Our Turn

We got hit by a tornado(es?) tonight. The constant sound of emergency vehicles can be heard not that far from here. Many car insurance claims will be filed tomorrow for hail damage, including my roommate's. A Dairy Queen is gone and either a WalMart or Menard's lost its roof, according to what I've heard on the radio. Lots of power outages with traffic lights being out of course, leading to accidents.

I was on campus when the first sirens went off around 8:00, and we went downstairs. There's something alternately comforting and scary about being in a century-plus old building during a tornado. The rain and hail stopped and a friend and I decided to walk to my car, which was thankfully in a parking ramp and under a roof. As we were getting there, the sirens went off again and we saw a really scary cloud really close. We went into the Student Union, where they had everyone packed into the downstairs hallway. It was really hot, so we eventually made our way to the door at the end of the hall, and stood outside. We ran into a guy from my class there, who had planned to leave earlier but changed his mind, so we hung out with him again. It was on the north end of the building, so we were fairly sheltered from the wind and rain. After everything really seemed to clear up again, we left, and I drove my friend and her roommate to their dorm before heading home myself. The sirens went off again for a town north of here as I was coming home, but it is all over now.

Well, all over except for the clean-up. Sounds like there will be a lot of that. Supposedly we had six touch-downs. I'm sure there will be more complete information and news tomorrow.

UPDATE: Just so you don't think I'm imagining things...news:

Twisters have been reported in Tama, Linn, Muscatine and Johnson counties, including one that hit the University of Iowa. The National Weather Service says other parts of Iowa City have sustained major damage, including crushed cars, downed trees, at least one destroyed home and major damage to a store. It is unknown if the tornadoes have caused any injuries. Officials have reported another large tornado in Muscatine and there has been hail as large as baseballs.

News video and more video.

Further updates below the fold...

More news:

At least four tornados touched down in eastern Iowa while heavy hail and rain pounded the area this evening, weather officials said. One twister hit the University of Iowa and others were reported in Tama, Linn and Muscatine counties, said Rod Donavon, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Des Moines.

The Iowa City Press-Citizen reports the worst of the storms struck the heart of Iowa City, sparing most of the city’s north side. The wind, rain and hail made the downtown look as if a riot swept through, the Press-Citizen reports.

The Press-Citizen reports the worst of the damage happened on the town’s east side. The storm completely demolished a Dairy Queen, flipped cars at Dodge dealership and snapped trees in Iowa City. Cars along Burlington and Capitol streets were completely overturned.

It is unknown if the tornadoes have caused any injuries in eastern Iowa.

Half of the roof of the St. Patrick’s Catholic Church downtown has been ripped off completely, the Press-Citizen reports.

Onlookers in the pedestrian mall are being evacuated because of gas leaks from damage to Martini’s and Union bars, the Press-Citizen reports.

Terry Smith of MidAmerican Energy says that 5,000 customers are without power.

Riverside Drive and Governor Street in Iowa City appear to have sustained the worst damage. Downed power lines, traffic signals and debris litter the streets as hundreds, if not thousands, of university students roam the streets inspecting the damage, the Press-Citizen reports.

The east wall of the Alpha Chi Omega house collapsed, ex-posing the rooms to the elements, and the gazebo at College Green park was flattened, the Press-Citizen reports.

Another large tornado was reported in Muscatine, the National Weather Service reports.

Donavon said other tornadoes are possible throughout east-central Iowa for much of Thursday night.

‘‘It’s still dark outside,’’ Donavon told The Associated Press just after 9 p.m.

‘‘We’ve had large hail up to baseball size.”

Classes cancelled for tomorrow:

11:30 PM
University of Iowa President David Skorton has announced that classes are cancelled for Friday, April 14, because of safety concerns on campus and in Iowa City following the tornadoes and thunderstorms Thursday evening. President Skorton urges all faculty, staff and students to avoid the areas affected by the storms to allow emergency personnel to help those in need and take care of other related emergencies storm clean-up activities.

Largely due to gas leaks and downed power lines/trees, I would think.

The student paper is posting pictures here. The overturned car is 2 blocks from where I was at. There were also roofs torn off in that area...the ped mall and the church nearby. The first building I was in is 2 blocks from the car, and slightly closer to the ped mall. The second building we went to is just down the hill (not even a block) from the original building.

First reported fatality.

Posted by Jenelle at April 13, 2006 09:18 PM | TrackBack