Back to today’s briefing

Story perspectives

Iowa Braces for Saturday Night Storms After Friday Hail

8/8/2026

31 6 Full Breakdown

Summary

Officials Forecast Storms

Weather officials forecast scattered strong to severe storms Saturday night into Sunday for Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Saturday will be mostly sunny with highs in the low-80s and overnight lows in upper 50s north and mid-60s south of the city.
Sunday-Monday will see scattered storms, heat indices near 100 °F south of I-80, dew points in the 70s, while cooler, drier weather returns with highs back in the 70s by next weekend.

Summary

Iowa Endures Storms

Severe thunderstorms struck Iowa Friday, dropping hail up to three inches and causing dozens of power outages.
The National Weather Service issued tornado and severe thunderstorm warnings for five counties as the storm moved southeast at 45 mph.
Delaware County Emergency Management Coordinator Mandy Bieber said the Ryan area suffered the worst damage, including a damaged grain bin, leaning power lines, and flattened fields.

History

Historical Context

The April 3-4 1974 Super Outbreak produced at least 149 tornadoes, including 30 F4-F5 events, and killed over 300 people. Study by meteorologist Tetsuya Theodore Fujita spurred a reorganization of the National Weather Service and expanded warning systems. Those reforms shape today’s Cedar Rapids response, where the NWS issues tornado alerts and coordinator Mandy Bieber directs power restoration.

1 of 3

Officials Forecast Storms

Weather officials forecast scattered strong to severe storms Saturday night into Sunday for Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Saturday will be mostly sunny with highs in the low-80s and overnight lows in upper 50s north and mid-60s south of the city.
Sunday-Monday will see scattered storms, heat indices near 100 °F south of I-80, dew points in the 70s, while cooler, drier weather returns with highs back in the 70s by next weekend.

1 / 3