Over a week later, Iowa still left in shambles from derecho as damage is assessed
By
Mark Puleo, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Aug 18, 2020 1:24 PM EST
Farmers are surveying the damage to their crops in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana after a powerful line of severe storms blew through the region on Aug. 10.
One of the most powerful inland hurricanes, known as a derecho, on record left over $11 billion of estimated damage and millions of Midwestern lives turned upside down.
For the thousands of farmers who saw miles of financial devastation, hundreds of millions of corn bushel production was ripped away by the fierce winds that tore through Iowa and other Midwestern states last week.
As the disaster is over and one week in the rearview mirror, millions of people are still picking up the pieces and crews are just starting the lengthy process of making repairs and assessing damage.
President Donald Trump exits Air Force One as he arrives at the Eastern Iowa Airport for a briefing on flood damage, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
On Tuesday morning, President Donald Trump visited Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to meet with Gov. Kim Reynolds, local officials and impacted Iowans. His visit comes one day after he signed the emergency declaration request for nearly $4 billion in federal aid. According to the Des Moines Register, the declaration allows for increased public assistance in 16 counties.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) had yet to approve the state’s request for individual household assistance in 27 other counties. This drew the ire from congresswoman Rep. Abby Finkenauer, who asked the president to “rectify his omission immediately.”
"While I am appreciative of the president’s quick action in approving Public Assistance for Iowa communities to cleanup and rebuild, I’m deeply disappointed he has not granted the state of Iowa’s full request for Individual Assistance, including assistance to individuals and homeowners, in response to the derecho storm that devastated Cedar Rapids and communities across eastern Iowa,"â¯said Finkenauer on Monday. "We must ensure no Iowan is left behind by this tragedy.”
Cecil Gott removes a fallen tree that rests on the back of a neighbor's home, Friday, Aug. 14, 2020, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The storm that struck Monday morning left more than 181,000 Iowans without power as of Friday morning and cost at least four lives, three in Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
As damage tallies continue to materialize, a clearer understanding of the great tragedy has been made in recent days. On Monday, AccuWeather Founder and CEO Dr. Joel N. Myers gave an estimate for the total devastation of the inland hurricane.
"AccuWeather estimates that the derecho caused $11.2 billion in damages across the 770-mile swath of the United States that it affected due to extensive losses in crops, including 10 million acres of crops that were destroyed across Iowa, the nation’s top corn-producing state," Myers said. "Millions of bushels of stored grain were also damaged or destroyed. Widespread power outages affected more than 1 million customers, including businesses and more than 60,000 people remained without power in Iowa on Monday. The lengthy power loss not only affected business operations, but added to the overall cost in spoiled food.”
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Damage caused by tornadoes that spun out of the derecho and losses to personal property were also factored into AccuWeather’s proprietary estimate, Myers said.
Corn was flattened by intense winds and debris during Monday's derecho. (Twitter/@ksw442)
Much of that damage was caused directly by the incredibly strong winds, which whipped at up to 112 mph, among some of the fiercest ever recorded from a derecho. For reference, a tropical system in the Northern Atlantic with 112-mph winds would be recognized as a Category 3 hurricane.
While historical record keeping is lacking for derecho wind data, according to AccuWeather meteorologist and senior weather editor Jesse Ferrell, last week's storm was among the strongest ever. In 1998, another Iowa derecho reached winds that were recorded at 123 mph.
Among the trees destroyed were some from the early 1800s, according to social media users. One photo, taken in Cedar Rapids, showed a sign dating the toppled tree to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
Making the storm even more devastating for Iowa farmers was how close the season is to the beginning of harvest. Growers spent over the past six months planting, watering and waiting for next month's harvest only to lose all that work over the course of 14 hours.
FEMA Administrator Peter Gaynor toured the damaged areas on Monday with Gov. Reynolds and commended the work of state workers and power crews who were tasked with cleaning the widespread debris and restoring power. At one point, over 1 million residents in the Midwest were in the dark, a figure that still lingered at over 45,000 as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Poweroutage.us.
