4,632 first-hand accounts of flood events in Iowa, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.
Thunderstorms developed early in the morning ahead of an approaching warm front. Very little in the way of severe weather occurred with them, however dime size hail was reported during the initial development stage.
Read the full account →A very unstable air mass was located over Iowa as a warm front extended from southeast Nebraska into central South Dakota. A narrot line of thunderstorms formed across Iowa with intense lightning and very heavy rainfall of over 2 inches per hour for a time.
Read the full account →Another round of heavy rain-producing showers and thunderstorms developed and moved across eastern Iowa and northern Illinois during the morning of August 10.
Read the full account →Flooding continued along a large part of the Des Moines River Basin from the previous month. The flooding ended in the Stratford area by the afternoon of the 1st, however releases from Saylorville and Red Rock Reservoirs maintained river stages above flood stage through the…
Read the full account →Thunderstorms with heavy rain were triggered by an upper level disturbance moving across Iowa toward northern Illinois. Excessive rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches occurred during the late night of April 24 into the early morning of April 25, which caused flash flooding.
Read the full account →A very weak cold became stationary to the south of Iowa during the late afternoon of the 2nd and early morning of the 3rd. Once again, elevated convection developed in Iowa as the low level jet brought moisture northeast into Iowa.
Read the full account →A very weak cold became stationary to the south of Iowa during the late afternoon of the 2nd and early morning of the 3rd. Once again, elevated convection developed in Iowa as the low level jet brought moisture northeast into Iowa.
Read the full account →An east to west warm frontal boundary extended from southern Nebraska into extreme southern Iowa. A strong push of warm and unstable air pushed over the top of the boundary. Lifted indices were in the -8 to -11 C range with Cape values of 3000 to 5000 J/kg during the event.
Read the full account →Thunderstorms developed in the warm sector of a storm system during the afternoon hours. The storms organized into a squall line, supported by a strong low level jet, and raced east.
Read the full account →A very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa during the evening of the 4th. CAPE values were in the 2000 to 4000 J/kg range with lifted indices around -6. A warm front extended from low pressure over northwest Iowa, southeast into the south east sections of the state.
Read the full account →Following the heavy rains of the previous day, thunderstorms once again developed over northern Iowa during the overnight hours of the 18th into the early morning of the 19th.
Read the full account →A very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa during the evening of the 4th. CAPE values were in the 2000 to 4000 J/kg range with lifted indices around -6. A warm front extended from low pressure over northwest Iowa, southeast into the south east sections of the state.
Read the full account →A strong warm-up took place over Iowa during the 14th and the several days before with highs reaching the 40s and 50s, and overnight lows remaining in the 30s. This melted a considerable amount of snow and began the process of ice break-up on the rivers.
Read the full account →A very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa as a warm front lifted north slowly into the state. The warm air had moved in aloft as freezing levels increased from 14,600 feet in the morning, to 16,200 by the evening hours.
Read the full account →A very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa as a warm front lifted north slowly into the state. The warm air had moved in aloft as freezing levels increased from 14,600 feet in the morning, to 16,200 by the evening hours.
Read the full account →The warm front from the previous night lifted north of the state as low pressure pushed northeast out of Kansas across northwest Iowa. The atmosphere became quite unstable. Lifted indices fell to -6 to -8, with CAPE values in the 1000 to 2000 J/kg range.
Read the full account →The warm front from the previous night lifted north of the state as low pressure pushed northeast out of Kansas across northwest Iowa. The atmosphere became quite unstable. Lifted indices fell to -6 to -8, with CAPE values in the 1000 to 2000 J/kg range.
Read the full account →A warm and humid airmass was in place across Iowa on the 25th. The flow was quite weak with only 5 to 10 kts of shear. Afternoon temperatures warmed into the 80s with dew points in the mid 60s to around 70.
Read the full account →A very unstable atmosphere was in place over Iowa with CAPE values around 2000 J/kg and lifted indices in the -8 to -10 C range. Precipitable water increased to around 2.25 inches along a boundary that extended from northeast into west central Iowa.
Read the full account →A very unstable airmass was in place over Iowa as a cold front approached from the west. High temperatures the previous day were in the upper 80s and 90s for the most part, with 101 at Fairfield. Dewpoint readings were in the 70s east to near 80 over the west.
Read the full account →The heavy rains and subsequent minor flooding experienced in March continued through much of April. Data from the Iowa State Climatologist indicated statewide precipitation in April was 3.99 inches, or .83 inches above normal.
Read the full account →The heavy rains and subsequent minor flooding experienced in March continued through much of April. Data from the Iowa State Climatologist indicated statewide precipitation in April was 3.99 inches, or .83 inches above normal.
Read the full account →The heavy rains and subsequent minor flooding experienced in March continued through much of April. Data from the Iowa State Climatologist indicated statewide precipitation in April was 3.99 inches, or .83 inches above normal.
Read the full account →The heavy rains and subsequent minor flooding experienced in March continued through much of April. Data from the Iowa State Climatologist indicated statewide precipitation in April was 3.99 inches, or .83 inches above normal.
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