Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On June 14, 1998, the city of Atlantic in Cass County recorded the official 24-hour record for precipitation when 13.18” inches of rain fell. Atlantic and Griswold saw significant flooding as a result of the record-setting storm.
While steady rains started the accumulation, a small cluster of thunderstorms moved in to soak southwestern Iowa starting at around 7:30 a.m. For the next four hours, seven inches of rain fell to saturate soils and overrun rain gages. The downpour led to historic flash flooding along the Nishnabotna and East Nishnabotna rivers.
In response, Governor Terry Branstad declared Cass County a disaster area and sent out the National Guard. Evacuations displaced people from homes in Atlantic and Griswold, and more than 50 people stayed in an emergency Red Cross shelter in the county.
Although Decatur County recorded 16.70” of rain on August 5-6, 1959, the measurement doesn’t gain official status as a post-event survey observation. Another unofficial record-setting observation documented an astounding 21.7” Boyden in Sioux County on September 18, 1926. #IowaOTD #IowaHistoryDaily #IowaHistoryCalendar
댓글