‘The Whole Neighborhood’s Gone’: Tornadoes Rip Through Midwest Destroying Homes

Tornadoes ripped through Iowa and Nebraska on Friday, with no reported deaths despite whole neighborhoods being destroyed. 

Parts of Omaha, Nebraska, and northwest Iowa were severely damaged by the storms. Omaha Fire Chief Kathy Bossman said that there were many houses “flattened” and many more with “significant damage.” Bossman added that emergency crews had to deal with power outages, downed power lines, gas leaks, downed trees, and buildings that had been made structurally unsound by the fierce tornadoes. 

“They’re going to be putting together a strategic plan for a detailed search of the area, starting with the properties with most damage,” Bossman said, according to the Associated Press. “We’ll be looking throughout properties in debris piles, we’ll be looking in basements, trying to find any victims and make sure everybody is rescued who needs assistance.”

Pat Woods, who lives  in Omaha’s Elkhorn neighborhood, told the AP he and his wife saw the tornado touch down not far from their home.  

“We watched it touch down like 200 yards over there and then we took shelter,” he said. “We could hear it coming through. When we came up our fence was gone and we looked to the northwest and the whole neighborhood’s gone.”

Multiple people were injured from the tornadoes, including three people in Lancaster County, Nebraska, who were in an industrial building, CBS News reported. 

“I have ordered that state resources be made available to assist with the emergency response and to support local first responders as they assess the damage,” Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen said. “Nebraskans are tough, resilient people, and our neighbors and communities will rally around affected families and businesses to assist them. Nebraskans are no strangers to severe weather and, as they have countless times before, Nebraskans will help Nebraskans to rebuild.”

Cities in Iowa were also hit hard, including Minden and Crescent, where the tornadoes traveled after ripping through Omaha. 

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Videos posted on social media showed the massive tornadoes ripping across the plains and the aftermath of the storms.

TWIN tornadoes moments before turning into a massive wedge near Tennant, a moments ago #iawx @RadarOmega pic.twitter.com/OH9QLbSwxR

— Aaron Jayjack (@aaronjayjack) April 26, 2024

Nearly 10 minutes of video from multiple significant tornadoes via multiple supercells today in Nebraska and Iowa. Unreal tornado outbreak. #kswx #newx pic.twitter.com/q1jDJNhKxM

— Brandon Sullivan (@btsullivan91) April 27, 2024

Minden, Iowa got sideswiped on the SE side by a violent #tornado. @JordanHallWX #iawx pic.twitter.com/iGBvxSy7KY

— MyRadar Weather (@MyRadarWX) April 26, 2024

More areas are under tornado watches on Saturday, including parts of Texas and Oklahoma, as severe weather is expected from the plains to the Midwest.