FOX Weather Storm Trackers captured video of at least one cone-shaped tornado in southeastern Iowa on Tuesday.
DES MOINES, Iowa – Severe weather left at least two people injured and triggered dozens of Tornado Warnings on Tuesday from Kansas through southeastern Iowa, with multiple twisters captured on video.
Damage was reported in communities such as Mediapolis, Pleasant Grove and Salem in Iowa, where a FOX Weather Storm Tracker captured exclusive video of at least one commercial building being damaged in the high winds.
Meteorologist talks to FOX Weather Exclusive Storm Tracker Brandon Copic after a possible tornado stripped a roof off a building then blew a silo in front of his car.
Several homes were also reported damaged in nearby New London, Iowa.
According to Chad Hahn, a warning coordination meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Des Moines, Iowa, the threat was the state's first widespread severe weather threat of the year.
APRIL KICKS OFF AMERICA'S MOST ACTIVE TIME OF YEAR FOR TORNADOES
In Clay County, Missouri, there was also damage to trees near the Camp Branch area of Smithville Lake, according to National Weather Service storm reports. A mobile home was flipped over, but no injuries were reported. Significant damage was reported to Kansas City Trapshooters Association facilities in Smithville, Missouri.
The NWS office in Topeka, Kansas, said it received several reports of tornado damage across Osage County, to the south of Topeka. A survey team determined that the EF-1 tornado was on the ground for 20 minutes and damaged several buildings. At least two people were injured by the twister when their RV was flipped over.
As the storms continued moving east, an emergency manager reported a tornado in Platte County, Nebraska, 3 miles southwest of Platte Center. The manager also reported that the tornado dissipated before touching down again.
A large tornado was spotted tearing across the horizon in Houghton, Iowa on April 16, 2024. (Video: @MooseT187/ WEATHER TRAKER /TMX)
Another tornado was confirmed within a Tornado Warning just east of Minburn, Iowa, in Dallas County. There was damage to an outbuilding, and sheet metal was scattered in fields, according to NWS storm reports.
In addition, there were multiple reports of strong wind gusts over 60 mph from passing severe thunderstorms across Iowa and Illinois, topped by a gust of 72 mph in Stanwood, Iowa.
More than 20,000 electric outages were reported on Tuesday evening across four states, with Missouri leading the way with more than half the outages, according to PowerOutage.us.
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A tornado damaged the Kansas City Trapshooters Association in Smithville, Missouri (Kansas City Trapshooters Association)
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A tornado damaged the Kansas City Trapshooters Association in Smithville, Missouri (Kansas City Trapshooters Association)
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Funnel cloud swirls near Gardner, Iowa on April 16, 2024 (Trooper Paul Gardner / Iowa State Patrol)
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Henry County, Iowa tornado (@BTravs)
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A tornado was spotted near Gardner, Iowa on April 16, 2024 (Trooper Paul Gardner / Iowa State Patrol)
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(Corey Gerken)
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Storm damage from Dallas Center, Iowa, on Tuesday morning, April 16, 2024. (Mike Howell)
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Storm damage from Dallas Center, Iowa, on Tuesday morning, April 16, 2024. (Mike Howell)
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Storm damage from Dallas Center, Iowa, on Tuesday morning, April 16, 2024. (Mike Howell)
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Storm damage from Dallas Center, Iowa, on Tuesday morning, April 16, 2024. (Mike Howell)
Early Tuesday morning, an American Airlines flight from Kansas City to Chicago returned to the airport due to a possible lightning strike. The flight landed safely at Kansas City International Airport and taxied to the gate under its own power. The airline told FOX Weather that a maintenance team is inspecting the aircraft, and all customers have been accommodated on alternate flights.
During Tuesday's activity, the NWS office that services the Quad Cities of Iowa and Illinois had to briefly transfer forecasting responsibilities to the NWS office in Des Moines, Iowa, as a tornado-warned thunderstorm approached the NWS facility.
After the storm passed, there was no reported damage to the weather office, and staff took over responsibility for issuing warnings for eastern Iowa and western Illinois.
The SPC received at least 17 reports of tornadoes and more than 100 combined reports of damaging winds and hail from Tuesday's event, with most located in Missouri and Iowa.
UDALL, Kan. (KSNW) – It was 68 years ago, on May 25, 1955, that the deadliest tornado in Kansas history happened in Cowley County. Udall was hit and nearly wiped off the map. The F5 tornado killed 80 people and injured over 200.
∇ Most Activity: Sherman County, situated in northwest Kansas, takes the lead as the county with the highest tornado count, recording 113 tornadoes between 1950 and 2020. ∇ Per Year Activity: Kansas has witnessed around 88 tornadoes each year over the past three decades.
Watches are issued by the Storm Prediction Center for counties where tornadoes may occur. The watch area is typically large, covering numerous counties or even states.What is a Tornado Warning? A tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar.There is imminent danger to life and property.
Texas leads the nation in the number of tornadoes that occur each year on average, followed by Kansas. Texas leads the nation for the average number each year only because of its size.
Tornadoes have been documented in every U.S. state (not including the non-state territories of Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico) at least once since 1950, although some regions and states are hit by tornadoes far more than others.
This article lists various tornado records. The most "extreme" tornado in recorded history was the Tri-State tornado, which spread through parts of Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana on March 18, 1925.
As the graph indicates, mid to late April through mid June historically has the highest tornado frequency, with the peak occurring around May 22nd-23rd with over 160 tornadoes occurring over that two day period since 1950. Notice the sharp drop-off by mid to late June.
A tornado that leveled homes and resulted in one death in Westmoreland, Kansas, Tuesday was rated EF3 by the National Weather Service. The tornado began around 4:40 p.m. and lasted around eight minutes in the town of about 730 people in Pottawatomie County, about 55 miles northwest of Topeka.
Since 1950, per SPC statistics, Kansas ranks first in the nation in total number of F5/EF5 tornadoes (7), monstrosities that possess rotational velocities of 261-318 mph.
The safest place in the home is the interior part of a basem*nt. If you don't have a basem*nt, go to an inside room, without windows, on the lowest floor. This could be a center hallway, bathroom, or closet. Avoid taking shelter where there are heavy objects on the floor directly above you.
First, bathrooms are typically small rooms with no windows in the middle of a building. Secondly, it is thought that the plumbing within the walls of a bathroom helps to add some structural strength to the room. "Ideally, if you are able to identify a room, it's your most interior room at the lowest level, windowless.
The NWS issues a Tornado Watch when weather conditions in an area indicate an increased risk for severe weather that may be capable of producing a tornado. The NWS issues a Tornado Warning when a tornado has been sighted or indicated by weather radar. A warning means you should take shelter immediately.
"Tornado Alley" has sprung back to life, with the majority of tornadoes erupting in central U.S. states which include: Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Tornado activity is still extremely active this month.
About 100 of the twisters occurred within just three days — from April 25 to 28, 2024. They include 30 in Oklahoma, at least two dozen in Iowa, 20 in Texas, 16 in Missouri, 15 in Kansas, and 13 in Nebraska.
However, research conducted by Tom Grazulis in his book Significant Tornadoes 1880-1990, F5 tornadoes have been documented striking Kansas as far back as May 1, 1895. Click HERE for additional Kansas tornado climatology facts and figures since 1950.
In total, two tornadoes received the rating of F6, but both were later downgraded to F5. Based on aerial photographs of the damage it caused, Fujita assigned the strongest tornado of the 1974 Super Outbreak, which affected Xenia, Ohio, a preliminary rating of F6 intensity ± 1 scale.
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