'Long road ahead' after deadly tornadoes slam Iowa; East Coast braces for storms: Updates

GREENFIELD, Iowa — Cleanup was well underway Wednesday even as authorities were still counting the wounded in this small southwestern Iowa town, after a series of tornadoes and powerful storms smashed through several Midwestern states, killing multiple residents and injuring dozens of others.

Greenfield was devastated by one of more than a dozen suspected tornadoes that struck the state Tuesday. The early report from the National Weather Service's Des Moines office said the damage was consistent with at least an EF-3 tornado, meaning it had wind gusts of 136 to 165 mph.

The Iowa Department of Public Safety confirmed late Wednesday that there were four fatalities and at least 35 injuries as a result of the tornado that struck Greenfield on Tuesday.

One fatality was confirmed near Corning, Iowa, about 30 miles southwest of Greenfield, when authorities said a woman's car was blown off the road. About 10 miles away in Prescott, Iowa, a tornado left behind several mangled turbines from a wind farm.

"It should be noted that it is believed that the number of those injured is likely higher, but these numbers reflect only those patients treated for their injuries at designated alternate care sites," the department said in a statement. "At least 14 patients were transported to out-of-county medical facilities by various EMS Services."

Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds toured some of the devastation Wednesday, pledging state assistance to help rebuild homes and lives. Reynolds lauded residents for their attitude and effort. "They are moving forward," she said. "The cleanup that has already taken place is incredible."

Luke Daughenbaugh was outside his Greenfield home when the tornado struck.

“It put me on the ground, and then I just curled up in like fetal position. And pretty soon the garage walls were on top of me," Daughenbaugh said Wednesday. "I thought I was going to die there.”

Tornadoes, storm damage, and power outages were also reported in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois. The National Weather Service was reviewing almost two dozen tornado reports in the four states, where 100,000 homes and businesses were without power early Wednesday.

The storms are the latest in a stretch of severe weather that has been sweeping across the Midwest since eight people died in the Houston area last week. More than 70,000 homes and businesses remained without power in Texas on Wednesday. And more dangerous weather was forecast for areas stretching from Texas to New England in the coming days.

Multiple rounds of severe weather will target the Plains, Midwest and mid-South through Memorial Day weekend, weather.com warned. Tornadoes, destructive straight-line wind, damaging winds and flooding rainfall are possible.

"A broad zone of the Central states will face at least some severe weather through the end of the week and into the weekend, allowing for no rest for storm-fatigued residents," AccuWeather Meteorologist Alyssa Glenny said.

Multiple deaths, extensive damage: Powerful tornado rips through Iowa

Developments:

∎ In Minnesota, the National Weather Service was conducting a storm survey in Winona County after reports of a possible tornado there. "I heard a big roar, and I thought it was a freight train and I saw a funnel cloud, lifting up my neighbor’s barn,” county resident Karl Erickson to KTTC-TV.

∎ In Illinois, high winds toppled trees and knocked out power in some areas around Chicago. Dust storms closed multiple interstates and prompted travel alerts in at least six counties.

Iowa State Patrol: 'Town has a long road ahead of them' after tornadoes

The Greenfield community, a town of about 2,000 people, came together in the aftermath of the storm. On Wednesday, residents assessed the damage, searched for belongings, and cut down fallen trees.

Dozens of homes and businesses were destroyed and farmland was severely damaged, according to Reynolds. She estimated that the damage would be in the millions of dollars.

Sgt. Alex Dinkla, a spokesperson with the Iowa State Patrol, said the community showed incredible unity as neighbors and friends displayed compassion, empathy, and support. "This town has a long road ahead of them, but if their actions today are any indication of what lies ahead, they will emerge stronger and more united than ever before," he said.

In Wisconsin, the village of Unity lived up to its name as hundreds of people united to help their neighbors on Wednesday after an EF1 tornado struck the area the night before.

Throughout the village, sheds were flattened; silos and barn doors were caved in; and trees had fallen across many properties. Residents from throughout central Wisconsin were helping their neighbors clean up fallen trees, mangled metal and other debris in the small community.

Melissa Brost, the village president, told USA TODAY Network - Wisconsin that people didn't even wait for the storm to be over before leaving their houses and asking who needed assistance and how they could help. Some neighbors also helped each other get out of their damaged homes, Brost added.

