Tornadoes in Iowa: Five dead, 36 injured, officials say as severe weather conditions hit US states

A deadly tornado that wreaked havoc in the small town of Greenfield, Iowa, left four people dead and nearly three dozen injured, while a fifth person was killed elsewhere, officials said.

The tornado that swept through the city on Tuesday was rated at least EF-3 by the National Weather Service and was so destructive that it took authorities more than a day to account for residents in the area.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety said the number of injured is likely to be even higher.

The fifth person died about 25 miles (40 kilometers) from Greenfield when their car was blown off the road by a tornado, the Adams County Sheriff’s Office said. Monica Zamarron, 46, died in the crash Tuesday afternoon, officials said.

Officials have not yet released the names of the other victims.

The storm turned south on Wednesday. In Texas, officials in Temple, a city of more than 90,000 people north of Austin, issued an emergency declaration after severe storms hit the area. Thousands of residents lost power, schools canceled classes for Thursday and near Fort Cavazos there were reports of significant debris blocking traffic at the Army installation.

In Iowa, the Greenfield tornado destroyed homes, splintered trees and crushed cars in the town of 2,000 about 55 miles southwest of Des Moines. The tornado also destroyed giant wind turbines used to generate electricity several miles outside of town.

Greenfield resident Kimberly Ergish and her husband were sifting through the rubble where their home used to be on Wednesday, looking for family photos and other salvageable items. There wasn’t much left, she admitted. The reality that her home was destroyed in seconds hasn’t really sunk in yet, she said.

“If it weren’t for all the bumps and bruises and aching bones, I would think it didn’t happen,” Ergish said.

The deadly hurricane formed during a historic tornado season in the United States, at a time when climate change is increasing the severity of storms worldwide. April saw the second-highest number of tornadoes in the United States on record.

According to NOAA’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma, 859 tornadoes have been confirmed this year through Tuesday, 27% more than the U.S. average. Iowa has recorded the most so far, with 81 confirmed twisters.

On Tuesday alone, the National Weather Service said it received 23 tornado reports, including 21 in Iowa.

Tuesday’s storms also devastated parts of Illinois and Wisconsin, causing power outages for tens of thousands of customers in the two states.

The National Weather Service said initial investigations indicate at least an EF 3 tornado in Greenfield, but additional damage assessment could lead to a more meaningful classification.

The tornado appeared to have been on the ground for more than 40 miles (64 kilometers), AccuWeather chief meteorologist Jon Porter said. A satellite photo taken by BlackSky Technology shows where the hurricane cut a nearly straight path of destruction through the city, just south of Greenfield’s central square.

“Debris was thrown thousands of feet into the air and ultimately fell to the ground several counties from Greenfield. This is a testament to how intense and deadly this tornado was,” Porter said.

People as far as 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Greenfield posted photos on Facebook of torn family photos, yearbook pages and other items lifted into the sky by the tornado.

About 90 miles (145 kilometers) away, in Ames, Iowa, Nicole Banner found a yellowed page labeled “This book is the property of the Greenfield Community School District” stuck to her garage door like a Post-It note after the storm passed was.

“We just couldn’t believe it had traveled so far,” she said.

White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the FEMA administrator would be in Iowa on Thursday and the White House was in contact with state and local officials. She said they were “praying for those who tragically lost their lives” and wished the injured a “speedy recovery.”

Greenfield’s 25-bed hospital was among the damaged buildings, and at least a dozen injured people had to be transported to other facilities. Hospital officials said in a Facebook post Wednesday that the hospital will remain closed and that full repairs could take weeks or months. An emergency room with primary care services has been set up at an elementary school and is scheduled to begin there on Thursday, the post said.

Residential streets that on Monday were lined with ancient trees and nicely furnished ranch-style homes were a chaotic jumble of splintered and shattered remains on Wednesday. Many of the basements of the homes where residents were sheltering were exposed, and front yards were littered with belongings from furniture to children’s toys and Christmas decorations.

Roseann Freeland waited until the last minute to rush with her husband to a concrete room in their basement. Seconds later, her husband opened the door, “and all you could see was daylight,” Freeland said. “I just lost control. I just completely lost control.”