Beginning early last week, the National Weather Service began issuing bulletins saying conditions were ripe for a major spring storm to develop late in the week.
Unfortunately for Ringgold County, the weatherman wasn’t wrong this time.
Fortunately, no one was seriously injured during the storms.
On Friday evening, tornadoes devastated the town of Tingley in northern Ringgold County and numerous farmsteads in the area.
South of Poe Hollow Park, a tornado hit several farms, damaging houses and destroying outbuildings.
In all, the weather service said 12 tornadoes were confirmed in the county during the outbreak.
Mount Ayr was spared a direct hit by a tornado, but hail over three inches in diameter damaged roofs and siding throughout the city. Few, if any structures were spared some type of hail damage.
Severe storms lifted northeast across western into central Iowa late in the afternoon into the evening of Friday, April 26.
The National Weather Service (NWS) so far has confirmed two tornadoes in Ringgold County.
The first made landfall at 7:27 p.m. on Friday and lasted until 8:08 p.m. It was rated as a EF-1 tornado.
It left a path of 26.6 miles with peak winds of 110 mph. The storm track took the tornado from near Beconsfield south, crossing Hwy 2 just east of Mount Ayr and continuing to near Redding.
It was the second tornado that struck Tingley.
The NWS says it struck at 8:19 p.m. and lasted until 8:36 p.m. Friday. It was rated an EF-2 tornado and had a path length of 10.25 miles by 50 yards wide. It had peak winds of 125 mph.
Teams continue to evaluate damage. Additional tornado tracks and rating will be added in the coming days. A final tornado count will take days to a few weeks as the NWS reviews radar data, examines hi-res satellite imagery, and look at videos.
Based on preliminary reports and completed storm surveys, there were at least 17 tornadoes in Iowa. Damage to trees and homes has been reported in multiple counties from Crawford to Union and Ringgold up to around Polk and Jasper Counties.
Tingley hit hard
A small army of helpers descended on Tingley Saturday morning to begin the cleanup process. They heard stories of close calls and fear as the storm ripped through town.
There was no warning.
“The storm took out power to the siren,” stated JoAnn Clark, the Tingley City Clerk. There is a line that runs to the fire station as back up, but the wind took it out, according to Clark. At least six houses are a total loss.
Jenifer Johnson, who lives in a new home on the corner coming into Tingley from the west was one of the lucky ones whose house wasn’t hit. They road the storm out in the Rich Johnson home, emerging about 9 p.m. to witness the destruction.
I didn’t know what we would be coming home to at that point because there were electrical lines down everywhere and well as trees. We had to take back streets to get home and it looked like there was a lot of damage on the main street. Thankfully we still had our home.”
Johnson thought the funnel hit James Sterling’s home first, then traveled east to the Christian Church, then northeast to the Community Building and then north to Wilkeys.
She said that no sirens went off.
She went on to say that Alliant Energy had been working around the clock to get everyone’s electricity and phone service back on. They were one of the last ones to get service again on Sunday around 9:30 a.m.
The Tingley Community Building was a total loss after a tornado went through town last Friday evening.
People from around the county and area descending on the community to help in cleanup efforts.
Cars and truck with backhoes with license plates from Union, Clarke and Ringgold County could be seen. The Ringgold County Cattlemen set up their grill to feed the workers.
Perhaps the greatest community loss was the destruction of the Tingley Community Building. Construction on that building was completed in 1945. Many residents now only have memories of the meal site, movies, roller skating and family reunions the building hosted over the decades.
Large hail fell in Mount Ayr Friday evening, wrecking roofs, sidings and vehicles.
Hail damage
The city of Mount Ayr escaped any hits from a tornado, but wasn’t spared from large and destructive hail Friday evening.
Hail upwards of 3 1/2 inches in diameter severely damaged roofs, sidings windows and vehicles.
Fortunately, Glendenning Motors in Mount Ayr had enough room underroof for their inventory. Residents’ cars that were forced to remain outside during the storm sustained numerous dents and broken windows.
