A worrisome weather forecast gave way to sirens and alarms as local residents sought shelter late afternoon on Friday, March 31.  Dark skies, rain, hail, and funnel clouds were observed and photographed by many while a tornado outbreak moved through the area.

According to the National Weather Service (NWS), 14 tornadoes had been confirmed by Monday morning, and the expectation is that the final number will be from 20-30 in the Quad Cities service area.

The strongest tornado, rated EF4, had maximum winds around 170 mph.  It developed northeast of Ottumwa in Wapello County, tracked over 40 miles through Keokuk and Washington Counties, and finally lifted in southwest Johnson County.  Stretching up to 600 yards wide, it was on the ground for about 67 minutes.

According to Washington and Keokuk County Emergency Management, 19 homes in Keokuk County were destroyed, 10 had major damage, 4 had minor damage, and an additional 12 were affected.  In Washington County, 5 farmsteads were destroyed, 1 farmstead sustained major damage, 2 homes were affected, 2 agricultural properties were destroyed, and 1 public communications tower (a 325 ft cell phone tower) was destroyed.

The most extreme damage was a farmstead north of Keota where the house was swept clean of its foundation.  A car was also lofted into the air and tossed about 1000 feet into a nearby field.

Tornados in Coralville and Hills reached EF2, with estimated peak winds at 120 mph.  

In Coralville, the James St. Warehouse near Hwy 6 was heavily damaged, and several trailers and a truck were flipped over in the vicinity.  Roofs were lifted off and trees were uprooted and snapped.  Emergency management reported two injuries.

In Hills, the greatest damage was in the western portions of town, where roofs were completely torn off, siding removed from multiple homes, and a large outbuilding destroyed.  Trees, siding, and roofs were damaged in other portions of town as well.  

Brenneman Pork, rural Kalona, did not sustain any damages at their main facility in the March 31 tornado, but two finishing buildings near Keota were damaged, according to Rob Brenneman.

“One of our finishing buildings was destroyed and another sustained major damage,” he said.  “We had to move 5,800 pigs that were market-ready to the Tyson Pork plant at Columbus Junction.” 

Brenneman said he was appreciative of the coordinating effort of Jeff Thompson, manager of the Tyson plant, for taking in the pigs so they didn’t have to be moved twice.   He said local truckers worked through the night rounding up the pigs.

“We are also very appreciative the Keota area community for pitching in to help clean up of the mess from the storm damage and get the debris out of the fields,” he said. 

“We feel very lucky and blessed,” he added.  No pigs were lost in the storm. 

Weather and damage assessments are still being conducted at this time.

Disaster relief efforts

The Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS) has mobilized to assess the needs of the community, coordinate volunteers, and clean up the debris that has fallen on farm fields and other rural areas.  They expect to meet at the Wellman Mennonite Church each morning for about a week or so until clean-up is complete.  

“Currently, I have approximately 100 people out here,” said Marty Roth.  “We have some students from the high school, we have some of the Amish community helping us out, and just people in the area.”

“We are primarily working the area from Keota to Joetown,” he added.  “That was kind of the limit of what we felt like we have volunteers to be involved with.”

MDS welcomes additional volunteers to help with clean-up efforts, but requests that those interested call ahead so they can gauge how many people they have on a given day.  Volunteers prepare meals for those working outdoors and need to know how much food to prepare.

To volunteer or to request clean-up help, call Marty Roth at 319-430-4025 or Catrina Miller at 319-430-9048.

Johnson County Emergency Management encourages individuals who were affected by the severe weather outbreak to self-report property damage at CrisisTrack.com.  This is the first step for potential individual assistance through the State of Iowa.

The United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties is responding locally by helping individuals and families who are facing losses from the storm.  Those in need of immediate assistance may access support services by dialing 211 on their cell, texting their zip code to 898211, visiting 211iowa.org, or downloading the 211 iowa app.

If you would like to donate to the United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties Community Disaster Fund, visit unitedwayjwc.org.

Various other organizations have started fundraisers for those affected by the storm.  Keota students in grades 7-12 high schools helped with clean up on April 3.  Highland Community School District is accepting donations and gift cards for a long-time teacher whose home was destroyed.  

The YMCA’s 12th Annual Gala, scheduled for Saturday, April 1 at the Parkside YMCA in Wellman went a little bit differently than planned.  The Gala is a fundraising event for the YMCA’s youth sports programs, summer theater camp, and free early-out program offered to the Mid-Prairie Community School District.

“In light of the events that happened Friday, and all the damage and harm to our neighbors in the community, we thought that instead, we would not hold the Gala,” said Amy Schulte, CEO of the YMCA of Washington County.  

“The food that we had prepared for the event we served as a community meal for anyone that was affected.  We also had some meals that we took out and delivered to some families that couldn’t get away,” she said.

About 50 people turned out for the community meal Saturday night, according to Schulte, and 20 more meals were delivered to homes that evening.  An additional 40 meals were delivered for lunch on Sunday.

Part of the YMCA’s fundraising efforts were to include a silent auction at the Gala, which Schulte said they hope will be transitioned to an online format.

Over at the Wellman Skating Rink, Saturday night’s open skate turned into an impromptu fundraiser for those who suffered storm losses.  Freewill donations were accepted in leu of admission, and about $1000 was raised.  The City of Wellman, which owns the rink, will figure out how to distribute those funds to affected families in the community.