Tornadic Storms Cause Damage in Delaware County

Eastern Iowa was put on alert for a high risk of severe storms on Friday – and the predictions held strong.

A line of tornadic storms moved through the state, with Tornado Warnings issued early Friday night for Delaware, Buchanan, Linn, Jones and Dubuque counties and alert notifications for highly destructive winds up to 80 miles per hour. Delaware County Emergency Management Coordinator Mandy Bieber says the storms caused damage in the Manchester, Oneida and Greeley areas – but thankfully, no injuries have been reported.

Officials suspect the damage was caused by a tornado, but the National Weather Service will be assessing the damage to confirm that this weekend.

The suspected tornado cut a path in Manchester from the southwest side of Manchester along Highways 20/13 to the northeast along East Main Street and points to the north. Manchester Police Chief Jim Hauschild:

Manchester City Manager Tim Vick called in to KMCH with this damage report around 7 pm on Friday night:

Manchester resident Eileen Waterman says they came up from their basement to discover trees uprooted along East Fayette Street.

There was severe damage to Baum Park in Manchester, which sits just north of East Main Street. Manchester City Parks and Rec Director Doug Foley is asking everyone to steer clear of that area this weekend.

As mentioned, Delaware County Emergency Management says the Oneida and Greeley areas also sustained damage. One caller reported to KMCH damage they saw at a farmstead in the Greeley area:

Power outages were widespread across the county, including in Manchester, Delhi and Colesburg. Alliant and Maquoketa Valley REC have been in the area working to restore power. The Delaware County Fairgrounds Community Center was opened for temporary shelter on Friday night for anyone who needed it. It closed a few hours later on Friday night, but anyone who still needs shelter assistance may call 211. The City of Manchester was also asking residents to conserve water during the power outage to help the city’s sewer system keep up with demand. 

Vick says the City of Manchester is asking anyone who sustained damage in the storm to take photos of their damage for insurance purposes before starting cleanup. 

The City of Manchester and Delaware County Emergency Management is asking that people avoid the areas with damage as cleanup commences.

For anyone with tree debris in Manchester, the City will be picking up tree debris Monday, April 3rd through Friday, April 7th. Residents should bring their debris to the curb.

You can find photos of the storm damage on our KMCH Facebook page – feel free to share your storm reports and photos there as well. We’ve posted a few of those photos below.

Quik-n-Handi in Manchester

Highway 20/13 interchange at Manchester

Manchester Industrial Park area

A-1 storage trailer in Highway 20 ditch

Baum Park in Manchester

East Fayette and Iowa Street in Manchester

South Brewer Street in Manchester

Oneida

“On a side note, thank you to everyone who tuned in during our live severe weather coverage on KMCH on Friday night. The storm situation brought some challenges with our on-air signal and online streaming capabilities – and a quick break in coverage as the KMCH on-air team sought shelter in the station’s basement – but we appreciate everyone who tuned in throughout the night and shared storm reports with us in an effort to help keep everyone informed and safe.” ~ Justin, Janelle, Eric & Jon