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86-643: DAEC entered operation in February 1975. On August 10, 2020, the plant cooling towers were damaged during a derecho , and repairs were deemed uneconomical, as the plant had already been scheduled for decommissioning in October 2020. The operator and majority owner is NextEra Energy Resources (70%). The Central Iowa Power Cooperative owns 20% and the Corn Belt Power Cooperative owns 10%. In January 2018, NextEra Energy announced that it

172-516: A $ 110 million buyout payment from Alliant, making the expected closure date 2020. DAEC has a single GE BWR-4 reactor with a Mark I containment. Twenty-four mechanical draft cooling towers utilized water from the Cedar River as a heat sink. Facilities exist to process all contaminated water onsite and the DAEC operates with a "zero release" policy to not discharge any contaminated water back to

258-597: A 1979 interview with the Des Moines Register , about a month after the Three Mile Island accident . Construction was completed and the reactor reached initial criticality on March 23, 1974. The cost was $ 50 million over budget. Commercial operations began on February 1, 1975. The plant was licensed for 1,658 MWt. However, power operations were restricted to 1593MWt (about 535 MWe) until plant modifications were completed in 1985 to utilize

344-429: A broader swath of 60–70 mph (97–113 km/h) winds as the storm moved across northern Illinois and northwestern Indiana between 2–5 p.m. Despite the weakening of straight-line winds, the atmospheric environment became more conducive for tornadogenesis during this time. This resulted in several brief EF0 and EF1 tornadoes developing over northern Illinois and Indiana. The derecho's winds continued to lessen as

430-472: A dozen individuals directly injured by the storm across the state. A month after the storm, Chicago was still cleaning up storm damaged areas. In city parks, over 500 trees fell. The city fielded over 12,000 emergency calls regarding trees in the city after the storm hit. Over 800,000 Com Ed customers lost power. In Fort Wayne, Indiana , a woman was killed when high winds tipped over her mobile home. In Poweshiek County, Iowa , Emergency Management confirmed

516-747: A federal disaster declaration from President Donald Trump. The declaration was formally requested by Reynolds on August 16 for nearly $ 4 billion in federal aid. The following day, Trump announced he had partially approved Reynolds's request, but did not approve the requested FEMA Individual Assistance Program, which Reynolds's office says "provides disaster-impacted homeowners and businesses with programs and services to maximize recovery, including assistance with housing, personal property replacement, medical expenses and legal services". An amended declaration to include Individual Assistance worked its way through Washington, according to Reynolds. The White House approved it for Linn County on August 20. On September 1,

602-586: A federal disaster declaration. An amended declaration for Individual Assistance was approved by the White House for Linn County, Iowa alone on August 20, then expanded to 10 counties on September 1 along with concurrent natural disaster declarations from the United States Department of Agriculture on September 3. On September 10, Gov. Reynolds extended the disaster proclamation for those aforementioned Iowa counties. On September 11, it

688-423: A hundred cars parked near a factory had their windows blown out. Reports described 99 miles per hour (160 kilometers per hour; 44 meters per second) winds, roofs being ripped off, and loose wood debris embedded in the sides of buildings. One week after the storm, nearly 7,000 residents of the city were still waiting for power restoration; 99 percent restoration was achieved on Aug 23. The damage to public parks in

774-638: A means for tornado warnings as well as plant emergencies. The Emergency Planning organization at DAEC works with local, county, and state officials to maintain an emergency plan. The emergency plan can be found in the front of area phonebooks. Drills are conducted on a regular basis in accordance with requirements from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Tax revenues from DAEC amount to about 1% of

860-453: A median income of $ 38,525 versus $ 26,403 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 22,977. About 4.30% of families and 6.50% of the population were below the poverty line , including 7.60% of those under age 18 and 6.40% of those age 65 or over. The Linn County Board of Supervisors consists of three members elected by district to overlapping four-year terms. The current supervisors are: The Board of Supervisors operates as both

946-684: A narrow swath. In response to these developments, the SPC issued a special Convective Outlook at 8:00 a.m., highlighting a now Enhanced Risk of severe weather for areas in the storms' path including Cedar Rapids, Iowa , the Quad Cities metropolitan area , and Peoria, Illinois . According to the SPC, there was a 30 percent likelihood of areas within the Enhanced Risk zone experiencing thunderstorm winds or wind gusts in excess of 50 kn (60 mph; 95 km/h). After 8:00 a.m.,

