Iowa lightning
Every recorded lightning record since 1996 · 88 counties with a record
NOAA's Storm Events Database records 366 lightning records in Iowa from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 11 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the May 4, 2015 lightning in Muscatine County: 1 death and 2 injuries. Iowa ranks 21st of 52 states and territories by count and 26th of 51 per square mile.
Lightning in Iowa, 1996 to 2026
Lightning records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.
- recorded, no damage figure
- under $1 million
- $1 million or more
- $10 million or more
- $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
- $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
- a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
- a year with a death
- Records
- 3661996 to June 30, 2026
- A year since 2000
- 11average
- Deaths
- 746 injuries
- Damage, 2025 dollars
- $32Mas filed
- Busiest year
- 201037 records
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.
Are lightning records common in Iowa?
Iowa averages about 11 lightning records a year since 2000, 21st of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2010 (37). Per 10,000 square miles of land, Iowa records 66 lightning records since 1996, 26th of 51 states and territories by that measure.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.
Which counties in Iowa have the most lightning records?
Per square mile, Polk County leads Iowa: 40 days with a lightning record since 1996, 69.8 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Polk County has the most lightning records (42 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.
When is the lightning season in Iowa?
41% of its lightning records since 1996 fell in June and July. The busiest month is June (84 records).
The values, month by month
Jan 0 · Feb 5 · Mar 10 · Apr 34 · May 57 · Jun 84 · Jul 67 · Aug 70 · Sep 25 · Oct 14 · Nov 0 · Dec 0 (records).
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.
What were the deadliest lightning records in Iowa?
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015-05-04 | LightningMuscatine County The Muscatine County Emergency Manager reported a male, age 36, was struck by lightning and killed while riding a horse. Another male, age 25, was injured. The horse was also killed. | 1 | 2 | – | |
| 1996-05-03 | LightningLake Manawa, Pottawattamie County Lightning killed one man and injured another as they were standing on a Lake Manawa boat dock. The two men had been loading their boat onto a trailer when the lightning hit them and they both fell backwards into the water. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2005-09-04 | LightningCedar Rapids Ar, Linn County Lightning struck two golfers at the Airport National Public Golf Course 5 miles east of Cedar Rapids Airport. Both golfers were rushed to a nearby hospital where one (a 38 year old male) was pronounced dead. The other golfer, male, age 37, was treated and released. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2003-04-30 | LightningKeosauqua, Van Buren County In Lacey-Keosauqua State Park southwest of Keosauqua, Iowa, 2 brothers were struck by lightning while setting up a tent for a camping/hunting trip. One brother survived, but the other died 11 weeks later on his 34th birthday after never coming out of a coma. | 1 | 1 | – | |
| 2015-06-20 | LightningPalo, Linn County A 42 year old female was struck and killed by lightning while camping at the Pleasant Creek State Recreation Area near Palo. | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2008-06-11 | LightningCurlew, Palo Alto County Strong warm air advection took place across Iowa during the overnight hours of the 10th into the morning of the 11th. CAPE increased to over 3000 J/kg as the lifted index fell to around -7. A strong low level jet of 50 to 60 kts was in place over the state. Thunderstorms formed initially over Kansas, then spread ... | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2000-08-08 | LightningMilo, Warren County During the night, the thunderstorms mentioned above advanced east and south. In addition, thunderstorms spread north from Missouri into southern Iowa. An outflow boundary moved into central Iowa during the early morning hours and initiated an intensification of the convection. Though the storms were not severe, ... | 1 | 0 | $111K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.
The costliest lightning records in Iowa
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-10-24 | LightningUtica, Van Buren County | 0 | 0 | $9.4M | |
| 2002-06-26 | LightningWaterloo, Black Hawk County | 0 | 0 | $1.6M | |
| 2010-08-08 | LightningAdel, Dallas County | 0 | 0 | $1.4M | |
| 2018-09-01 | LightningZearing, Story County | 0 | 0 | $1.2M | |
| 2006-04-13 | LightningCoralville, Johnson County | 0 | 0 | $754K | |
| 2010-06-26 | LightningGrinnell, Poweshiek County | 0 | 0 | $744K | |
| 2007-06-22 | LightningSwisher, Johnson County | 0 | 0 | $712K | |
| 2016-08-11 | LightningOtterville, Buchanan County | 0 | 0 | $615K |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.
Are lightning records becoming more frequent in Iowa?
Iowa's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.
| Decade | Iowa | United States | Iowa's share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-99 | 68 | 3,521 | 1.9% |
| 2000s | 148 | 8,052 | 1.8% |
| 2010s | 130 | 5,103 | 2.5% |
| 2020-26 | 20 | 1,544 | 1.3% |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.
The most recent lightning records in Iowa
| Date | Record | Character | Killed | Injured | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-08-15 | LightningCedar Falls Airport, Black Hawk County | 0 | 0 | $25K | |
| 2025-08-09 | LightningWebster City, Hamilton County | 0 | 0 | $1K | |
| 2024-10-24 | LightningUtica, Van Buren County | 0 | 0 | $9.4M | |
| 2022-05-08 | LightningDes Moines, Polk County | 0 | 0 | $403K | |
| 2018-10-05 | LightningHadden Hill, Dallas County | 0 | 3 | – | |
| 2018-09-01 | LightningZearing, Story County | 0 | 0 | $1.2M | |
| 2018-07-13 | LightningColo, Story County | 0 | 2 | – | |
| 2016-08-11 | LightningOtterville, Buchanan County | 0 | 0 | $615K | |
| 2015-10-20 | LightningIowa City, Johnson County | 0 | 1 | – | |
| 2015-06-20 | LightningPalo, Linn County | 1 | 0 | – | |
| 2015-05-04 | LightningMuscatine County | 1 | 2 | – | |
| 2014-08-31 | LightningDenison Municipal Airport, Crawford County | 0 | 1 | – |
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.
Next
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