The worst impacts were felt in the Iowa City area, where significant damage and numerous injuries were reported, in addition to at least one death across the region.

A third system developed on April 18 and brought even more severe weather, this time farther south in the lower Midwest, primarily in Missouri.

The most well-known tornado of the outbreak was a destructive high-end F2 that tore directly through downtown Iowa City shortly after dark.

The tornado then struck the University of Iowa campus, heavily damaging multiple buildings and temporarily trapping several students.

[54] As the tornado struck the downtown area, multiple historic brick buildings sustained collapse of walls or had their roofs torn off.

This likely saved many lives, as the tornado tore off the roof of the church and collapsed the top portion of the brick facade and the steeple into the main congregation area.

Elsewhere, a 53-year-old Dairy Queen was destroyed, multiple vehicles were flipped, a Wal-Mart sustained roof damage, and a gas station awning was blown over.