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1032-452: A population of 211,226 in the county, with a population density of 294.4163/sq mi (113.6748/km ). There were 92,251 housing units, of which 86,134 were occupied. At the 2000 census there were 191,701 people, 76,753 households, and 50,349 families in the county. The population density was 267 inhabitants per square mile (103/km ). There were 80,551 housing units at an average density of 112 per square mile (43/km ). The racial makup of

1118-534: A preliminary evaluation four days after the storm, the Cedar Rapids fire department declared over a thousand residences unsafe to occupy; in addition, 300 had non-structural damage and over 200 cosmetic damage. By August 23, that count had shrunk to 140, with many more buildings being added to the non-structural damage category. By September 4, 2020 utility workers had installed over 3,400 new poles along with 400 mi (640 km; 640,000 m) of wiring in

1204-576: A reliable hardened venting capability for pre-core damage and under severe accident conditions, including those involving a breach of the reactor vessel by molten core debris" due to the similarity in reactor design. DAEC employed hundreds of people in the Cedar Rapids area. Some of these workers are represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers , others by Security, Police and Fire Professionals of America. Emergency warning towers are maintained by DAEC and provide

1290-458: A small portion of the tens of billions of bushels the US produces annually. Arlan Suderman, chief commodities economist for StoneX, estimated the damage to Iowa crops to be 200–400 million US bushels (7.05–14.1 million cubic metres). The agricultural damage of the derecho was compounded by a concurrent drought affecting 31 counties. Farmers preferred drought to wet conditions in the wake of

1376-460: A swath of the central U.S. extending from northern Kansas to southern Michigan , including parts of southern Iowa , northern Missouri , and northern Illinois . The risk level was elevated to a Slight Risk at midnight on August 10 prior to the onset of the damaging storms. Temperatures and dew points were between 70–80 °F (21–27 °C) across the Midwestern U.S. around dawn on

1462-514: A telecommunications company, reported 340,000 customers lost Internet access in the affected states. The storm's winds caused wide-scale damage to plants, particularly trees, snapping large limbs, ripping off branches, and even felling or uprooting whole trees, often damaging houses and vehicles, as well as electrical and telecommunications infrastructure. Houses sustained significant damage to roofs, windows, and siding. Commercial and industrial property also sustained major structural damage from

1548-469: A years-long cleanup effort. Derechos of similar intensity to the August ;2020 storm impact the Midwestern U.S. roughly once per decade, with similar derechos having occurred in 1998 and 2011. As with derechos in general, the continuous downwelling of high winds associated with the nearby jet stream and the expansion of dense rain-cooled air in the storm's wake induced the destructive winds and

1634-476: Is a county located in the U.S. state of Iowa . As of the 2020 census , the population was 230,299, making it the second-most populous county in Iowa. The county seat is Cedar Rapids . Linn County is named in honor of Senator Lewis F. Linn of Missouri . Linn County is included in the Cedar Rapids, IA Metropolitan Statistical Area . The earliest inhabitants of Linn County, prior to Anglo settlement, were

1720-403: Is continuing indefinitely with the city having removed 2.8 million cubic yards (2.1 million cubic metres) of organic debris to date; the trimming of damaged tree limbs in the public right of way is 73 percent complete. On December 3, Taylor Burgin, Cedar Rapids' construction engineering manager, said that city crews and contractors are beginning a thorough cleanup of city parks — this

1806-729: Is expected to add an estimated 1.5 million cubic yards (1.1 million cubic metres) to city removal metrics. Burgin also noted the city has removed around 2,000 trees, but needed at least 10,000 more to complete citywide cleanup. In the Des Moines metropolitan area , over 132,000 customer experienced outages, according to MidAmerican. The city said on August 21 that cleanup was slower than desired, estimating that damage cleanup could take up to six weeks. It planned to lease equipment from contractors to accelerate cleanup. The city of Ankeny estimated it would take four to six weeks to fully clean up debris. A Hy-Vee grocery store there

