4,632 first-hand accounts of flood events in Iowa, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.
The Cedar River rose steadily due to flooding rains across southeast Minnesota and northeast Iowa. At Charles City (Floyd County), the river crested at 13.74 feet, nearly 2 feet above flood stage.
Read the full account →Heavy rains combined with snow melt runoff caused the Cedar River to flood. At Charles City (Floyd County), the river crested at 17.8 feet on April 8, with water levels remaining above the flood stage of 12 feet for nearly another week.
Read the full account →Strong thunderstorms moved over the Fort Dodge area during the early morning hours of the 9th. The storms dumped 3 inches of rain during the predawn hours, much of it falling in a little over an hour. The rain caused flash flooding in several areas in and around Fort Dodge.
Read the full account →Thunderstorms developed in central Iowa and moved across eastern Iowa during the late afternoon and evening hours of July 10th. These storms produced damaging winds and heavy rainfall across the area.
Read the full account →Thunderstorms developed in central Iowa and moved across eastern Iowa during the late afternoon and evening hours of July 10th. These storms produced damaging winds and heavy rainfall across the area.
Read the full account →Water levels along the west fork of the Des Moines River remained high though the month. Minor flooding also took place on the upper reaches of the east fork of the Des Moines River.
Read the full account →Water levels along the west fork of the Des Moines River remained high though the month. Minor flooding also took place on the upper reaches of the east fork of the Des Moines River.
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 →3 to 5 inches of rain in a couple of hours resulted in flash flooding, which covered several roads with water as much as 2 to 3 feet deep.In Oelwein (Fayette County), a man was rescued when he attempted to drive his vehicle through floodwaters.
Read the full account →Another round of rainfall occurred in the state on the 23rd and 24th. This caused rises on the Skunk and Chariton Rivers and flooded low lying and agricultural lands along those rivers.
Read the full account →Another round of rainfall occurred in the state on the 23rd and 24th. This caused rises on the Skunk and Chariton Rivers and flooded low lying and agricultural lands along those rivers.
Read the full account →Another round of rainfall occurred in the state on the 23rd and 24th. This caused rises on the Skunk and Chariton Rivers and flooded low lying and agricultural lands along those rivers.
Read the full account →Another round of rainfall occurred in the state on the 23rd and 24th. This caused rises on the Skunk and Chariton Rivers and flooded low lying and agricultural lands along those rivers.
Read the full account →Another round of rainfall occurred in the state on the 23rd and 24th. This caused rises on the Skunk and Chariton Rivers and flooded low lying and agricultural lands along those rivers.
Read the full account →Soil conditions were nearly saturated across northern Iowa from the snow melt of the previous month. An elevated convection event took place with thunderstorms producing hail and heavy rainfall.
Read the full account →Soil conditions were nearly saturated across northern Iowa from the snow melt of the previous month. An elevated convection event took place with thunderstorms producing hail and heavy rainfall.
Read the full account →Soil conditions were nearly saturated across northern Iowa from the snow melt of the previous month. An elevated convection event took place with thunderstorms producing hail and heavy rainfall.
Read the full account →Water continued to flow at above normal levels through the Des Moines River system. In addition, another round of heavy rainfall moved through Iowa, especially the water soaked southern half. Flooding took place on several streams across the south.
Read the full account →Additional rounds of rain fell over Iowa with flooding occurring in southern Iowa on the Chariton River. The Chariton river floods quite easily, and thus the flooding was relatively minor and limited to agricultural lands for the most part.
Read the full account →Thunderstorms dropping heavy rainfall developed over Dallas County. The rain area was very slow to move and as a result dropped excessive amounts of rain on already saturated soil. Two to four inches of rain fell in a little over an hour causing urban and lowland flooding.
Read the full account →The Cedar River rose steadily due to flooding rains across southeast Minnesota and northeast Iowa. At Charles City (Floyd County), the river crested at 13.74 feet, nearly 2 feet above flood stage.
Read the full account →A slow moving boundary across southern Iowa provided the impetus for training storms along the Iowa Missouri border. Several inches of rain fell and resulted in flash flooding in Appanoose county.
Read the full account →A line of strong thunderstorms and heavy rain moved through Iowa on the 24th, which led to flash flooding for some areas. The areas seeing the largest impact were in Jefferson and Van Buren Counties in Iowa.
Read the full account →A line of strong thunderstorms and heavy rain moved through Iowa on the 24th, which led to flash flooding for some areas. The areas seeing the largest impact were in Jefferson and Van Buren Counties in Iowa.
Read the full account →