Black Hawk County weather alerts
There are no active weather alerts for Black Hawk County, IA right now.
Since 2016 the National Weather Service has issued about 883 alerts that included Black Hawk County, roughly 88 a year. The most common is the severe thunderstorm warning (121 from 2016 to 2025). The last tornado warning was issued on August 7, 2026. 40 tornadoes have touched down in the county since 1950.
Updated from the National Weather Service · lists refresh hourly; the live map loads current alerts directly from the NWS
No warnings, watches or advisories include Black Hawk County at the moment. This page updates automatically when the National Weather Service issues one. Check neighboring Buchanan County, Bremer County, Grundy County, Benton County.
Black Hawk County alert history
Alert events that included Black Hawk County or its forecast zones, from the NWS warning archive.
| Alert type | 2016–2025 | 2026 | Last issued |
|---|---|---|---|
| Severe Thunderstorm Warning | 121 | 18 | August 7, 2026 |
| Winter Weather Advisory | 109 | 6 | March 16, 2026 |
| Flood Warning | 101 | 7 | October 2, 2026 |
| Dense Fog Advisory | 85 | 8 | September 17, 2026 |
| Wind Advisory | 81 | 3 | April 8, 2026 |
| Severe Thunderstorm Watch | 69 | 8 | August 18, 2026 |
| Cold Weather Advisory | 52 | 3 | January 26, 2026 |
| Flood Watch | 31 | 7 | September 30, 2026 |
| Heat Advisory | 28 | 2 | August 31, 2026 |
| Winter Storm Warning | 27 | 1 | February 19, 2026 |
| Winter Storm Watch | 24 | 1 | March 15, 2026 |
| Tornado Watch | 22 | 5 | July 20, 2026 |
| Freeze Warning | 21 | 2 | October 17, 2026 |
| Frost Advisory | 16 | 2 | May 11, 2026 |
| Red Flag Warning | 14 | 2 | March 28, 2026 |
| Extreme Cold Warning | 12 | 1 | January 23, 2026 |
| Flash Flood Warning | 11 | 2 | October 1, 2026 |
| Tornado Warning | 11 | 3 | August 7, 2026 |
| High Wind Warning | 10 | 3 | June 11, 2026 |
| Blizzard Warning | 6 | 2 | March 15, 2026 |
| Extreme Heat Watch | 6 | 2 | July 27, 2026 |
| Extreme Heat Warning | 5 | 2 | July 26, 2026 |
| Freeze Watch | 5 | 1 | October 17, 2026 |
| Extreme Cold Watch | 5 | 1 | January 23, 2026 |
| High Wind Watch | 4 | 2 | March 15, 2026 |
| Fire Weather Watch | 3 | 2 | March 28, 2026 |
| Ice Storm Warning | 3 | 0 | December 14, 2024 |
| Snow Squall Warning | 1 | 0 | December 28, 2025 |
Tornado history in Black Hawk County
40 tornadoes have been recorded in Black Hawk County since 1950, killing 12 people and injuring 146. That ranks 32 of 99 counties in Iowa. The most recent was on March 28, 2020 (rated unknown).
Strongest tornadoes in Black Hawk County
| Date | Rating | County | Path length | Width | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 25, 2008 | EF5 | Grundy County | 41 mi | 2,100 yd | 9 | 70 |
| August 26, 1965 | F4 | Black Hawk County | 4.7 mi | 200 yd | 1 | 17 |
| April 16, 1960 | F3 | Grundy County | 29.8 mi | 800 yd | 1 | 5 |
| May 11, 2000 | F3 | Black Hawk County | 18.6 mi | 210 yd | 1 | 25 |
| November 9, 1975 | F3 | Tama County | 39.4 mi | 10 yd | 0 | 0 |
Most recent tornadoes
| Date | Rating | County | Path length | Width | Deaths | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 28, 2020 | ? | Black Hawk County | 0.3 mi | 20 yd | 0 | 0 |
| March 28, 2020 | EF0 | Black Hawk County | 2.1 mi | 115 yd | 0 | 0 |
| March 28, 2020 | ? | Black Hawk County | 2.3 mi | 40 yd | 0 | 0 |
| October 9, 2018 | EF0 | Black Hawk County | 1.9 mi | 50 yd | 0 | 0 |
| August 31, 2014 | EF0 | Black Hawk County | 3.2 mi | 80 yd | 0 | 0 |
About Black Hawk County
- Population: 132,348 (2024 estimate)
- State: Iowa
- NOAA Weather Radio SAME code: 019013 (how to use it)