Iowa City Weather Alert: Severe Thunderstorm Approaching Eastern Iowa
A severe thunderstorm capable of producing high winds and hail will be in Eastern Iowa within the hour.
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The National Weather Service in the Quad Cities has issued a special weather statement for counties in Eastern Iowa including Johnston:
A LINE OF THUNDERSTORMS WILL PASS THE AREA PRODUCING GUSTY WINDS OF 30 TO 50 MPH WITH LOCALLY HIGHER SPEEDS POSSIBLE. SOME HAIL UP TO THE SIZE OF PENNIES IS A SECONDARY RISK. RAINFALL RATES OF OVER 2 INCHES ON HOUR IS ALSO POSSIBLE WITH AREA RAINFALL TOTALS OF .5 TO OVER 1.5 INCHES COMMON. DURATION... THE LINE WILL PASS BETWEEN 1145 AM AND 1 PM CDT. STRONG WINDS WILL BE POSSIBLE FOR UP TO 15 MINUTES AND LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL RATES UP TO A HALF HOUR WITH LIGHTER RATES AFTERWARDS.
The more severe part of the storm may pass to the north of Iowa City, but moderate to heavy rain at the very least appears to be likely within the next hour or so.
Maria Houser Conzemius
1:11 pm on Saturday, August 4, 2012
It got so dark it was like it was after dusk. Then a slight brownout of the electricity, a cloudburst, strong cracks of lightning, and rain blowing sideways. I noticed at 8:30 a.m. this morning that the wind was unusually strong for that hour.
It's hard to believe we got a cloudburst after so much dry, very hot weather. I used to expect that very high temps would bring a thunderstorm. Not any more. They don't seem predictable any more.
Matthew Georges
1:32 pm on Saturday, August 4, 2012
What a gullywasher!