Severe Thunderstorms and Critical Fire Weather Wednesday

Scattered severe thunderstorms are possible across portions of the northern High Plains Wednesday afternoon and evening. Severe wind gusts are the primary hazard. Gusty winds and low relative humidity will contribute to critical fire weather conditions across parts of the northern Great Plains and Great Basin Wednesday. Read More >

Overview

A large low pressure system spun northeast across Iowa on January 16, 2023 drawing mild temperatures northward into the area and sparking some showers and thunderstorms over portions of eastern Iowa. Temperatures had soared into the upper 40s to low 60s in parts of east central and southeast Iowa by early afternoon. One storm was severe producing two tornadoes between 2 PM and 3 PM CST. The first tornado touched down just northeast of Williamsburg, IA and the second one briefly touched down north of Ely, IA. Some large hail up to the size of a quarter was reported in Homestead, IA from this storm at 2:24 PM. Several other areas that the storm tracked over reported hail covering the ground.

These were the first tornadoes reported in Iowa in the month of January since January, 24, 1967.

Satellite Image with Surface Observations and Dewpoint (contour)
Jan. 16, 2023 18:56 UTC (12:56 PM)
Courtesy College of DuPage

Tornado
Radar
Storm Reports
Environment

Tornadoes:

Damage Assessment Toolkit (noaa.gov)

Tornado #1 - 2 NE Williamsburg, IA
IOWA COUNTY

Date	1/16/2023
Time (Local)	2:01 PM - 2:09 PM
EF Rating	EF1
Est. Peak Winds	90 MPH
Path Length	4.7 miles
Max Width	400 yards
Injuries/Deaths	0 / 0
Summary: A tornado developed just northeast of Williamsburg, and south of Interstate 80. The tornado blew over a semi tractor trailer on I-80, then continued to the northeast. The tornado caused minor damage to a cattle shelter, and tree damage at a farmstead, before lifting near U.S. Highway 151. The tornado was on the ground for roughly 8 minutes, along a path estimated at 4.7 miles. There were no injuries. Assistance from Iowa County Emergency Management in completing the survey is much appreciated.

Track Map

Tornado #2 - 3 NNW Ely, IA
LINN COUNTY

Date	1/16/2023
Time (Local)	2:50 PM - 2:51 PM
EF Rating	EFU
Est. Peak Winds	unknown
Path Length	unknown
Max Width	unknown
Injuries/Deaths	0 / 0
Summary: A storm chaser reported a brief tornado. There was no observable damage to assign a rating on the EF scale.

Track Map

The Enhanced Fujita (EF) Scale classifies tornadoes into the following categories:

EF0 Weak 65-85 mph	EF1 Moderate 86-110 mph	EF2 Significant 111-135 mph	EF3 Severe 136-165 mph	EF4 Extreme 166-200 mph	EF5 Catastrophic 200+ mph