Home / Iowa / Des Moines

EF1 tornado in Des Moines County, Iowa

Tornado June 20, 2015 · Des Moines County, Iowa

EF1

Rating

2.9 mi

Path length

50 yd

Path width

$300K

Damage as recorded

EF0EF1EF2EF3EF4EF5Unrated

The path drawn at its surveyed width of 50 yards (0.03 mi) — zoom in and the swath grows to true scale. Other tornadoes recorded nearby that day are shown faint.

What EF1 means. On the Enhanced Fujita scale, EF1 is moderate damage: roofs badly stripped, mobile homes pushed off foundations or overturned, windows broken, consistent with estimated gusts of 86–110 mph. The rating comes from a survey of the worst damage after the storm, not from a wind measurement, so it says as much about what the tornado hit as about how strong it was.

What the National Weather Service wrote

An EF1 tornado touched down briefly on the northwest side of the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant and tracked southeast for about 3 miles. Trees, roofs, outbuildings, power poles, and vehicles were damaged along the path. The maximum wind was estimated at 95 mph.

The wider storm

Widespread severe thunderstorms from the late morning through the evening hours June 20th, produced large hail, damaging winds, and heavy rains. In addition 4 tornadoes occurred. One tornado resulted in 2 injuries when a house was destroyed. Another person was injured by a lightning strike.

Began near Middletown (40.8123, -91.2844).

Other tornadoes from the same storm system

3 more tornadoes the National Weather Service filed under this storm episode.

EF1 Washington County EF1 Henry County EF1 Lee County

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event 610626. Narratives are written by the National Weather Service forecast office that issued the report.

Tornadoes near your address

See every tornado that passed near a place you know, measured to its path.