damage.

Written by NWS DVN in the NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit. A survey is revised as better evidence arrives.

The warnings

16 minutes of warning. NWS DVN issued a tornado warning for this county at 12:15 UTC, 16 minutes before the tornado touched down, in force until 13:00 UTC.

The county was under a severe thunderstorm watch, issued at 12:23 UTC and running to 14:29 UTC.

Issued (UTC)ExpiredProductOffice
02:02 UTC02:45 UTCTornado WarningDVN
12:09 UTC13:10 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningDVN
12:11 UTC13:00 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WarningDVN
12:15 UTC13:00 UTCTornado WarningDVN
12:23 UTC14:29 UTCSevere Thunderstorm WatchDVN
12:36 UTC12:58 UTCTornado WarningDVN

Every warning and watch covering the touchdown point that day, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service products. Lead time is measured from the issue of the warning in force to the touchdown time in the database, both of which were recorded to the minute by different people.

The forecast that day

The Storm Prediction Center had this point in a Slight Risk, with a 0.02 chance of a tornado within 25 miles. The outlook in force was issued at 05:00 UTC.

SPC's Day 1 convective outlook as it stood when the tornado began, read at the touchdown point. The same archive is on the radar archive.

The air that afternoon

The radiosonde launches on either side of the tornado, from the nearest station that was launching then, drawn and analyzed the way Storm Lab does: the same diagram, the same parcel and shear definitions SPC's mesoanalysis uses.

Davenport, (KDVN), 12:00Z

0.5 hours before the tornado, 131 km from the path. August 11, 2026.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 2026-08-11Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 4268 joules per kilogram, CIN -76, lifted condensation level 891 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Davenport, at 12:00Z on 2026-08-11The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 136 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 38 knots.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
4268 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-76 J/kg
Surface CAPE
3853 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
891 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
38 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
23 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
136 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
153 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
2.1
Supercell composite
9.5
0-3 km lapse rate
4.7 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

Davenport, (KDVN), 00:00Z

11.5 hours after it, 131 km from the path. August 12, 2026.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Davenport, at 00:00Z on 2026-08-12Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel lifted from the surface. Mixed-layer CAPE 3969 joules per kilogram, CIN -90, lifted condensation level 877 meters above ground. Wind barbs in knots down the right edge.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed. The warm shading is its CAPE, the cool shading the inhibition it has to break through.
HodographHodograph, Davenport, at 00:00Z on 2026-08-12The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers as a curve, rings every 10 meters per second labeled in knots. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity 121 square meters per square second, 0 to 6 km bulk shear 43 knots.19395878Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km. RM and LM are the right and left moving storms Bunkers' method gives; the shaded area is the 0 to 1 km storm-relative helicity.
Mixed-layer CAPE
3969 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-90 J/kg
Surface CAPE
5532 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
877 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
43 kt
0-1 km bulk shear
18 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
121 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
214 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
3.6
Supercell composite
29.8
0-3 km lapse rate
6.0 K/km

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The surface observations

Monticello Municipal (MXO), 46 km from the path, in the two hours either side.

Time (UTC)Temp (°F)Dew point (°F)WindGust (kt)Pressure (mb)Weather
10:35 UTC0° 0 kt1011.5
10:55 UTC0° 0 kt1011.5
11:15 UTC80° 4 kt1011.2-RA
11:35 UTC90° 5 kt1010.2
11:55 UTC 1010.5
12:15 UTC0° 0 kt1011.5-RA
12:35 UTC320° 5 kt161011.5-RA
12:55 UTC340° 21 kt401013.5-RA
13:15 UTC100° 9 kt1014.6-RA
13:35 UTC20° 7 kt1012.5-RA
13:55 UTC130° 6 kt1012.2-RA
14:15 UTC70° 6 kt1010.8

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of airport observations.

The radar

The Quad Cities radar (KDVN), 128 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the touchdown began at 12:30 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment, over the track

Reflectivity and velocity, decoded from the Level II archive in the browser. Volumes take a few seconds to open the first time.

What was reported nearby

Local storm reports within 60 km of the path, in the three hours either side.

