4,632 first-hand accounts of flood events in Iowa, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.
Heavy rains from Tropical Depression Cristobal fell across northeast Iowa on June 9th. Rainfall amounts of 1 to 3 inches were common with locally higher totals of 4 to 5 inches. This heavy rain created flash flooding across portions of Fayette, Chickasaw and Howard Counties.
Read the full account →A surface low to the northwest of Iowa allowed for convection to develop in the warm sector and along the surface boundary as it pushed across northern Iowa through the afternoon and evening of the 21st.
Read the full account →A surface low to the northwest of Iowa allowed for convection to develop in the warm sector and along the surface boundary as it pushed across northern Iowa through the afternoon and evening of the 21st.
Read the full account →Heavy rains from Tropical Depression Cristobal fell across northeast Iowa on June 9th. Rainfall amounts of 1 to 3 inches were common with locally higher totals of 4 to 5 inches. This heavy rain created flash flooding across portions of Fayette, Chickasaw and Howard Counties.
Read the full account →A surface low to the northwest of Iowa allowed for convection to develop in the warm sector and along the surface boundary as it pushed across northern Iowa through the afternoon and evening of the 21st.
Read the full account →A surface low to the northwest of Iowa allowed for convection to develop in the warm sector and along the surface boundary as it pushed across northern Iowa through the afternoon and evening of the 21st.
Read the full account →A surface low to the northwest of Iowa allowed for convection to develop in the warm sector and along the surface boundary as it pushed across northern Iowa through the afternoon and evening of the 21st.
Read the full account →Additional heavy rainfall on the 25th and 26th continued to add problems to an already waterlogged state. For the most part, the rain fell over parts of central into the southern parts of Iowa.
Read the full account →Additional heavy rainfall on the 25th and 26th continued to add problems to an already waterlogged state. For the most part, the rain fell over parts of central into the southern parts of Iowa.
Read the full account →Additional heavy rainfall on the 25th and 26th continued to add problems to an already waterlogged state. For the most part, the rain fell over parts of central into the southern parts of Iowa.
Read the full account →Rainfall totals of 6 to 8 inches caused the Cedar River to flood. The river crested at 16.5 feet on May 23 in Charles City, which forced the evacuation of some residents and closure of roads.
Read the full account →A line of thunderstorms swept across northeast Iowa producing widespread wind damage and flash flooding. The strongest winds were near the Iowa-Minnesota border with hundreds of trees downfrom Mitchell County east into the Decorah area.
Read the full account →A very dynamic weather situation unfolded during the 5th into the 6th. Although the atmosphere was summer like in the lower elevations, the upper levels were more typical of April.
Read the full account →A very humid and unstable airmass was in place over Iowa during the evening of the 11th into the morning of the 12th. A strong push if moisture pushed precipitable water values to over 2 inches over southern Iowa by evening.
Read the full account →A line of thunderstorms swept across northeast Iowa producing widespread wind damage and flash flooding. The strongest winds were near the Iowa-Minnesota border with hundreds of trees downfrom Mitchell County east into the Decorah area.
Read the full account →A line of thunderstorms swept across northeast Iowa producing widespread wind damage and flash flooding. The strongest winds were near the Iowa-Minnesota border with hundreds of trees downfrom Mitchell County east into the Decorah area.
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 →Rain fell statewide on the 25th and 26th with very heavy rainfall across southwest, central and northeast Iowa. A statewide average of 2.45 inches fell during this 48 hour period and brought fieldwork to a halt.
Read the full account →The airmass remained quite unstable across the state as a weak cold front approached from the northwest and the main short wave lifted northeast through the central U.S. CAPE values were in the 3000 to 4000 J/kg range with lifted indices between -8 and -9 C.
Read the full account →Warm temperatures across the area caused a quick release of snowpack melt water, which brought about rises along several of the tributaries of the Mississippi River.
Read the full account →The first several days of May were dry, however very heavy rains affected a small area of northwest and north central Iowa on the night of the 6th. At Estherville 4.71 inches of rain was reported unofficially between 6 and 9 pm, with a storm total of 5.39 inches.
Read the full account →The first several days of May were dry, however very heavy rains affected a small area of northwest and north central Iowa on the night of the 6th. At Estherville 4.71 inches of rain was reported unofficially between 6 and 9 pm, with a storm total of 5.39 inches.
Read the full account →The first several days of May were dry, however very heavy rains affected a small area of northwest and north central Iowa on the night of the 6th. At Estherville 4.71 inches of rain was reported unofficially between 6 and 9 pm, with a storm total of 5.39 inches.
Read the full account →The wet pattern continued over Iowa with another round of significant rainfall taking place on the 4th into the 5th. Rivers that had fallen below food stage returned to a minor flood state due to rainfall on already saturated soils.
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