Over 1,000 CR homes declared uninhabitable as Eastern Iowa derecho recovery continues ; forecasters look to learn from deadly storm

Lang/AP
8/16/20

Eastern Iowa continues to recover from the derecho that caused massive damage on August 10^th.

The Gazette reports over 1,000 Cedar Rapids homes have been declared uninhabitable due to damage from the August 10^th storm. Alliant Energy says over 600 people in the Cedar Rapids area are still without power.

Over 400 people are still without power in the Iowa City area, according to MidAmerican Energy.

The storm could offer lessons for forecasters and the public. The unusual storm packed the power of a category 3 hurricane but lacked the days of warning a typical hurricane offers.

At least three people in Iowa, including a Solon man, were killed. Forecasters had predicted thunderstorms and in some communities tornado sirens sounded before the winds began. But many people were caught off guard. The National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration are working on tools that would assist forecasters in making predictions that consider a range of possibilities.