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1892-557: Is land and 7.6 square miles (20 km ) (1.1%) is water. The 2020 census recorded a population of 230,299 in the county, with a population density of 317.2724/sq mi (122.49956/km ). 94.04% of the population reported being of one race. 78.91% were non-Hispanic White, 7.14% were Black, 3.87% were Hispanic, 0.24% were Native American, 2.33% were Asian, 0.23% were Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander and 7.28% were some other race or more than one race. There were 101,230 housing units, of which 94,751 were occupied. The 2010 census recorded

1978-797: Is leased to farmers for crop production or is left in its natural habitat. In 2014, the Nuclear Energy Institute released a study showing the positive impact of DAEC on the economy and environment. Key findings are listed below. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission defines two emergency planning zones around nuclear power plants: a plume exposure pathway zone with a radius of 10 miles (16 km), concerned primarily with exposure to, and inhalation of, airborne radioactive contamination , and an ingestion pathway zone of about 50 miles (80 km), concerned primarily with ingestion of food and liquid contaminated by radioactivity. The 2010 U.S. population within 10 miles (16 km) of Duane Arnold

2064-781: Is the most costly thunderstorm in US history. The financial toll of this storm was the second-highest for an individual 2020 U.S. natural disaster, surpassed only by Hurricane Laura 's preliminary damage figure of $ 14.1 billion. Utility disruption and infrastructure damage occurred in much of the storm's path. Early estimates showed more than a million customers without power. Between August 10 and 13, 1.9 million customers were affected by 1.4 million maximum simultaneous outages—759,000 in Illinois, 585,000 in Iowa, 283,000 in Indiana, and 345,000 in other states, including Missouri, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Three days after

2150-726: The 2008 Iowa Flood , when other power plants along the Cedar River shut down. Practice drills for radiological emergencies from the plant allowed the Linn County Emergency Management Agency to better respond to the flooding. In December 2010, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission granted Duane Arnold a 20-year extension license lasting until 2034, taking the plant beyond the life of its original 40-year operating permit. In July 2018, NextEra and Alliant Energy agreed to shorten their power purchase agreement by five years in return for

2236-586: The August 2020 Midwest derecho . An NRC report of the incident stated that "the vacuum drawn in secondary containment by the standby gas treatment system was slightly below the technical specification (TS) limit", indicating that the secondary containment system might not have been fully effective had it been challenged. Thus the incident was considered by nuclear safety experts to be "a close call ". As of 2024, John Ketchum, NextEra’s chief executive officer said that, under certain conditions, they’re willing to revive

2322-552: The Iowa Department of Natural Resources , said that the impact on the state's trees will be felt for decades. Affected towns and cities advised residents not to travel due to damage. City-wide and county-wide states of emergency were declared. On August 13, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds issued a state-level disaster proclamation for 23 of Iowa's counties , which expanded to 27 counties on August 14. On August 17, President Trump partially approved Gov. Reynolds' request for

2408-505: The Sac and Fox tribes. Relations were described by 20th century historians as amicable. Native Americans provided food and furs to whites in exchange for merchandise. Linn County was created as a named but unorganized area on December 21, 1837, as a part of Wisconsin Territory . It became part of Iowa Territory on July 4, 1838, when the territory was organized. Linn County was organized by

2494-498: The Southwestern U.S. , resulting in an elevated mixed layer that allowed instability to escalate. These convectively unstable conditions permeated across Iowa and were characterized by steep lapse rates in the mid-levels of the troposphere as sampled via weather balloon launches from Omaha, Nebraska , on the morning of August 10, and from Davenport, Iowa , at noon that day; the atmospheric sounding retrieved from

2580-403: The 11.4% cost of capital reported by NextEra puts the wholesale price at $ 0.21/kWh, not including operating and decommissioning costs. The Mark I containment was undersized in the original design; the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Harold Denton estimated a 90% probability of explosive failure if the pressure containment system were ever needed in a severe accident. This design flaw may have been

2666-463: The 2018 tornado and later impacted by the derecho. As of December 8, 2020, Riverside Cemetery, a century-old burial site located in the city, remains littered with debris as the city struggles to raise money for its care. Across the state of Illinois, high winds and fifteen weak tornadoes, the majority of the derecho's tornadoes ( see § Confirmed tornadoes ), caused variable damage to buildings, trees, and vehicles. Officials reported

