Officials: 7 Dead After Tornadoes Tore Through Central Iowa

Betty Hope of Winterset, Iowa, searches for items worth keeping at her home as cleanup efforts are underway on Sunday, March 6, 2022, after a tornado tore through an area southwest of town on Saturday. (Bryon Houlgrave/The Des Moines Register via AP)

WINTERSET, Iowa (AP) – Authorities say seven people are dead after tornadoes swept through central Iowa, destroying homes, knocking down trees and toppling power lines in the deadliest storm in the state since 2008.

Emergency management officials in Madison County said six people were killed when one tornado touched down Saturday in an area southwest of Des Moines near the town of Winterset.

Among those killed were two children under the age of 5.

Officials confirmed one death when a separate tornado struck in Lucas County, about 54 miles southeast of Des Moines. Madison County Emergency Management Director Diogenes Ayala said 52 homes were damaged or destroyed across nearly 14 miles.

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