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Iowa Flood Stories

4,632 first-hand accounts of flood events in Iowa, ranked by impact. Each is a NOAA-written narrative of the moment.

Flood$70K damage

Butler, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

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Flood$70K damage

Clarke, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

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Flood$70K damage

Appanoose, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

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Flood$70K damage

Hardin, IA · Jun 20, 1998

A cold front to the west of Iowa moved into the state during the day. Initially, the airmass was quite capped and thunderstorms had a hard time getting going.

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Flood$70K damage

Mahaska, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

Read the full account →
Flood$70K damage

Story, IA · Jun 20, 1998

A cold front to the west of Iowa moved into the state during the day. Initially, the airmass was quite capped and thunderstorms had a hard time getting going.

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Flood$70K damage

Marion, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

Read the full account →
Flood$70K damage

Monroe, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

Read the full account →
Flood$70K damage

Wayne, IA · Oct 17, 1998

October of 1998 was a fairly wet month across Iowa, in sharp contrast to September. According to the data provided by the State Climatologist, Harry Hillaker, October of 1998 was the 4th wettest on record with a statewide average rainfall of 4.82 inches.

Read the full account →
Flood$15K damage

Emmet, IA · May 29, 2012

Rainfall was frequent for the first week of May with a statewide average of 1.91 inches falling. However, the next two weeks were very dry with an average of only 0.18 inches falling from the 8th through the 22nd.

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Flash Flood$75K damage

Floyd, IA · May 21, 2004

Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches caused widespread flash flooding. Numerous road washouts were reported by law enforcement officials across northeast Iowa. In addition, two bridges were washed out and 40 homes received flood damage in Fredericksburg (Chickasaw County).

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Flash Flood$75K damage

Fayette, IA · May 21, 2004

Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches caused widespread flash flooding. Numerous road washouts were reported by law enforcement officials across northeast Iowa. In addition, two bridges were washed out and 40 homes received flood damage in Fredericksburg (Chickasaw County).

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Flash Flood

Scott, IA · Aug 10, 2025

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms tracked across the area early Sunday August 10th, bringing very heavy rain, frequent lightning, and some localized gusty winds.

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Flash Flood

Linn, IA · Aug 10, 2025

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms tracked across the area early Sunday August 10th, bringing very heavy rain, frequent lightning, and some localized gusty winds.

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Flash Flood

Dubuque, IA · Aug 10, 2025

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms tracked across the area early Sunday August 10th, bringing very heavy rain, frequent lightning, and some localized gusty winds.

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Flash Flood

Muscatine, IA · Aug 10, 2025

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms tracked across the area early Sunday August 10th, bringing very heavy rain, frequent lightning, and some localized gusty winds.

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Flash Flood

Muscatine, IA · Aug 10, 2025

Multiple rounds of thunderstorms tracked across the area early Sunday August 10th, bringing very heavy rain, frequent lightning, and some localized gusty winds.

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Flood$250K damage

Des Moines, IA · Aug 28, 2009

Heavy rains during the last week of August resulted in the Skunk River at Augusta going above the moderate flood stage level of 17 feet around 130 am on August 28. It crested around 17.89 feet around 12 pm on August 28.

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Flood$250K damage

Lee, IA · Aug 28, 2009

Heavy rains during the last week of August resulted in the Skunk River at Augusta going above the moderate flood stage level of 17 feet around 130 am on August 28. It crested around 17.89 feet around 12 pm on August 28.

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Flash Flood

Hardin, IA · Jun 29, 2014

A powerful upper level system was moving into south central Canada. The upper level winds were increasing as a closed upper low settled into that area. Warm air advection continued across Iowa through the night of the 29th into the morning of the 30th.

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Flash Flood$200K damage

Sac, IA · Jun 16, 1996

Thunderstorms fired over northwest Iowa. The airmass was tropical in nature with precipitable water values around 2 inches and K indices in the lower 40s. A warm core upper low pressure was approaching the state from the west. Heavy rainfall resulted.

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Flash Flood$70K damage

Allamakee, IA · May 21, 2004

Rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches caused widespread flash flooding. Numerous road washouts were reported by law enforcement officials across northeast Iowa. In addition, two bridges were washed out and 40 homes received flood damage in Fredericksburg (Chickasaw County).

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Flood$150K damage

Howard, IA · Jun 23, 2010

A slow moving warm front over central Iowa allowed thunderstorms to develop over northern Iowa during the evening of the 22nd into the early morning of the 23rd. These storms then moved east across northeast Iowa into southwest Wisconsin producing damaging winds and heavy rain.

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Flash Flood$60K damage

Palo Alto, IA · Jun 23, 1998

Once again, a warm frontal boundary was located to the south of Iowa with very warm and unstable air just to the south of the front. Dew point temperatures were in the low 70s in the warm air. This moisture was drawn north over the frontal boundary, into Iowa.

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