Peak Wind Gusts From Derecho Now Estimated at 140 mph

The National Weather Service in the Quad Cities has released its preliminary peak wind gust estimates:

Current estimated max wind speed is at 140 mph in the Cedar Rapids area.

Weather.gov says that these straight line winds at this speed are equivalent to an EF3 tornado, adding:

  The maximum measured unofficial wind gust was 126 mph at Atkins, in Linn County.

Other notable Derechos that hit the area occurred in 1998 in Washington and in Vinton in 2011. For more info about Derechos, click HERE.

Here is a timeline of the Derecho from August 10, courtesy of weather.gov;