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2752-402: The 75 square miles (190 km ) Cedar Rapids city limits, including residences, 20 schools, and businesses, were damaged in some way, much of it severe, some of it catastrophic. Hundreds of thousands of trees, for which Cedar Rapids was known, were severely damaged or felled by the storm with both Cedar Rapids and nearby Marion estimated to have lost half or more of their tree canopy from

2838-536: The Board of Supervisors. The County Attorney, Auditor, Recorder, Sheriff, and Treasurer are elected separately. Presidentially, as Iowa shifted dramatically from competitive to firmly Republican during the Donald Trump era in the mid-to-late 2010s, this is one of the state's few remaining Democratic strongholds. It last voted Republican during the landslide reelection of Ronald Reagan in 1984, and has been won by

2924-527: The Cedar Rapids area after repairing most of the main electrical infrastructure in the city. As of November 17, 2020, Alliant Energy was still working on restoring street lights in the area, many still hampered by debris or broken trees. On November 9, 2020 Dr. Melanie Giesler, a local physician, said increased allergies in the area were likely due to the derecho damage, spurred on by dust, debris, and mold growing on dead plant matter. In July 2022, The Gazette reported that nearly two years after

3010-795: The Cedar Rapids area; two days later, nearly 10,000 of those customers were still without service. On August 14, a hundred engineering and support personnel of the Iowa National Guard were activated to assist the region. A week after the storm, 75,000 Iowans, most of them in Linn County, still lacked electricity. On August 19, the Linn County Rural Electric Cooperative announced 99 percent power restoration to its customers. By September 22, hundreds of Mediacom and ImOn customers still remained without internet service. Almost every structure within

3096-403: The Cedar River. Facilities exist on site for dry storage of spent fuel with capacity for the entire life of the plant (including license renewal). The site is scheduled for a 200 MW label capacity solar park with a 75 MW / 300 MWh (4-hour) battery by 2024. Lazard estimates that the wholesale price of replacement electricity will be $ 0.04/kWh, but a more realistic estimate that takes account of

3182-650: The Davenport balloon launch observed lapse rates of 8.5 °C/km. The warm front demarcating the northward push of the unstable air also focused the development of storms across the region. Prior to August 10, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) and the local offices of the National Weather Service (NWS) did not anticipate a storm of exceptional magnitude. Predictive weather models also yielded inaccurate projections of

3268-528: The Midwest were affected by wide-scale utility disruptions, residential and commercial property damage, and severe damage to corn and soybean crops. Cedar Rapids, Iowa , was the most severely damaged, suffering a near-complete blackout that lasted for weeks in some areas, widespread and severe property damage , and an estimated loss of at least half of the city's tree canopy . The derecho caused over $ 11 billion (2020 USD) in damages and spawned

3354-425: The SPC for areas ahead of the storm including central Iowa, southern Wisconsin , northern Illinois, and northwestern Indiana . Shortly after, the SPC introduced a Moderate Risk for severe weather in its categorical outlooks for similar areas. Around the same time, a counterclockwise vortex developed on the northern end of the storm, resulting in the storm attaining a bow-like structure with its strongest winds at

3440-511: The US, found their crops had been flattened and agricultural infrastructure such as silos, grain bins and grain elevators imploded by the storm. The crop damage was visible in satellite imagery, which the USDA called impressive. NASA researchers assisted in satellite image analysis of derecho crop damage. The USDA's Risk Management Agency reported that 57 of Iowa's 99 counties, with 14 million acres (56,700 km ) of crops, had been in

3526-676: The airport and did not interact with the public, tour damage, or assist in recovery efforts during his visit. On August 19, Naig met with farmers in Marion to personally assess the damage. Ernst toured damaged in Marshalltown. On September 2, Grassley and Ernst fielded questions from Cedar Rapids-area non-profit organizations. On September 3, US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue underwent an Iowa National Guard-hosted aerial tour of crop damage in Iowa along with Reynolds, Ernst, and Naig. Linn County, Iowa Linn County

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3612-476: The apex of this shape. University of Oklahoma meteorologist and tornado expert Stephen Corfidi remarked that the vortex was "one of the most distinctive ones of that size" he had ever seen. The core of stronger winds tracked east at speeds of 65–70 mph (110–130 km/h) and bore faster wind speeds. The derecho was at its strongest when it moved across the Cedar Rapids area of eastern Iowa. Based on

