Violent, wedge-shaped tornado slams rural communities in Iowa: ‘Prayed everything would be OK’

MINDEN, Iowa — A large and, at times, wedge-shaped tornado tore through towns in southwest Iowa on Friday, leaving a trail of destruction that in some cases left towns dealing with widespread damage.

The small town of Minden, Iowa appeared to be the hardest hit, which is about 100 miles west of Des Moines. Storm chaser video showed homes and farms torn apart as radar picked up on debris flung thousands of feet into the sky.

“We didn’t know for sure if it was going to hit. You just never know with tornadoes,” a homeowner told FOX Weather who took cover at her sister’s house because she did not have a basement in her house. “We went down in the basement and just hoped and prayed everything would be OK. We were one of the lucky ones. There’s some houses here that were not so lucky.”

The tornado caused significant damage to 180 homes in the town of 600 people, with nearly half those homes considered destroyed, town officials said. Additionally, many businesses along Main Street were damaged, and there are currently concerns regarding water pumping and power supply.

“Unfortunately, it was on the ground for a long time and hit several small towns on its path,” storm chaser Brett Adair said. “So, once we get into some of these more open areas where you’ve got more of the farms and the fields, in many cases, we can get lucky and not deal with so much damage. But unfortunately, this thing tracked for such a long way, we’ve seen quite a bit of damage today.”

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The tornado was one of over two dozen spotted in Iowa as a multi-day severe weather outbreak produced damaging storms across the heartland.

Meteorologists at the NWS office in Omaha, Nebraska issued 48 Tornado Warnings and 25 Severe Thunderstorm Warnings on Friday – a daily record for the office.

“Minden’s damage was extensive, but my relatives were probably saved due to the good work of the forecast office,” an Iowa amateur radio emergency coordinator told the NWS.

Extensive damage was also reported in nearby Shelby County, where the local sheriff’s department said all available first responders were clearing debris and helping crews with downed power lines.

“Emergency responders were following us because we were following the tornado,” Adair said. “I think they thought we could keep a safe distance, and they could get their bearings. So, they were pulling off behind us some into these areas that had been hit to check in on the people too. So that was actually a great thing. The response time has been incredible for these damaged areas where the tornadoes struck.”

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Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds issued a disaster declaration late Friday for Pottawattamie County, which is home to 15 towns, including Carter Lake, Council Bluffs, Minden and Shelby.

State and county officials toured the damage in Minden on Saturday and said the people of Iowa were coming together, just like they always do after a disaster.