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It’s shaping up to be a record-breaking year for tornadoes in Iowa.
New figures from the National Weather Service show Iowa’s had 86 tornadoes so far this year, with 44 last month and 42 this month. The average in a year is about 50.
The weather service says Iowa’s never seen this many tornadoes by this date, and it’s also among the five deadliest tornado seasons, with six dead and some three-dozen hurt.
We still have a month left in the tornado season, though twisters can strike during any month. In 2021, Iowa had a record 63 tornadoes in a single day — in December. That was during the state’s second derecho in as many years, and that December outbreak set another record for most EF-2 tornadoes in one day — at 21.
Iowa’s worst-ever day for deadly tornadoes was May 15th of 1968, when the state saw five massive F-5 tornadoes that killed 18 people.
