‘This is a disaster that we have never seen before. It is something that was essentially like a hurricane coming through the Midwest’ without advance notice, said U.S. Rep. Abby Finkenauer.
DES MOINES, Iowa — It will take five days or longer to restore power to some Iowa homes and businesses that have been without electricity since Monday’s wind storm left damage across the Midwest and killed at least four people, officials said Thursday. The straight-line winds that toppled trees and power lines across much of Iowa was “unlike anything our company has ever seen,” Alliant Energy spokesman Mike Wagner said. Hundreds of workers were assessing damage and clearing trees that have blocked roads and power lines, he said. The hardest hit city was Cedar Rapids, where officials said Thursday the damage left by Monday’s derecho was more extensive than the 2008 flood that destroyed much of its downtown. Alliant Energy said that about 140,000 customers in Iowa remained without power, more than half of them in Cedar Rapids. “We believe that we will be able to substantially restore power in Cedar Rapids in the next five to seven days,” Wagner said at an afternoon news conference with city leaders. Wagner said that people with homes where meters were damaged by winds will need to call electricians to get repairs before their power is restored.
