Weather

First District Rep. Ashley Hinson and 3rd District Rep. Cindy Axne are asking the National Weather Service to explain a communications system malfunction that led to delay in critical alerts to the public March 5 when storms caused seven deaths in Iowa. Some warnings didn’t reach the public until nine minutes after they were issued.

The National Weather Service has confirmed four additional tornadoes that struck Iowa during Saturday evening’s deadly severe weather, bringing the total from the previously confirmed nine to now 13.

Storm survey teams for the National Weather Service have confirmed that nine tornadoes — two of them deadly — struck Iowa over the weekend as severe weather moved quickly across the state.

The children and their parents, from Blue Springs, Missouri, were visiting their grandmother, Melissa Bazley, 63, when the tornado hit. The storm killed Bazley, 37-year-old Michael Bolger and two of his three young children.

Delays of up to 9 minutes before warnings reached public blamed on technical issues

The National Weather Service reported over two dozen reports of tornadoes flattening houses and downing power lines as storms Saturday evening moved across Iowa

The risk of spring flooding on the Mississippi River, as well as its tributaries, including the Cedar and Iowa rivers, is below normal, the National Weather Service reported Thursday.

The temperature outside when she was found by facility staff members was minus 8 degrees, officials said.

Iowa City property owners are reminded to clear the full width of the sidewalk of any snow and ice within 24 hours of a snowfall to avoid getting fined. Individuals who are out of town should make arrangements to have their snow cleared.

Forecasters are predicting that a winter storm could dump nearly a foot of snow in parts of Iowa, though the heaviest snowfall is predicted to fall west of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City.

The city of Cedar Rapids continues to seek volunteers for its Snow Buddies program to help residents in need of assistance clear snow. Nine of the 29 “Snow Buddies” clients still need to be paired with volunteers.

Others delayed by two hours