The experts say at least 17 tornadoes touched down in Iowa on Friday afternoon and evening, including perhaps a half-dozen that are classified as EF2s, with winds up to 135 miles an hour.
Meteorologist Craig Cogil, at the National Weather Service, says it may be several days before they have a complete tornado tally. Multiple teams are evaluating the damage, which Cogil says includes in-person surveys, as well as reviewing the radar data, satellite imagery, and videos.
“These bigger outbreaks do take time to go through and find out all the tracks across the state,” Cogil says. “It’s likely we’ll see a few more added on here before we have the final total for the system. We may get up towards 20 across the state, but right now, we can confirm about 17 across the state.”
The Omaha office issued 42 tornado warnings on Friday for its region of Nebraska and Iowa, while Cogil says the Johnston office issued perhaps another two dozen for western and central Iowa. He says they’re trained to handle such tense situations where seconds can mean a tremendous difference to anyone who may be in harm’s way.
“These are the ones that are the most life-threatening and can potentially do the most harm,” Cogil says. “They do stress us quite a bit when we have to go through an event like that, but overall, the thing is, we’re just really trying to get the word out so people can take the appropriate action, and potentially life-saving action.”
There have been situations in recent years where National Weather Service staffers in Iowa had to leave their posts because tornadoes were heading directly for them.
“In instances like that in particular, you don’t really want to stop or quit doing what you’re doing but at the same time, you need to take shelter if there’s something that is heading towards the office,” Cogil says. “Fortunately, we have several offices around that can back us up and continue to issue warnings if we do have to take cover. It’s part of the job.”
Friday’s severe weather marks the second tornado outbreak in Iowa this month. On April 16th, there were 13 tornadoes that touched down in the state, so we’ve had roughly 30 twisters so far. Cogil says there’s no way to know what’s coming in the rest of the tornado season ahead.
“We do have some years that start out really quickly, and then eventually, it tapers off as you head into May and June,” Cogil says, “but there’s other ones where it starts hot and heavy and it just stays that way through June or July. Every year is a little bit different and we just have to be prepared for what Mother Nature throws at us.”
He cautions, tornadoes can strike any time of the day or night and during any month of the year.