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May and June are typically considered storm season in Iowa, where everything from lightning, hail, straight-line winds, flooding, or even tornados can occur frequently and can cause extensive property damage and serious personal injury.

Dallas County Emergency Management Coordinator Barry Halling says this year’s storm season has been relatively tame, with the worst damage being downed powerlines and trees, and the instance when the roof was blown of a building. However, he knows Iowa weather can be fickle and could turn nasty in a hurry, so it’s always good to be prepared. He adds, even when June ends, we’re not necessarily out of the woods, considering the floods of 1993 started in July and the Woodward tornado happened in November.

With that in mind, Halling reminds people there are ways to protect yourself in the event of severe weather. “If it’s a tornado warning or those kind of things, you need to go and put as many walls between you and the storm as you can. Basements, storm shelters, those kind of things. If you don’t have a basement, an interior bathroom, lay down in the tub. If you can cover yourself with something, whether it’s cushions off the couch, or grab a mattress off a single bed, or whatever you can grab to cover yourself up, that would help.”

Additionally, Halling says in the event of lightning storms, go inside immediately because if you can see and hear it, you’re close enough to be struck. It’s also a good idea to stay away from windows and unplug anything electric. Above all, he says to use common sense. To hear more about storm season, listen to Wednesday’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County program at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.

In the event of severe weather in our listening area, the Raccoon Valley Radio Severe Weather Action Team will bring live storm updates to keep the public informed and safe.