Wednesday's Wind Storm Displays Need for Weather Radio

Story County's Emergency Management Coordinator said Wednesday's fast underscores the need for weather radios.

A strong rain storm swept through the area about 2 a.m. Wednesday. It came up so quick that only people watching television would have known it was coming, Keith Morgan, Story County Emergency Management Coordinator said.

Morgan, who has a programable weather radio, said his radio woke him up when it alerted him to the strong storms in Boone County and just 15 minutes later the storm had already reached Story City, where he lives.

Morgan recommends purchasing weather radios with SAME technology that allow people to program their location and the types of warnings they want to hear.

Tornado warnings were issued for portions of Boone and Story counties about 2 a.m. Wednesday just before the storms rolled through. But the National Weather Service ruled that straight line winds caused the damage, which shows the need to take cover from severe thunderstorms.

Morgan said now is a good time for people to consider securing anything on their property that may become projectiles and keep trees trimmed, because more storms could roll in over the weekend.

Morgan said the damage from Wednesday's storm was not extensive enough to warrant federal assistance and they didn't expect to collect property damage totals.

Morgan said people can call him at 515-382-7315 if they need help programing their radios.