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Cedar County, Iowa severe weather history spans 498 recorded events between 1956 and 2026. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 53.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #883 nationally and #31 in Iowa.
498
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
24
Direct injuries
$15.5M
Property damage
The record
What the Cedar County, Iowa severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Cedar County, Iowa severe weather history averages 7.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 118 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 96 events fall before 1990 and 402 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Cedar County, Iowa record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $8.8M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Cedar County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 268 | 0 | $2.0M | 104 | 1956–2026 |
| Hail | 140 | 0 | $377K | 3 | 1957–2026 |
| Tornado | 45 | 1 | $8.8M | F4 | 1957–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 17 | 0 | $425K | 0 | 1997–2019 |
| Flood | 8 | 0 | $3.8M | 0 | 2001–2016 |
| Lightning | 7 | 0 | $163K | 0 | 2003–2012 |
| Funnel Cloud | 7 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2022 |
| Heavy Rain | 5 | 0 | $2K | 1.2 | 2003–2011 |
| Winter Weather | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2001 |
Decade by decade
Cedar County, Iowa severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
45 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 38 touched down inside it and 7 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965-04-11 | EF4 | 1 | 3 | 91.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1998-05-15 | EF3 | 0 | 47 | 47.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 2023-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 16.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 2023-03-31 | EF2 | 0 | 2 | 19.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-07-27 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1995-05-09 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1991-03-22 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 14.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1988-05-08 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1974-04-28 | EF2 | 0 | 16 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-05-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.9 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Cedar County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 11, 1965 | Tornado | 1 | 0 | $2.5M | |
| Apr 29, 1974 | Tornado | 0 | 16 | $250K | |
| Mar 31, 2023 | Tornado | LIME CITY | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| May 15, 1998 | Tornado | DOWNEY | 0 | 2 | $2K |
| Apr 18, 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Clarence | 0 | 1 | $55K |
| Apr 18, 1995 | Thunderstorm Wind | Clarence | 0 | 1 | $20K |
| Jul 2, 1983 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $250K | |
| Jun 7, 1961 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A series of downbursts in a 3 mile wide path occurred from 4 miles west of Tipton to 4 miles northeast of Tipton. Winds were estimated at 70-78 knots (80-90 mph). Time is estimated based on radar. Newspapers reported trees down and a roof off of a barn 3 miles west of Tipton, and trees down 1.6 miles south southwest of Wald.At the Marge Schott farm on Jackson Avenue, a 70 foot silo was destroyed along with 3 sheds and several trees. A house was damaged and a livestock trailer was flipped over. A the Jeff Meier home on 220th Street, the end of an equipment building was blown out. At the Tom and Lori Schott farm just down the road on 220th Street, a livestock building had the roof peeled off. At the co-operative observer 4 miles northeast of Tipton, a barn door was blown off with 8-10 inch diameter limbs down in the yard.
Tornado was rated EF-1 with peak winds of 110 MPH, a path length of 5.33 miles and max width 100 yards. A tornado touched down southwest of Bennett and tracked northeast to near Wheatland. A farm just north of Bennett sustained the greatest damage where all of the outbuildings and most of the trees were destroyed. Elsewhere along the path, damage occurred to trees, outbuildings, and power lines. This tornado continued into Clinton County.
The same line of storms produced a severe downburst in Clarence and immediately south. Winds with this downburst were estimated at 83-87 knots (95-100 mph).In Clarence, Hunwardsen Fabrication lost the roof and one entire wall of their building with the debris scattered across the parking lot to the west. South of town a grain bin and a gazebo were destroyed.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
18,349
Population (ACS)
$211K
Median home value
18
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 2024 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Aug 17, 2020 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS | DR |
| Mar 23, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Aug 5, 2014 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 31, 2013 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Cedar County, Iowa?
498 events are on record between 1956 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths and $15.5M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Cedar County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 268 recorded events — 53.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Cedar County?
45 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 38 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Cedar County?
18 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Cedar County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Cedar County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Cedar County as very low risk, placing it in the 22 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Cedar County, Iowa severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Cass County 550
- Cerro Gordo County 605
- Carroll County 461
- Cherokee County 381
- Calhoun County 370
- Chickasaw County 316
Cite this page
“Cedar County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/cedar-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.