First thing Saturday morning, roofing contractors from around the state were in the city trying to sign up business. Area insurance agencies will be bringing in adjusters as soon as practical to begin the gigantic effort to basically re-roof the entire city.
As for city damage, City Administrator Brent Wise expects some roof damage, along with the broken globe lights that line the square.
“We don’t know the full extent of it yet,” stated Wise, “we did turn in a claim, and an insurance adjuster will be out to survey damage later this week.”
Wise expects a one time deductible will pay for damage, and hopes to have information to share at the next city council meeting on Monday, May 6.
Ringgold County Emergency Management coordinator Melissa Stark, the Ringgold County Sheriff’s Office, and emergency responders knew there was going to be severe storms coming in, but initial weather reports showed the system heading towards Taylor County. An initial siren, alerting the northwest corner of Ringgold County, was sounded as part of the typical severe weather protocol.
Then the storm quickly shifted direction, and emergency teams were alerted that Mount Ayr was expected to take a direct hit.
“Roughly 60 seconds before the tornado hit the north side of Hwy 2, people could see the tornado from their homes,” stated Stark.
A county-wide tornado warning was then issued and a second siren alerted residents in Mount Ayr of a tornado as more rotation was forming.
The path of the tornado then shifted away from Mount Ayr and hit the Winemiller’s property just southeast of town.
The tornado continued across Hwy 2 past Rhonda Triggs property, through Poe Hollow Park, and continued northeast striking other property owners including John and Debbie Larsen, and Rex and Ann Walters near Beaconsfield.
The sirens were sounded a third time when emergency responders realized Tingley was being hit.
“The second cell came through 30 minutes later,” said Stark, “Tingley lost power just after 7:00 p.m., so unfortunately their siren did not sound.”
Stark is anticipating 8-10 total property losses in Tingley, but is still sorting through classifying residential structures from non-residental structures.
“There are 40-50 sites with damage,” said Stark, “the Red Cross will be providing support for those severely impacted.”
Over the weekend, the town of Tingley received two Red Cross deliveries of emergency food, water and other items.
Stark is still collecting reports, sorting through the worst of the damage, and getting aerial footage to help confirm all the tornado activity across the county.
The total tornado count, classification, wind speed and details of the tornadoes are expected to change as additional information is compiled and reviewed. Reports will be sent to Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management and made available to your local emergency manager to better understand the event that caused the damage.
Residents are encouraged to report storm damage to Ringgold County Emergency Management. This online survey link is being shared to report damage to your property, roads, utilities or any other storm-related information. Residents can also send the damage location, homeowners name, and photos if possible by email to:
mstark@ringgoldcounty.us or if you cannot email, please call to report: 641-464-3344.
Governor Kim Reynolds on Monday issued a disaster proclamation for eight additional counties in response to severe weather that occurred on April 26. The governor’s proclamation allows state resources to be utilized to respond to and recover from the effects of this severe weather and activates the Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program and Disaster Case Advocacy Program for the following counties: Clarke, Crawford, Harrison, Mills, Polk, Ringgold, Shelby, and Union. A disaster proclamation was previously issued for Pottawattamie County on April 26. The Iowa Individual Assistance Grant Program provides grants of up to $5,000 for households with incomes up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Grants are available for home or car repairs, replacement of clothing or food, and temporary housing expenses. Original receipts are required for those seeking reimbursement for actual expenses related to storm recovery. Potential applicants have 45 days from the date of the proclamation to submit a claim.
The grant application and instructions are available on the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management website: homelandsecurity.iowa.gov/assistance.
The Disaster Case Advocacy Program addresses serious needs related to disaster-related hardship, injury, or adverse conditions. Disaster case advocates work with clients to create a disaster recovery plan and provide guidance, advice, and referrals to obtain a service or resource. There are no income eligibility requirements for this program; it closes 180 days from the date of the governor’s proclamation. For information on the Disaster Case Advocacy Program, contact your local community action agency or visit iowacommunityaction.org.
The proclamation also temporarily suspends regulatory provisions of the Iowa Code that pertain to procurement of goods and services, hours of service for disaster repair crews, and various requirements for the transportation of loads related to disaster repairs.