Powerful Storm Leaves 2 Dead, Heavy Crop Damage in Midwest

By Ryan J. Foley and Josh Funk

Hundreds of thousands across the Midwest remained without electricity on Tuesday after a powerful storm packing 100 mph winds battered the region a day earlier, causing widespread damage to millions of acres of crops and killing at least two people.

The storm known as a derecho tore from eastern Nebraska across Iowa and parts of Wisconsin and Illinois, blowing over trees, flipping vehicles and causing widespread damage to property and crops. The storm left downed trees and power lines that blocked roadways in Chicago and its suburbs. After leaving Chicago, the most potent part of the storm system moved over north central Indiana.

In Iowa, farmers reported that some grain bins were destroyed and corn fields were flattened by the storm. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds said early estimates indicate 10 million acres (4 million hectares) have been damaged in the nation's top corn producing state. That would be nearly a third of the nearly 31 million acres (12.5 million hectares) of land used for crops in the state. The most significant damage is to the corn crop, which is in the advanced stages of development nearly a month away from the beginning of harvest.

"This morning I had a farmer reach out to me to say this was the worst wind damage to crops and farm buildings that he has ever seen across the state in such a wide area," Reynolds said.

Roger Zylstra, who has farmed in central Iowa near Kellogg since 1980, said that four of his hog barns lost their roofs, two of his machine sheds suffered significant damage and many of his corn acres were destroyed.

Zylstra, 69, said crop insurance will help many farmers cut their losses, but that the financial hit will be devastating for many.

"The question remains for all of us is, what happens in the next five or six weeks? How much can we salvage out of these fields?" Zylstra said. "I know that some people won't survive this. But there's a fair number of people that will figure out how to hang in there, and we'll keep doing what we do."

In Fort Wayne, Indiana, Isabel E. Atencio died at a hospital after firefighters pulled her from debris inside her mobile home after high winds rolled it onto its side Monday night, officials said. Firefighters found the 73-year-old woman under debris inside her toppled trailer and discovered that she was clutching a 5-year-old boy believed to be her grandson, said Adam O'Connor, deputy chief of the Fort Wayne Fire Department. The boy had minor injuries.

"They had to stabilize the trailer, crawl inside the trailer, find the two victims and bring them out," O'Connor said.

"It's awful. I was thinking about that all last night," he said.

A derecho is not quite a hurricane. It has no eye, and its winds come across in a line. But the damage it is likely to do spread over such a large area is more like an inland hurricane than a quick more powerful tornado, according to Patrick Marsh, science support chief at the National Weather Service's Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma.

Iowa officials reported roofs torn off homes and buildings, vehicles blown off roads and hit by trees, and people hurt by flying debris. One death and dozens of injuries were reported in the state.

A 63-year-old bicyclist died after he was struck by one of several large trees that fell Monday on a bike trail outside of Cedar Rapids near Ely, the Linn County sheriff's office said. Thomas Rowland of Solon, Iowa suffered extensive injuries and died at the scene, the office said.