Results tagged “storms” from DesMoinesIst

The powerful storm system that moved through town on Sunday night was an example of a derecho event -- basically, it's a storm that has most of the power of a tornado, but in a wide, straight line rather than one spiraling mess. The amount of power in the system that moved through the other day is evident from a time-lapse view of the regional radar summary. The system builds in Nebraska late in the evening, then comes roaring into Iowa overnight, gaining speed as it goes. The storms made it to Ohio by early afternoon -- covering about a thousand miles in 12 hours. While we had some power outages in the Des Moines area, the Quad Cities had it a lot worse and Sioux City has had a real mess to clean up.

Polk County Emergency Management sent out a notice to the news media today, with the following warning:

The Polk County Emergency Management Agency is asking for increased vigilance as an approaching cold front could impact the area this afternoon and evening.  This is of special concern because of several large outdoor social events scheduled across the Metro Area this afternoon and evening.

They're talking, of course, about the Des Moines Arts Festival, Clive After Five, Urbandale Friday Fest, Fridays at the Fountain, and the Iowa Cubs (playing Albuquerque at 5:05). Because, as we've all heard, there's "nothing to do" around here.

Update: Clive After Five has been cancelled for tonight.