Time (UTC)ReportWhereCountyRemark
12:07 UTCTSTM WND GST 60Independence AirportBuchanan, IAIADOT AWOS.
12:07 UTCTSTM WND GST 751 N IndependenceBuchanan, IAEstimated sustained 60-65 mph winds and gust to 75-80 mph, given trees bending up to 75 degrees.
12:15 UTCTSTM WND GST 60Independence AirportBuchanan, IAKIIB measured a 60mph gust.
12:28 UTCTSTM WND DMG1 Nne DundeeDelaware, IALarge softwood trees with heavy branch damage. Time estimated using radar.
12:31 UTCTORNADO5 W GreeleyDelaware, IAA high-end EF1 with peak gusts of 110 MPH caused significant damage to two farmsteads at the beginning of its 2.4 mile long path. Here two farm outbuildings were destroyed along with numerous snapped trees. A power pole
12:38 UTCTSTM WND GST 705 Nw GreeleyDelaware, IAEdgewood Fire reporting 70 mph winds.
12:38 UTCTSTM WND GST 705 Nw GreeleyDelaware, IA
12:44 UTCTORNADO2 Sse GreeleyDelaware, IAAn EF1 tornado, with max wind speeds of 90 MPH caused damage to trees and crops across its 1.5 mile long path. A hoop outbuilding was flung into the southside of a farm house causing damage to windows and exteriors walls
12:45 UTCTORNADO4 N of EarlvilleDelaware, IAAn EF1 tornado with max wind speeds of 95 MPH caused damage to trees, a house and a couple of farm outbuildings. A tree fell on a house heavily damaging a garage. A large tree branch was embedded in the metal roof of the
12:47 UTCTSTM WND DMGDyersvilleDubuque, IANumerous tree damage and power outages.
12:47 UTCTSTM WND GST 772 S DyersvilleDubuque, IAEstimated winds to 77mph. No damage visible at my location at this time. Winds to 65mph still occurring.
12:51 UTCTSTM WND GST 80FarleyDubuque, IA
13:01 UTCTSTM WND GST 752 S DyersvilleDubuque, IACorrects previous tstm wnd gst report from 2 S Dyersville. Estimated sporadic 75+ mph gusts along backside of storms under the rear inflow jet.
13:01 UTCTSTM WND GST 852 S DyersvilleDubuque, IAEstimated sporadic 85+ mph gusts along backside of storms under the rear inflow jet.
13:05 UTCTSTM WND DMGDyersvilleDubuque, IAMajor tree damage in Dyersville. Trees uprooted, blocking roads, one tree landed on a truck.
13:06 UTCTSTM WND GST 65Dubuque Regional ArptDubuque, IAREPORTED AT DUBUQUE REGIONAL AIRPORT.
13:44 UTCTSTM WND GST 691 Nnw MonticelloJones, IA
13:48 UTCTSTM WND GST 851 Wsw FarleyDubuque, IAMeasured 85 MPH wind gust just west of town. The roof on a commercial building was removed by the storm.
14:26 UTCTSTM WND DMGFarleyDubuque, IALarge trees down, tree on top of a house.

From the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service local storm reports.

This ground now

The live radar over the trackEvery 2026 tornado in IowaEvery tornado in Iowa since 1950Warnings in force in Iowa nowThe forecast where you are

The other tornadoes of August 11, 2026

28 more have been surveyed in the United States that day, so far.

DateTimeRatingWherePath (mi)Width (yd)DeathsInjuriesDamage
August 117:58 AM EDTEF0Jay, IN0.615
August 117:44 AM CDTEF1Delaware, IA1.5100
August 117:45 AM CDTEF1Delaware, IA2.675
August 119:24 AM EDTEF0Clark, OH4.5150
August 118:29 AM CDTEF0Clinton, IA0.30
August 119:30 AM EDTEF1Champaign, OH3.6200
August 119:31 AM EDTEF1Clark, OH9.2200
August 119:33 AM EDTEF2Clark, OH3.5400
August 119:44 AM EDTEF1Madison, OH0.8125
August 119:51 AM EDTEF0Madison, OH1.2100
August 1110:05 AM EDTEF0Franklin, OH2.71502
August 1110:05 AM EDTEF1Franklin, OH1.8100
August 1110:08 AM EDTEF1Franklin, OH1.3150
August 1110:14 AM CDTEF0Kendall, IL5.4150
August 1110:20 AM CDTEF0Grundy, IL1.6250
August 1110:23 AM CDTEF0Grundy, IL2.2150
August 1110:37 AM CDTEF1Will, IL1.5150
August 1110:39 AM CDTEF1Will, IL7.6200
August 1110:41 AM CDTEF1Cook, IL to IN22.5300
August 1110:43 AM CDTEF2Will, IL to IN26.2500
August 1110:55 AM CDTEF1Cook, IL3.3300
August 113:13 PM EDTEF1Butler, OH11.3500
August 113:47 PM EDTEF0Clermont, OH5.2200
August 113:49 PM EDTEF0Clermont, OH5.5150
August 113:51 PM EDTEF0Boone, KY2.9150
August 113:56 PM EDTEF0Brown, OH6.4200
August 113:12 PM CDTEF1Piatt, IL22.5800
August 114:16 PM EDTEF1Brown, OH7.1350

What this means

Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. A survey can be revised, so the rating, the path and the casualties can all still change.

Sources

NWS Damage Assessment Toolkit, the record the survey teams file from the damage, and NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports. Neither is the official database for 2026, which SPC publishes in the spring of 2027.