RANDOLPH, Iowa (KMTV) — A storm cell swept through southwest Iowa on Thursday night. It came dangerously close to Fremont-Mills Junior-Senior High School in Tabor where a parent caught video of a funnel cloud over a field.
- Jim and Becky Head lost the machine shed on their farm and some of their equipment was damaged just as planting season is starting.
- “You know, you never expect to get a text from your parents that just says, ‘We’re okay,’” said Craig Head outside his parents' Randolph farm.
- “There’s always associated risk with these storms. We had a lot of power lines down,” said Clayton Long, the Fremont County emergency management coordinator.
WATCH KATRINA'S STORY BELOW
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
“You know, you never expect to get a text from your parents that just says, ‘We’re okay,’” said Craig Head outside his parents' Randolph farm.
Some of the worst storm damage in Fremont County, Iowa is in this rural neighborhood. I'm your Southwest Iowa Neighborhood Reporter Katrina Markel, just outside Randolph at the Head family farm.
The storm cut a path between Tabor and Imogene before heading into Page County.
A parent captured this video (funnel cloud visible) while waiting for her kids at Fremont-Mills Jr.-Sr. High. The middle school track team sheltered at a school in Shenandoah until it was safe to come home.
“There’s always associated risk with these storms. We had a lot of power lines down,” said Clayton Long, the Fremont County emergency management coordinator.
He said the storm narrowly missed towns but affected a lot of rural residents like Jim and Becky Head.
Friends and family were up early helping with cleanup. Their son, Craig, was here from his home in eastern Nebraska.
“It is what it is and so you work through it," said Head. "And you know, they’re farmers; they’re optimistic. They know that stuff happens.”
The machine shed was destroyed, and tractors and other equipment were damaged — not a great development just as planting season is starting.
“Secondary roads came out, put up signs and barriers. It’s always important not to drive around those." Long said.
Long appreciated the help he received from neighboring county officials. He encourages everyone — especially rural residents who may not hear sirens — to sign up for Alert Iowa notifications on their phones.
Just like every farm family I’ve ever met, the Heads are self-sufficient. They’re downplaying what they’ve experienced, saying they know other people have had it harder. In Fremont County, I’m your Southwest Iowa neighborhood reporter, Katrina Markel.
