PLEASANT HILL, Iowa (Gray Television Iowa Capitol Bureau) – The tornadoes that hit the state put an Iowa woman in a position that she’s unfortunately found herself numerous times. She’s cleaning up from another natural disaster.

Rose Ostrand has lived in the same house in Pleasant Hill for 51 years. In that time, she’s been through the Flood of 1993 and a few tornados, but somehow the house is still here. “This is the third one out here but I’ve never had damage like this. I mean, I’ve had a couple blown windows, maybe a broken door, but nothing that we couldn’t fix ourselves. Nothing to even turn in to the insurance,” Ostrand said.

Others in the neighborhood weren’t so lucky when the EF-2 tornado touched down just before nine Friday night. The winds, which peaked around 125 miles per hour, toppled trees, blew over headstones in the cemetery, a neighbor’s trampoline ended up in a tree.

Despite living through major storms before, Ostrand still headed for cover. “I got down to my little cubby hole and I heard a loud ‘boom’, and then just glass breaking, so I knew I’d been hit, and when I got a chance to go back upstairs, I looked out the patio window and I saw my car with no garage,” Ostrand said.

Ostrand’s big tree came down and knocked out her gas meter, so she’s been without hot water since the storm. Still, she considers herself lucky that she has neighbors, like Tyler Luft, who look out for her. “They’ve done more about cleaning out my yard than I have. I’ll go out and I’ll pick up a few things and he and his wife are dragging stuff out,” Ostrand said.

Ostrand says she’s “their senior” and they’re always checking on her. Luft says the favors go both ways. “Yeah but don’t let her fool you, snow in winter, sometimes she she’d do my snow before I would get to it,”” Luft said.

Right now though, they’re focused up on cleaning from the spring storm. Ostrand has seen many come through the neighborhood before, and she says they’ll be just fine.

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Conner Hendricks covers state government and politics for Gray Television-owned stations in Iowa. Email him at conner.hendricks@gray.tv; and follow him on Facebook at Conner Hendricks TV or on X/Twitter @ConnerReports.

Copyright 2024 KCRG. All rights reserved.

At least 17 tornadoes occurred in Iowa on April 26, causing damage in several counties and significant destruction, including one death, in the small Pottawattamie County town of Minden.

That is the latest count from the National Weather Service in Des Moines based on preliminary reports and completed storm surveys as teams continue to evaluate damage and determine ratings for additional tornadoes in the coming days.

If you want to help support the communities and people impacted by the severe weather, here’s how.

How can I help, Minden, Iowa recover from the tornado?

Minden remained closed off to the general public as of Monday afternoon due to debris and the use of heavy equipment in the town. As a result, officials are asking that volunteers and organizations don’t self-deploy to the area, according to a Pottawattamie County news release.

Cleanup efforts and securing infrastructure began during the weekend, and as needs arise and safety conditions improve, officials will announce volunteer opportunities.

Monetary donations are encouraged for those who wish to donate to help people affected by the Minden tornado, who can then purchase what they need, according to the news release.

How to make Minden-specific donations will be announced in the coming days. Currently, people can make donations to the Southwest Iowa Emergency Relief Fund at givewesterniowa.org to support areas impacted in the region, according to the news release.

Readers’ Watchdog: Home damaged by weekend storms? Here’s what you need to know

How can I help Pleasant Hill, Iowa recover from the tornado?

Take an aerial look at the tornado damage Pleasant Hill suffered

A tornado swept through Pleasant Hill Friday, April 26, damaging a number of homes and power lines.

Provided by Polk County Iowa

The Pleasant Hill tornado, classified as an EF2, lasted roughly 12 minutes and caused one injury and damage to nearly 20 homes.

The city is not asking for physical donations, according to a news release on April 27. Financial donations can be made through the Disaster Recovery Fund, which the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines has activated following the severe storms and tornado that affected Pleasant Hill.

Grants are awarded to community-based organizations and service providers responding to a disaster and grants are made to meet the needs not already being addressed by existing resources and programs, according to the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines.

Pleasant Hill’s Facebook page encourages people needing assistance or wanting to offer assistance to call 211.

More: Parking is not allowed on some Pleasant Hill streets as crews clean up tornado debris

Looking for another way to help? Round up your purchase at Casey’s

Shoppers can round up their purchases at Casey’s stores in Iowa, Nebraska and Oklahoma as part of a campaign supporting the American Red Cross through May 10, said Katie Petru, a spokesperson for the convenience store chain.

Here are tips to avoid scams after disasters

People impacted by natural disasters such as a tornado should be aware of fraudulent contractors that take advantage of people in need of repairs.

The Iowa Attorney General’s Office has some tips if you hire a contractor. Here are several:

• Work with an established, reputable local contractor.
• Legitimate contractors rarely solicit through door-to-door, so be skeptical about who shows up at your home.
• Avoid paying large sums of money to a contractor in advance. If you have to make a partial advance payment for materials, make your payment out to the supplier and the contractor and insist on a mechanic’s lien waiver in case the contractor fails to pay others.

People should also watch for scammers posing as officials with government disaster assistance agencies, according to the Federal Trade Commission. You can spot an imposter because they’ll demand money.

But scams aren’t limited to those impacted by a natural disaster.

People wanting to help those impacted by a natural disaster should be aware of scammers seeking donations for disaster relief. Donate to trusted, well-known charities and verify its legitimacy through its official website as scammers may create fake charities during natural disasters, according to the FTC.  

Paris Barraza is a trending and general assignment reporter at the Des Moines Register. Reach her at pbarraza@registermedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Protests in support of Palestine are unfolding at a number of college campuses across the country.

Sunday, people gathered in Iowa City to protest an event hosting House Speaker Mike Johnson, who has condemned the student protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Health officials have reported tens of thousands dead in the Gaza Strip, following the October 7th Hamas attack which killed hundreds of Israelis.

The protestors in Iowa City on Sunday said they wanted the U.S. to have no part in any deaths.

“We want our President and our Congress to take concrete steps to stop sending weapons to Israel,” said Newman Abuissa, one of the protestors.

Abuissa said he does not support violence or Hamas.

“We condemn Hamas’ killing of civilians,” he said.

Spencer Morton, another protestor, said he was there to “protest Speaker Mike Johnson, who has categorized these crowds as anti-Semitic and disruptive.”

Johnson made those remarks Wednesday as he called for the resignation of the President of Columbia University, the site of a major Free Palestine protest.

“This is threats and intimidation of violence against Jewish students for who they are,” he said.

Johnson oversaw the passage of a foreign aid package in the House, which was signed by President Biden last week. The bill provides a total of $26 billion for Israel, which does include funding for humanitarian relief in the Gaza Strip.

Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks, who spoke with Johnson at an event in Iowa City Sunday, said it was imperative to continue to support America’s ally, Israel.

“Hamas is a proxy for Iran,” she said. “When America is weak, and we allow a vacuum to exist, we see foreign aggression.”

TV9 asked if she believed the U.S. should support Israel no matter what.

“I am saying that we will continue to push Israel to make sure that they limit any harm to civilians,” said Miller-Meeks. “The IDF is doing all that they can, but even our troops, even American troops, even the United States—when you’re doing urban warfare, it is extraordinarily difficult.”

Like Johnson, Miller-Meeks also voiced opposition to the pro-Palestinian protests.

She said she believed the protestors “don’t even know what the words they espouse mean. It’s one thing to protest, to exercise your right to free speech in support. It’s another thing to espouse hatred and killing of Jews.”

These protestors said killing was the very thing they were fighting against.

“It’s important to support life,” said Morton.

Copyright 2024 KCRG. All rights reserved.