195
Recorded events
3
Direct deaths
5
Direct injuries
$11.3M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Pottawattamie County, Iowa: 195 recorded events between 1965 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 95. That places the county #1,081 nationally and #31 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Pottawattamie County, Iowa: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Pottawattamie County is the 2010s, when 46 of the county's 195 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Pottawattamie County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 34.6% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,081 for this hazard and #31 within Iowa, putting it in the 65.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Pottawattamie County with 64 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 27, 2008 | LAKE MANAWA | 80 | 2 | 1 | $11.0M |
| Apr 10, 2001 | COUNCIL BLUFFS | 50 | 1 | 1 | $20K |
| May 6, 2012 | LAKE MANAWA | 55 | 0 | 3 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 8, 2025 | CHAUTAUQUA | 52 | $0 |
| Jul 8, 2025 | LAKE MANAWA | 52 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2025 | LAKE MANAWA | 52 | $0 |
| Apr 2, 2025 | WALNUT | 52 | $0 |
| Mar 14, 2025 | WESTON | 57 | $0 |
| Jul 31, 2024 | LAKE MANAWA | 78 | $0 |
| Jul 30, 2024 | NEOLA | 53 | $0 |
| Jun 26, 2024 | CARTER LAKE | 78 | $0 |
| May 26, 2024 | MC CLELLAND | 54 | $0 |
| May 24, 2024 | TREYNOR | 58 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Pottawattamie County
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Two men working alone atop a new meatpacking building were blown off the 40-foot-high roof by the thunderstorm that rolled through the area and produced the widespread hail reports. The winds were measured at 35 to 40 mph at the Council Bluffs airport and at Omaha Eppley Airfield, but could have been locally stronger. One of the men died later that day as a result of the fall. The sudden wind gust blew a section of roof and the men off the building.
A particularly intense downburst associated with a supercell occurred from near 8 miles northwest of Oakland through the city of Oakland. Embedded within the downburst was a significant tornado to the west of Oakland, but otherwise the damage was caused by straight line winds. The winds downed high-tension electrical lines, downed trees, and produced some structural damage.
A particularly intense downburst occurred from northwest of Crescent through the town of Cresent to southeast of the city. In this area entire trees were uprooted, outbuildings were completely destroyed, partial roof removal was observed on houses, and crops were stripped.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Pottawattamie County, Iowa?
195 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Pottawattamie County between 1965 and 2025, causing 3 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Pottawattamie County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Pottawattamie County measured 95.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Pottawattamie County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Pottawattamie County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/pottawattamie-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.