Iowa Town Didn’t Get Warning Sirens Ahead of Damaging Tornado

Weather sirens are supposed to warn communities when a tornado is near. But sometimes severe storms form too quickly for them to be used effectively.

Residents of an Iowa town learned the hard way this week that the outdoor sirens are not perfect. The National Weather Service's Des Moines office confirmed to the Des Moines Register that it did not issue a tornado warning until five minutes AFTER the twister had touched down in the city of Urbandale. Multiple residents on 80th and 82nd street in Urbandale, where the tornado did some of its worst damage, told the Register that they did not hear sirens ahead of Monday's storm.

The Register reports that severe thunderstorm warnings were issued for the area at 5:20 p.m. and again at 5:29 p.m. But when the first tornado warning was issued at 5:42 p.m. the twister had already been on the ground doing damage for five minutes.

The tornado that tore through parts of Urbandale and West Des Moines was an EF1 with winds of up to 105 miles per hour, according to the Register. The tornado was part of a fast-moving system of thunderstorms called a derecho. The storm system moved more quickly than the weather service could respond. The Register reports that the Des Moines metro area had experienced three damaging tornados in the past four months, including the one on Monday.

If a tornado does hit your neighborhood, here are the steps you should follow.