Tornado northeast of Ottumwa. (photo from Wapello County Sheriff)
Governor Kim Reynolds issued disaster proclamations for 12 counties this weekend after several tornadoes touched down Friday.
The governor’s proclamation allows state resources to be used to respond in Cedar, Clinton, Delaware, Des Moines, Dubuque, Grundy, Johnson, Keokuk, Linn, Mahaska, Wapello, and Washington counties.
Delaware County Emergency Management Coordinator Mandy Bieber says the storms spread across the county. “Significant damage in the Manchester area also up by Greeley and the Oneida area but thus far we have not heard of any injuries,” she says.
Manchester Police Chief Jim Hauschild described it this way. “We got a bit of a mess, power lines down trees down, a few of a few buildings down, some garages down houses, damaged,” Hauschild says.
Storm damage in Oneida. (KMCH photo)
The National Weather Service is out assessing the damage and has confirmed there was an EF-2 tornado in Wapello County northeast of Ottumwa. At least three homes and one hog confinement facility were damaged. Other storm assessment continues across the state as NWS experts examine the debris and damage.
Manchester City Manager Tim Vick is asking residents to document the damage. “If you experienced any sort of damage to your home, please take pictures so we can start documenting what we have,” Lind says. The governor’s disaster proclamation activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program for qualifying residents and the Disaster Case Management Program for the counties covered.
(Janelle Tucker, KMCH Manchester contributed to this story.)