Iowa History Daily: On March 13, 1990, a series of 14 tornadoes developed across Iowa. Reaching F4 status in Linn County and featuring a twister over a half-mile wide, the storms left a wide path of destruction across the state.
An unusually warm day saw temperatures climb into the 60s and 70s (F) throughout the day as a low pressure front stalled over northwestern Iowa. The front creeped slowly east, developing massive storms. By the end of the day, 14 tornados developed including an F4 which touched down near Prairieburg in Linn County and stayed on the ground for 19 miles, crossing into Jones and Delaware counties. The funnel reached a half-mile wide as it sowed a path of destruction. At least twelve homes were damaged or destroyed, as well as thirteen farms.
Another F3 tornado originally touched down in Scott County before the multiple-vortex funnel jumped the Mississippi River and threatened the nuclear power station at Cordova, Illinois. A worker at the Cordova Nuclear Plant broke his leg when the twister blew him off a scaffold.
Yet another F2 tornado touched down in Ankeny, injuring at least fifteen people, causing a major accident as it blew the roof of a condominium onto Interstate 35, and pushed numerous cars off the major highway. Over $2,000,000 in damages resulted in the Polk County area alone. #IowaHistory Daily #IowaHistoryCalendar
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