4,632 first-hand accounts of flood events in Iowa, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.
A strong weather system moved through the central U.S. from the 21st through the 23rd of the month. Strong convection formed north of a warm frontal boundary lifting north through the state.
Read the full account →A strong weather system moved through the central U.S. from the 21st through the 23rd of the month. Strong convection formed north of a warm frontal boundary lifting north through the state.
Read the full account →A strong weather system moved through the central U.S. from the 21st through the 23rd of the month. Strong convection formed north of a warm frontal boundary lifting north through the state.
Read the full account →A 971mb bomb cyclone moved out of the central Rockies on Wednesday, March 13, 2019 and helped to create widespread, moderate to major, and in many cases historic, flooding across eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.
Read the full account →Once again the atmosphere over Iowa became very unstable during the peak heating of the day. CAPE rose to 3500-4500 J/kg by the mid to late afternoon with lifted indices of -8 to -10 C.
Read the full account →A 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.
Read the full account →A 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.
Read the full account →A frontal boundary was draped across areas just west of Iowa during the morning hours of June 30th, and slowly moved eastward into the state throughout the day.
Read the full account →The continued series of thunderstorms moved across Iowa during the afternoon of the 26th and through the overnight hours of the 26th into the 27th. A stationary front remained in place from central Nebraska into northern Missouri.
Read the full account →Repeated rounds of thunderstorms with heavy rains moved across portions of northeast Iowa during the evening of August 23rd into the early morning hours of the 24th.
Read the full account →As much as 8 inches of rain caused flash flooding over portions of northeast Iowa. Hardest hit were Rockford and Nora Springs (Floyd County) where an earthen dike washed away and a dam was breached.
Read the full account →Following the second round of heavy rainfall during the night of the 25th into the morning of the 26th, widespread flooding occurred over parts of northern Iowa.
Read the full account →Low 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.
Read the full account →Significant ice jams took place along the Raccoon River along its lower reaches. One occurred where the river flows through a gravel pit on the west side of the Des Moines area. A woman was driving across a flood plain road when one of the ice jams suddenly broke.
Read the full account →Low 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.
Read the full account →A strong cold front pushed into a very warm unstable air mass as a significant upper level storm system tracked into the northern Great Lakes on June 29-30, 2014. A major severe weather and flash flood event unfolded across the area.
Read the full account →A nearly stationary front across the region was the focus for thunderstorms across northeast Iowa during the late afternoon and evening of August 19. Excessive rainfall amounts of 2 to 5 inches in two to three hours caused flash flooding.
Read the full account →A persistent stationary front continued to remain across Iowa and Northern Illinois. Two squall lines developed in the late afternoon in Western Iowa, one north and one south of the stationary front. These squall lines raced east across Eastern Iowa and Northern Illinois.
Read the full account →A complex of thunderstorms developed over Central Iowa during the early morning and tracked across Southeast Iowa, Northeast Missouri and West Central Illinois. Heavy rain, falling on already saturated ground, led to urban and small stream flooding in a few areas.
Read the full account →Morning upper air analysis showed a low level thermal gradient from Eastern Minnesota through Eastern Iowa into Western Illinois. A southerly low level jet of 25 to 30 knots interacted with the boundary to trigger strong to severe thunderstorms over Chickasaw and Black Hawk…
Read the full account →Major to record flooding on the Iowa River caused a levee to fail near Oakville, Iowa in Louisa County on June 14, 2008. An indirect fatality occurred when a 35 year old male drowned in the flood waters in rural Oakville while attempting to swim to his house to gather…
Read the full account →A warm front extended east to west across the Upper Mississippi Valley on June 7, which provided the focus for thunderstorms producing excessive rainfall. In fact, these storms exhibited very high rainfall rates, which led to 1 to 2 inch rainfall amounts in an hour.
Read the full account →A flash flood was caused by 3 or more inches of rain in less than an hour. Many basements were flooded and left with mud and debris. Some foundations and basement walls collapsed, mainly in Sioux City.
Read the full account →A 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.
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