274
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
13
Direct injuries
$31.8M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Johnson County, Iowa: 274 recorded events between 1958 and 2026. The strongest on record measured 83. That places the county #561 nationally and #11 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Johnson County, Iowa: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Johnson County is the 2010s, when 83 of the county's 274 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 Johnson County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 42.0% of all recorded severe weather across 9 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #561 for this hazard and #11 within Iowa, putting it in the 82.2 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Johnson 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 29, 2011 | LAKE MACBRIDE SP | 65 | 1 | 0 | $10K |
| Jun 29, 1998 | COUNTYWIDE | 0 | 0 | 12 | $30.7M |
| Jun 30, 2014 | NORTH LIBERTY | 70 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 23, 2026 | IOWA CITY MUNI ARPT | 60 | $0 |
| Apr 23, 2026 | IOWA CITY MUNI ARPT | 56 | $0 |
| Apr 23, 2026 | IOWA CITY | 56 | $0 |
| Apr 17, 2026 | LONE TREE | 52 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2025 | IOWA CITY | 52 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2025 | UNIVERSITY HGTS | 61 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2025 | NORTH LIBERTY | 61 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2025 | OAKDALE | 56 | $0 |
| Aug 15, 2025 | IOWA CITY MUNI ARPT | 60 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2025 | IOWA CITY MUNI ARPT | 55 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Johnson County
- Hail 229
- Flash Flood 49
- Tornado 46
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Three properties were damaged on the northwest side of New Liberty. Two homes had their garage doors blown in and walls subsequently blown out of the houses. There were also house windows broken and a flagpole was ripped out of the ground and thrown over a house. A weather station operated by the City of North Liberty measured a peak gust of 73 mph.
Wind gusts estimated to be 70 to 90 mph topped off some large trees and uprooted other trees on the south and west sides of Swisher, IA around 2 am. Nearby rural areas also experienced some tree damage. At 1443 Blain Cemetery Road, a tree fell onto the house and into the living room. Near exit 10 on I 380, a tree fell onto a parked truck smashing the cab. In Ely, IA a light pole was blown over behind the public library. There were several other reports of tree damage along the path. KCRG also contributed to this report.
Wind gusts estimated to be 70 mph damaged a grain elevator, partially ripped off a garage roof, snapped some large tree limbs, and flattened some corn about 4 miles northeast of Frytown, IA which is also known as Williamstown, IA around 700 am CDT July 24.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Johnson County, Iowa?
274 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Johnson County between 1958 and 2026, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Johnson County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Johnson County measured 83.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Johnson 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 Johnson County, Iowa.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/iowa/johnson-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.