3698-502: The city and surrounding Marshall County was "extensive", particularly to trees. Damage metrics released on September 1 showed nearly 2,800 buildings were damaged or destroyed in the storm, more than the 2018 EF3 tornado which hit the city. City cleanup for the derecho is estimated around $ 4 million, of which FEMA and the Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management will assist for reimbursement. By August 20,

3784-466: The city had hauled away 66,000 cubic yards (50,000 m ) of debris, almost triple the amount of the 2018 tornado. By late October, Justin Nickel, the city's public works director, said debris collection and cleanup were nearly complete for the city. Marshalltown Veteran's Memorial Coliseum, a historic city sports venue, is reopening soon as of November 30, 2020 after being severely damaged by

3870-580: The city. Approximately 65% of the tree canopy was destroyed city wide. After the storm, Linn County peaked at over 95 percent power loss to residents due to infrastructure damage, with Cedar Rapids experiencing a maximum 98 percent power loss. Thousands of electrical poles and miles of wire were downed; many residential gas connections were also broken. Radio masts and towers were damaged or destroyed, causing radio outages and dysfunctional mobile phone service. On August 12, Mediacom said 57,000 modems were offline across eastern Iowa, most of them in

3956-564: The county was 93.90% White , 2.57% Black or African American , 0.22% Native American , 1.37% Asian , 0.05% Pacific Islander , 0.46% from other races, and 1.44% from two or more races. 1.42%. were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 76,753 households 31.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.20% were married couples living together, 9.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.40% were non-families. 27.50% of households were one person and 8.90% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size

4042-532: The damage. On August 15, Finkenauer toured damage in Marshalltown. On August 17, Pete Gaynor , Administrator of FEMA , traveled to Iowa to meet with Governor Reynolds about the disaster. On August 18, Trump arrived at midday in Cedar Rapids, joining a private meeting with Iowa senators Grassley, Ernst and Cedar Rapids Mayor Brad Hart . At the meeting, Hart begged Trump to approve the Individual Assistance Program. Trump remained at

4128-539: The deaths of two: a Malcom woman in her 40s killed when a tree fell on her porch and a Brooklyn man in his 40s, a city employee and electrician , killed by electrocution from a downed power line he was attempting to repair. The Linn County Sheriff's Office confirmed a 63-year-old man died from a falling tree while biking. In the week after the storm, Iowa elected officials such as US Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst , US Representative Abby Finkenauer , and Governor Kim Reynolds called for and worked to secure

4214-400: The derecho damage, as wet conditions would induce rot and make it harder to harvest the flattened crops. In eastern Nebraska near Tekamah and Fremont , some of earliest storm damage occurred. The National Weather Service issued a warning at 8:45 a.m., with Omaha reporting its first damage just eight minutes later. Winds reached 67 mph (108 km/h; 30.0 m/s), tree damage

4300-556: The derecho's path. This is almost 66 percent of the 21.3 million acres (86,200 km ) of corn and soybeans planted in 2020, or 45 percent of the state's total 30.6 million acres (124,000 km ) of arable land . Damage was particularly heavy in 36 of those 57 counties, accounting for a total of 3.57 million acres (14,400 km ) of corn and 2.5 million acres (10,100 km ) of soybeans, which combined account for 20 percent of Iowa's cropland. Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig said, on August 14, that

4386-495: The derecho's winds spread outward from the storm beneath an atmospheric inversion aloft, spreading to the south and southeast and causing damage over 50 mi (80 km) away from the storm in areas with minimal rainfall. Over the next two hours, the storm traversed central Iowa with a rapid forward speed of up to 60 mph (95 km/h), impacting communities including Ames , Des Moines , and Marshalltown . Wind gusts approaching 120 mph (190 km/h) were produced by

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4472-469: The derecho, over 100,000 customers in Illinois, and 200,000 in Iowa, remained without power. The damage in some affected areas was so extensive that Mid-American Energy sent linemen to neighboring utility Alliant Energy to assist. The Duane Arnold Energy Center cooling towers were damaged and the nuclear reactor was shut down permanently. By August 23, Alliant announced that power had been restored to 99 percent of their affected customers. Mediacom ,

