On this day, May 15th, 1968,
a deadly tornado ripped through my hometown in Iowa.
This event was would be later known as the May 1968 tornado outbreak.
The May 1968 tornado outbreak was a significant and deadly tornado outbreak that struck most of the central and southern United States on May 15 to May 16, 1968. Producing 46 tornadoes, the outbreak killed at least 72 people including 45 in Arkansas alone. The outbreak also produced two F5s in Iowa. It was one of the deadliest tornado outbreaks in the United States since the 1960s and is one of the deadliest outbreaks in Iowa history.
The Charles City Tornado of May 15, 1968
On the afternoon of May 15, 1968, an F5 tornado moved through Butler, Chickasaw, Floyd, Franklin, and Howard
Counties in northeast Iowa. The tornado moved northeast from north of Hansell, passing east of Aredale, west
of Greene, east of Marble Rock, and devastating Charles City. The tornado grew larger and more intense
as it approached Charles City, striking the city at approximately 4:50 pm. The huge tornado passed directly
through town, destroying 337 homes and 1250 vehicles, and causing about $30 million in damage. Ironically, the
tornado damaged 8 churches in town, but left the bars standing. Debris from Charles City was found as far away
as LeRoy, MN, nearly 35 miles to the north. The tornado continued to the northeast hitting Elma, where it caused
another $1.5 million in damage. From Elma the tornado turned to the north and dissipated south of Chester, 4 miles
south of the Minnesota border. The tornado was on the ground for 65 miles, reaching a width of 400 yards.
Nearly 2000 homes were damaged or destroyed. All 13 deaths occurred in Floyd County. 450 injuries were
reported in Floyd County and 12 injuries in Howard County.
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| Approximate path of the F5 tornado that struck Charles City, IA on May 15, 1968. |
On the same day, another F5 tornado moved north-northeast from southwest of Oelwein to Maynard and east of
Randalia in Fayette County, IA. Homes were leveled and swept away in both Oelwein and Maynard. The warning
sirens sounded for only 15 seconds before power failed in Oelwein. Nearly 1000 homes were damaged or destroyed
along the path, and 34 people had to be hospitalized. Almost 1,000 families were affected. The damage from this
tornado totaled $21 million.
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| Photo by then Floyd County Sheriff L.L. Lane, along Highway 14 just before the tornado hit Charles City, IA |
In addition to these F5 tornadoes, an F2 tornado touched down 6 miles south of Cresco, IA, two weak F1 tornadoes
touched down in Dodge County, MN, and F1 tornadoes occurred in Fillmore County, MN and Chickasaw County, IA.
Baseball size hail (2.75") also fell in Fayette County, IA.
Video
One thing that's so hard about tornadoes is that there's often very little warning for them. With hurricanes, you get sometimes a few days' warning. With tornadoes, sometimes only a few minutes.
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