Winter derecho blows through Franklin County

An un-seasonal severe storm blew through Franklin County, along with much of the rest of the state, briefly turning the Holiday Season into Tornado Season.

On Wednesday, December 15, a low pressure system of historic strength crossed the central planes, creating unprecedented severe weather for the season across Iowa and neighboring states.

The National Weather Service in Des Moines has confirmed that the Wednesday storms meet the criteria for a "Serial Derecho," which is different from the "Progressive Derecho" that Iowa experienced in August of last year, but still in the same meteorological category.

According to the National Weather Service, last week's storm is the first recorded derecho to happen in December anywhere in the United States.

The thunderstorm generated winds topping 80 mph in some areas and preliminary reports have identified at least 21 confirmed tornados in Iowa, 12 of which have been rated EF-2.

Among the EF-2 rated tornados was the tornado identified in Eastern Franklin County, which covered roughly 15 miles in eleven minutes as it cut a path from Bradford to Aredale. With wind speeds estimated between 120-130 mph, the tornado moved through the rural area of Franklin County, crossing HWY 3 between Hansell and Dumont. Several trees and buildings were destroyed or damaged along the tornado's path, but no injuries or deaths have been reported.

While the tornado missed Hampton by several miles, high winds wrecked havoc of their own, knocking down trees, damaging property, and cutting off power to parts of the city for several hours. Overall though, the damage was far from what it could have been and what other towns and residents experienced.

Immediately after the storm, Franklin County Emergency Coordinator Joel McWilliams worked with the Sheriff's Department and Fire Department to assess damage, look for damaged power lines, and establish traffic control during the blackout.

"We got to everybody as quickly as we could," said McWilliams. "Fortunately we had no injuries."

"Locally we were pretty lucky," said Public Works Director Doug Tarr. "I think the rural areas were hit harder."

Tarr attributes some of the good fortune to the advanced warning of the storm. Knowing that high winds were on the way, the city made sure they were ready by securing public places, shutting down the cemetery and keeping an eye on the parks to ensure nobody was caught in the storm.

Once the storm passed, the city crew went to work on debris removal. City workers identified downed trees and power lines, coordinating closely with utility workers to get power restored. Tarr praised Mid-American Energy's linemen for their fast response and willingness to coordinate efforts with the city.

"They've really done an exceptional job," said Tarr.

At the same time, the city's backup generators kept the water running throughout the night. Though the water plant was technically down for a short while, the city had it up and running again before it impacted water usage.

While storms like this are unprecedented in December, Tarr believes that the un-seasonal timing may have kept the damage from being more severe. Without leaves on the trees to catch the wind, some trees made it through the storm that may have otherwise gone down.

Tarr also noted that severe weather like this exemplifies the importance of making sure that buildings are up to code, pointing out that buildings that cut corners are risking greater damage in these situations.

The city is still working on cleaning up debris, and will have the compost site open by appointment for people that need to drop off trees and branches of their own.

Meanwhile, McWilliams has been assessing the damage across the county to submit to the state. Once daylight comes, the county collects photos and reports to determine exactly what happened.

"We try to get a grasp on what has actually taken place," said McWiliams. "Social media, believe it or not, actually helps."

Communication issues made it difficult to submit an early report, leaving Franklin County out of the initial proclamation from Governor Kim Reynolds on Thursday, December 16, which identified 43 counties as disaster areas. The county was named among six additional impacted counties in a subsequent release later that day.

The disaster proclamation opens up Franklin County residents impacted by the storms to grant assistance. The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program offers low income households up to $5,000 for home and car repairs, replacement clothing or food, or temporary housing expenses.