East Coast cities bracing for storms

Scattered thunderstorms Wednesday night, some capable of producing a few tornadoes, will extend along a nearly 2,000-mile-long swath from the Rio Grande River in Texas to the St. Lawrence River in New York, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said. AccuWeather warned that northern Texas through southern Oklahoma and Arkansas will be the "hotbed" of thunderstorm development in the short term.

Thursday could bring severe thunderstorms to the East, from Boston through New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and on into the Raleigh, North Carolina, metro area, AccuWeather said. Dallas, Nashville, Cincinnati and Chicago are among the cities where downpours Friday could reduce visibility, create ponding and slow travel.

Some Wisconsin homes could be dark for days

Nearly 30,000 people in Wisconsin were without power in the early afternoon Wednesday after a strong evening storm system moved through much of the state and brought intense, damaging winds of up to 70 mph. Authorities were assessing damage across the state.

The largest outage is in the Madison area, and public schools were closed Wednesday in Madison. Madison Gas and Electric warned that some residents could be in the dark for a few days.

“Widespread damage from this storm includes numerous broken poles, downed trees, branches and wires," the company said in a statement. "It often takes the majority of a workday to repair one broken pole.”

− David Clarey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Iowa woman's home destroyed 56 years after grandparents lost house

Authorities in Story County, Iowa, said a tornado slammed through the towns of Cambridge, Nevada, and Colo on Tuesday evening, knocking down power lines, damaging houses and scattering debris throughout the area. Less than two hours later, June and Larry Handsacker were already on the scene, pulling valued possessions from the wreckage.

June Handsacker's grandparents lost their home in a tornado in 1968, and her grandfather was trapped for three days in his car, she said. On Tuesday, June was in the dining room of her own home when a tornado roared through. She and her husband had to crawl over the debris to get out. June said she and her husband know they’re lucky they came away unscathed; they believe God was looking out for them.

“It pays to teach Sunday school!" she said.

− Addison Lathers, Celia Brocker and Kate Kealey, Ames Tribune

Much of Greenfield flattened, but courthouse spared

Reynolds stopped in Greenfield, apparently the hardest-hit area of the state, to view the destruction. The center of the southwestern Iowa town of 2,000 people was almost completely flattened. Piles of splintered wood, siding and destroyed furniture were all that remained of many homes. Trees were uprooted or stripped of their bark. The hospital was damaged, power lines were toppled and dozens of emergency vehicles lined streets that were no longer passable.

Authorities were forced to create a makeshift medical care center at the lumberyard and send some of the injured to other area facilities. State Representative Ray Sorensen said several residents used their own vehicles to transport those who were injured to safety.

"We pulled a guy from the rubble and put him on a little makeshift stretcher we made and threw him in the back of a truck," he said.

Dinkla said the tornado appeared to move through the southwest side of Greenfield. The historic town square, with the Warren Opera House and courthouse, appears to have been spared, he said.

Iowa governor declares disaster emergency

Parts of Iowa were hit with more than 3 inches of rain, and the National Weather Service issued multiple flood warnings across Iowa as rivers and creeks swelled. Reynolds declared a disaster emergency for 15 Iowa counties. It's the second round of tornadoes the state has faced in a month. More than a dozen tornadoes pounded Iowa on April 26.

"I've lived here all my life. I'm just praying that everyone was safe, that everybody's safe, and nobody got hurt," Greenfield resident Valerie Warrior told CBS affiliate KCCI TV as she stood near demolished dwellings. "It was scary, very scary."

Here comes hurricane season, and it may be a doozy

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration will reveal its outlook for the 2024 hurricane season Thursday, and troubling news are expected.

Weather experts say the presence of unusually warm water in key parts of the Atlantic basin is a likely sign of a large, perhaps record-setting number of hurricanes this coming season, which begins June 1 and runs through November.

Just as concerning is the potential for major damage from these storms quickly intensifying. Accuweather said its meteorologists are worried about the threat to life and property in coastal communities that could result from tropical storms and hurricanes whose wind speeds increase by at least 35 mph in 24 hours or less, shortening the time government officials and the public have to get ready.

Accuweather hurricane expert Alex DaSilva said the public is usually urged to prepare for a hurricane one notch above the predicted category. "However,'' he said, "a danger exists when a tropical storm or hurricane is undergoing rapid intensification as the storm potentially could become much more powerful, dangerous and destructive than even that one-level buffer might account for."

Contributing: Lee Rood and Zach Boyden-Holmes, Des Moines Register; Caitlin Shuda USA TODAY NETWORK - Wisconsin; Reuters

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Severe weather and deadly tornadoes: Iowa town faces 'long road ahead'