News : Officials assess damage, estimate winds at up to 130 MPH in some places

State officials assessed storm damage in Vinton on Monday.

Parts of a neighboring building ended up near a city utility facility.

The damaged picnic shelter.

The west wall of the Martin shelter was pushed in and broken by winds.

This map shows NWS estimates of wind speeds during the July 11 storm.

State and federal officials from the Iowa Department of Homeland Security spent some time today (Monday) assessing damage to public property. Two officials from the state DHS and two from FEMA saw damaged trees at Riverside Park, the damaged wall at the Donald Martin Picnic Shelter, the damaged roof at the city maintainance building and other sites. They also discussed damage to county property with Benton County EMA Director Scott Hansen.

The assessment is the first step in determining how much aid, and what kind, the city may be able to receive from state or federal agencies.

POWER 99.5% restored

The state officials asked Vinton City Coordinator Andy Lent how many residents were still without electricity. He called Rich Ohrt at the Vinton Municipal Electrical Utility, who told him that "99.5" percent of people had power, and that anyone without electricity should call city hall.

Tree removal to be long process

One of the officials from other counties to help in Vinton on Monday was Rick Wulfekuhle, the Buchanan County Emergency Management Director. Wulfekuhle has had experience in leading recovery from both flood and wind damage. He was in Vinton to help coordinate volunteers, but said that with the weather getting dangerously hot and the work week beginning, there were few volunteers to coordinate.

A week after the storm separated the branches from their trunks, most of the leaves are turning brown. Wulfekuhle said that his experience indicates that tree removal will take at least two or three rounds of cutting and removing limbs, as property owners realize over the next few weeks that some trees may have had more damage then they originally thought.

Wind speeds: 80 to 130 MPH across middle section of county

The National Weather Service came to Benton County shortly after the storm, and made wind speed estimates based on the damage they observed. The middle tier of townships, including the Garrison and Vinton areas, had the strongest winds. The photo of the marked map that accompanies this story indicates where the strongest winds blew.