Devastating images show tiny town in Iowa wrecked by deadly tornado

Severe thunderstorms, spawning tornadoes, raked Iowa on Tuesday afternoon (21 May), leaving parts of one town in shambles, toppling several wind turbines and killing at least one person.

Video of the storm’s aftermath showed homes reduced to piles of rubble in Greenfield, a town of about 2,000 roughly 60 miles southwest of Des Moines in Adair County.

Iowa governor Kim Reynolds declared a “disaster emergency” for 15 counties, including Adair, allowing state resources to be readily utilised in responding to the storm.

The National Weather Service had issued tornado warnings and severe thunderstorm advisories for much of Iowa and several other Midwestern states on Tuesday.