Iowa town devastated by tornado

Rating:

0.0 (0 votes)

MAPLETON, Iowa (AP) - The small western Iowa town of Mapleton will spend the next several months rebuilding after a tornado swept through the area.

Emergency responders have not yet calculated an exact dollar amount for the losses in Saturday evening's storm that damaged or destroyed more than half the town of 1,200 people. No one was killed.

The Monona County sheriff said the recovery would likely cost millions of dollars. The huge, centuries-old trees the town was named for had been pulled out of the ground and wrapped around houses and tossed on top of cars.

In one case, a large motor home had been flipped on its side. Meanwhile, parts of the central U.S. have again seen some severe weather. Strong thunderstorms swept across Minnesota and Wisconsin yesterday and early today, bringing strong winds, hail and reports of tornadoes.