By Cindy Hadish CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Iowa’s 2020 derecho almost wiped out plans to transform the historic Chandler Pump building into supportive housing for Willis Dady Homeless Services. The top floor of the two-story building, 707 B Ave. NW, was obliterated by the hurricane-strength windstorm, leaving the rest of the 1903-built brick structure at […]
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Tag: derecho
Hope grows two years after devastating d...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — A low-key commemoration of Iowa’s 2020 derecho will take place to mark the two-year anniversary of the devastating windstorm. A Resiliency Day is planned for Aug. 10, 2022, organized on Facebook by Tamara Marcus and Eric Gutschmidt. “Two years ago our lives were upended during the derecho,” the Facebook event notes. […]
Iowa foliage report and photo tips to ca...
While the devastation from Iowa’s 2020 hurricane-strength derecho windstorm still weighs heavily on tree canopy in parts of the state, some areas are hitting their peak for fall foliage. Related: Fall colors in post-derecho Iowa The Iowa Department of Natural Resources reported this week that recent warmer weather has extended the fall color show for […]
Czech festival in Iowa returns with trad...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Aside from gusty winds that played havoc with cash and sheet music, the weather could not have been more picture-perfect for the comeback of a long-running festival that was sidelined last year by the coronavirus pandemic and Iowa’s hurricane-strength derecho. Czech Goulash Day, celebrated in various forms for the past 99 […]
Survey finds Iowa lost more than 7 milli...
Iowans lost an estimated $20 million in annual benefits from urban tree canopy damaged by the hurricane-strength derecho in August 2020, according to the results of a recently completed survey conducted by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Findings were included in a report, available online at https://www.iowadnr.gov/Portals/idnr/uploads/forestry/DerechoReport.pdf, which estimated nearly 4.5 million trees were […]
Derecho anniversary focuses on recovery ...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — Survivors of Iowa’s devastating derecho windstorm on Aug. 10, 2020, can join together to mark recovery efforts during a community-wide event in Cedar Rapids. The nonprofit Together We Achieve is hosting a Derecho Anniversary Festival from 4-7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 7, 2021, at Greene Square in downtown Cedar Rapids. See photos […]
Cedar Rapids threatens derecho victim wi...
UPDATE July 20, 2021, with comments from Roy Hesemann, utilities director for the city of Cedar Rapids. By Cindy Hadish CEDAR RAPIDS – Tara Farris worked hard to turn blight into beauty after Iowa’s hurricane-strength derecho downed one of the trees in front of her house and the city removed the other. As Farris and […]
Resurrecting Sinclair: Derecho-damaged C...
Work is underway to restore windows broken and damaged during Iowa’s 2020 derecho at one of Coe College’s iconic buildings. Sinclair Auditorium, which has hosted theatrical and musical performances for 70 years, has been used by the Coe community in various ways throughout the past school year, Coe spokeswoman Natalie Milke said, “but in accordance […]
Giant mushroom appears in Czech Village ...
By Cindy Hadish CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – Czech Village has found a silver lining from last year’s derecho. The hurricane-strength windstorm uprooted trees and created havoc throughout Iowa, hitting the Cedar Rapids area particularly hard. Trees that toppled in Czech Village damaged restrooms next to the Kosek Bandstand, but one of those is now serving […]
Cedar Rapids celebrates Earth Day while ...
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — City leaders probably didn’t intend to offer an ironic Earth Day message. But even as City Manager Jeff Pomeranz touted April as Earth Month in a videotaped message, in another corner of the city, a 28-acre Prairie Pollinator Zone was being prepared for destruction. “As all of you know, a healthy […]