My home county (Buchanan County, junction of Highways 218 and 150) in northeast Iowa was declared a disaster area, as were Black Hawk and Butler Counties in the same part of the state, as severe thunderstorms struck in the evening of May 25th, killing at least 8 people in Iowa and Minnesota.
Although I do not remember the tornado that ripped the roof off St. John’s Church 2 blocks from my home in Buchanan County (Independence, Iowa) and dropped it in my back yard when I was 2 years old, I’ve seen pictures of myself as a child after that particular event, which occurred in the same approximate area of the state.
Still, as the Iowa Homeland Security Administrator said, “Occasionally we have a death, but we have a warning system. Seven deaths! It’s been a long time since we’ve had those kinds of injuries and deaths reported.”
Five of the victims lived in Parkersburg, which is located 80 miles northeast of Des Moines; two of those killed lived in nearby New Hartford. Said one female resident of New Hartford, being interviewed on MSNBC, “We’ve lived here for 21 years and we’ve never had anything like this happen.” There were approximately 50 injuries reported, with Parkersburg—in particular the south side of town—reduced to rubble. Most of the high school and nearly all of the town’s homes were destroyed. Communications with the town were completely cut off and all residents were ordered to evacuate. Early film footage of the destruction looked like footage of cities destroyed in a war zone.
A tornado also struck just to the east in Dunkerton, Iowa, (population under 800) and in other areas of Black Hawk County. New Hartford has fewer than 700 residents.
Governor Chet Culver issued a disaster proclamation for the three Iowa counties and Dave Miller, the Iowa Homeland Security Administrator, said that officials would be monitoring reports of storm activity, which included large hail and wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour in the Des Moines capital city area.
In Minnesota, Hugo, a suburb of St. Paul, was struck, damaging about 48 homes, according to City Administrator Mike Ericson. A two-year-old child was killed and the child’s sibling critically injured. The children’s parents were also hospitalized.
Hugo Public Works Director Chris Petree described shielding his wife and 2 and 1/2-year-old daughter with his body in the basement of their home as the storm tore the second floor from his residence. “All you hear is glass breaking and wood tearing and breaking in half. I put my daughter down first, my wife on top of her, and then I bear-hugged on top of them,” said Petree.
In Illinois, there were tornado warnings for Rock Island County, where I currently live, and for all surrounding counties (Henry County in Illinois, Scott County in Iowa, etc.).
There have been three days of violent weather in the Midwest, with rural Oklahoma getting hit hard on Saturday and Kansas being struck one day earlier, with two killed there.
So far this year, nearly 100 people have died in tornadoes in the United States—the worst death toll in ten years—and the tornado season typically peaks in the spring, summer, and late fall. If you are an Illinois resident, you can view the tornado strikes in central Illinois at www.weeklywilson.com, where they are mapped.