Tornadoes way ahead of pace

A doorbell camera in Portage, Michigan captured the precise moment a tornado this home on Tuesday - kicking over decades-old trees like toys.

The aftermath confirmed the severity - more than a dozen injured with a major clean up ahead.

Sheriff Richard Fuller, Kalamazoo County: "We're looking at homes throughout this community that are totally gone. They've been demolished. We know people were in some of those homes. We've found homes on their side and upside down."

A nearby FedEx building had its roof peeled off by one of the storms going through the area.

The 2nd tornado in five weeks ripped through Barnsdall, Oklahoma. The town north of Tulsa was hit by one of 17 twisters that hit the state Monday and Tuesday. Its path was easily visible from the air with downed trees and damaged structures marking the way. 

Central Tennessee was also impacted this week. Here in Columbia, residents had little time to respond to the storm that hit at dinner time. 

Sam Barnes, Spring Hill, Tennessee resident: "I mean, the force was so strong coming through our basement that it blew the doors out, going to the back of the house from what was coming through the house, from the upstairs."

Several systems sweeping across the area dropped heavy rains.

The weekly precipitation map reveals many of the same areas with severe damage were inundated by rain. The yellows here indicate between eight and 12 inches of rainfall. 

Rivers that just weeks ago were well below normal have filled and some have even spilled out of their banks in Iowa. Consecutive weeks of rain have begun to add up - delaying spring field work. However, short-term improvements visible on the surface have yet to erase precipitation and groundwater deficits. 

The Drought Monitor reflects the pattern change. Over the last few weeks, improvement nationally has occurred as  big rains from the Pacific West to the Eastern Shore have alleviated some of the more severe conditions. Overall, areas in the U.S. that are out of drought have risen to 65.33 percent - the highest level since May 26, 2020.

Contact: Paul.Yeager@IowaPBS.org