Many Iowans who were wearing shorts and T-shirts on Sunday had to break out the winter coat again this morning. Temperatures reached the upper 80s across much of southern Iowa yesterday, but will struggle to hit the 50s today.
National Weather Service meteorologist Roger Vachalek says the rush of warm air brought some severe weather to parts of Iowa. “The worst part of it was some large hail. In far eastern Iowa, there were reports of two to three inch hail,” Vachalek said. Before the storms, at least three Iowa cities set new record high temperatures for April 3.
Des Moines and Lamoni each hit 87 degrees, while Ottumwa topped out at 86. Knoxville was the hot spot in the state at 88. Today’s high is forecast to be in the low 50s and much of the state is under a wind advisory. Vachalek says winds will be between 20 to 30 miles per hour with gusts reaching up to 45 miles per hour. Warmer weather should return on Tuesday.
“Highs, as we head into Tuesday afternoon, will reach the upper 50s in the northeast and 70 in the southwest,” Vachalek said.