"The spirit of Iowans helping Iowans has been truly impressive to witness and speaks to the hardworking nature of the individuals who live here," Gaynor said.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Severe Weather
Over a week later, Iowa still left in shambles from derecho as damage is assessed
By Mark Puleo, AccuWeather staff writer
Published Aug 18, 2020 1:24 PM EST
Farmers are surveying the damage to their crops in Iowa, Illinois and Indiana after a powerful line of severe storms blew through the region on Aug. 10.
One of the most powerful inland hurricanes, known as a derecho, on record left over $11 billion of estimated damage and millions of Midwestern lives turned upside down.
For the thousands of farmers who saw miles of financial devastation, hundreds of millions of corn bushel production was ripped away by the fierce winds that tore through Iowa and other Midwestern states last week.
As the disaster is over and one week in the rearview mirror, millions of people are still picking up the pieces and crews are just starting the lengthy process of making repairs and assessing damage.
President Donald Trump exits Air Force One as he arrives at the Eastern Iowa Airport for a briefing on flood damage, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
On Tuesday morning, President Donald Trump visited Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to meet with Gov. Kim Reynolds, local officials and impacted Iowans. His visit comes one day after he signed the emergency declaration request for nearly $4 billion in federal aid. According to the Des Moines Register, the declaration allows for increased public assistance in 16 counties.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) had yet to approve the state’s request for individual household assistance in 27 other counties. This drew the ire from congresswoman Rep. Abby Finkenauer, who asked the president to “rectify his omission immediately.”
"While I am appreciative of the president’s quick action in approving Public Assistance for Iowa communities to cleanup and rebuild, I’m deeply disappointed he has not granted the state of Iowa’s full request for Individual Assistance, including assistance to individuals and homeowners, in response to the derecho storm that devastated Cedar Rapids and communities across eastern Iowa,"â¯said Finkenauer on Monday. "We must ensure no Iowan is left behind by this tragedy.”
Cecil Gott removes a fallen tree that rests on the back of a neighbor's home, Friday, Aug. 14, 2020, in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The storm that struck Monday morning left more than 181,000 Iowans without power as of Friday morning and cost at least four lives, three in Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
As damage tallies continue to materialize, a clearer understanding of the great tragedy has been made in recent days. On Monday, AccuWeather Founder and CEO Dr. Joel N. Myers gave an estimate for the total devastation of the inland hurricane.
"AccuWeather estimates that the derecho caused $11.2 billion in damages across the 770-mile swath of the United States that it affected due to extensive losses in crops, including 10 million acres of crops that were destroyed across Iowa, the nation’s top corn-producing state," Myers said. "Millions of bushels of stored grain were also damaged or destroyed. Widespread power outages affected more than 1 million customers, including businesses and more than 60,000 people remained without power in Iowa on Monday. The lengthy power loss not only affected business operations, but added to the overall cost in spoiled food.”
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
Damage caused by tornadoes that spun out of the derecho and losses to personal property were also factored into AccuWeather’s proprietary estimate, Myers said.
Corn was flattened by intense winds and debris during Monday's derecho. (Twitter/@ksw442)
Much of that damage was caused directly by the incredibly strong winds, which whipped at up to 112 mph, among some of the fiercest ever recorded from a derecho. For reference, a tropical system in the Northern Atlantic with 112-mph winds would be recognized as a Category 3 hurricane.
While historical record keeping is lacking for derecho wind data, according to AccuWeather meteorologist and senior weather editor Jesse Ferrell, last week's storm was among the strongest ever. In 1998, another Iowa derecho reached winds that were recorded at 123 mph.
Among the trees destroyed were some from the early 1800s, according to social media users. One photo, taken in Cedar Rapids, showed a sign dating the toppled tree to the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.
Making the storm even more devastating for Iowa farmers was how close the season is to the beginning of harvest. Growers spent over the past six months planting, watering and waiting for next month's harvest only to lose all that work over the course of 14 hours.
FEMA Administrator Peter Gaynor toured the damaged areas on Monday with Gov. Reynolds and commended the work of state workers and power crews who were tasked with cleaning the widespread debris and restoring power. At one point, over 1 million residents in the Midwest were in the dark, a figure that still lingered at over 45,000 as of Tuesday afternoon, according to Poweroutage.us.
"The spirit of Iowans helping Iowans has been truly impressive to witness and speaks to the hardworking nature of the individuals who live here," Gaynor said.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo