Area storms on Wednesday night contained high winds and hail sustaining damage to trees and cars particularly in the Belmond area. Winds of 45 miles per hour and marble sized hail struck Belmond around 5:30pm.
Winds in the gust front registered 40 to 45 miles per hour. Cloud to ground lightning accompanied the winds as the storms moved in from the northwest.
Power went out quickly in downtown Belmond and then throughout the city. Officials estimate that 3,446 customers were out of power as the storm moved through the area containing heavy rains and winds. In neighboring Hancock County, 742 customers had no electricity and in Franklin County, 792 went powerless.
Meservey had 196, Klemme had 268, and Alexander had 911 without power at one point.
At the Belmond United Methodist Church (above) a tree fell on the entrance to a parking lot narrowly missing several parked cars. Meanwhile some streets were covered in branches and limbs of trees.
Other locations such as in Kossuth County and in Hancock County, spotters confirmed pea sized to marble sized hail fell along with 60-70 mile per hour winds. Just as in Belmond, the storms produced heavy rains.
Electrical power should be restored by Thursday morning to all locations and more storms are predicted for Thursday as well.