4558-431: The derecho, owners of homes with historic preservation concerns were still repairing antique windows damaged by the storm. Local groups and trusts were reported to have organized workshops for affected homeowners about how to properly restore this type of construction. On August 21, Marion city officials announced 98 percent of its streets were cleared and over 7,000 truckloads of debris had been removed. A month after

4644-516: The executive and legislative branches of Linn County government and oversees the following departments directly: Communications, Community Services, Engineering/Secondary Road, Facilities, Finance & Budget, Human Resources, Information Technology, LIFTS (para-transit transportation), Planning & Development, Policy & Administration, Purchasing, Risk Management, Soil & Water Conservation, Sustainability, and Veteran Affairs. Conservation and Public Health report to independent boards appointed by

4730-525: The extent of the damage with what he personally witnessed after Hurricane Katrina . Cedar Rapids city officials described the damage as being worse than the 2008 flood . Local hospitals, running on backup power, saw hundreds of injuries due to the storm. The widespread debris, downed electrical lines, and gas leaks led to a curfew through August 24. Cedar Rapids Director of Public Works Jen Winter said in September 2020 that months of cleanup lay ahead for

4816-555: The first legislative assembly of the Iowa Territory on January 15, 1839. A site was selected for its first county seat along Indian Creek , and was named Marion , after the Revolutionary War general Francis Marion . As early as 1855, there were debates over moving the county seat to the fast-growing Cedar Rapids , southwest of Marion, but it was not until November 6, 1919, that there were enough votes in favor of

4902-521: The full licensed capacity. In May 2000, the NRC granted a license transfer of the DAEC to Nuclear Management Company LLC (NMC). Ownership of the plant remained with Alliant, Central Iowa Power Cooperative and Corn Belt Power Cooperative, but NMC would manage the operation of the plant. In 2001, a power uprate was approved by the NRC to 1,912 MWt. Scheduled outages since that time have added modifications to

4988-457: The governor's Office announced the addition of 10 counties approved for FEMA Individual Assistance. On September 3, US Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue declared natural disasters in eighteen , opening up Farm Service Agency and other USDA disaster relief programs. On September 11, it was announced FEMA added seven Iowa counties to the August 17 federal disaster declaration increasing

5074-624: The morning of August 10. Winds blowing from the west were juxtaposed atop near-surface winds blowing from the southwest and south, resulting in strong wind shear over the region. The derecho began as a cluster of scattered thunderstorms that had formed during the previous night over south-central South Dakota . These storms tracked east along the South Dakota– Nebraska border and became better organized and coalesced, producing hail with diameters between 1–2 in (25–51 mm) and wind gusts between 60–70 mph (97–113 km/h) over

5160-504: The move (9,960 to 4,823). The first rail line was built through Cedar Rapids in 1859, and made the town (and the county) a major commercial hub in eastern Iowa. Many areas of the county were damaged by the flooding of Cedar River in June 2008, and again during the August 2020 Midwest derecho . According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 725 square miles (1,880 km ), of which 717 square miles (1,860 km )

5246-434: The plant that have allowed this power level to be sustained without restrictions or challenges to nuclear or industrial safety. On January 27, 2006, FPL Energy (a subsidiary of FPL Group ) closed the sale transaction of 70 percent ownership from Alliant Energy - Interstate Power and Light . FPL Energy (now NextEra Energy Resources ) also took control of the operations of the plant from NMC. DAEC remained online during

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5332-498: The plant. During last full year of operation in 2019, Duane Arnold generated 5,235 GWh of electricity. In the late 1960s, Iowa Electric Light & Power Co. (now Alliant Energy – West), Central Iowa Power Cooperative and Corn Belt Power Cooperative applied for a nuclear plant license with the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). On June 17, 1970 a construction permit was granted and work began. The original plan

5418-473: The reason that the tsunami in 2011 led to explosions and fire in Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster . In 2010, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission estimated that the risk of an earthquake causing core damage to the reactor at Duane Arnold was 1 in 31,250 each year. In 2013, in response to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster , the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ordered Duane Arnold "to install

5504-538: The severity of damage observed, the NWS estimated that wind gusts of 130–140 mph (210–230 km/h) impacted parts of Benton and Linn counties in Iowa, including downtown Cedar Rapids and Marion . These winds diminished slightly as the derecho approached the Mississippi River , though gusts of 80–100 mph (130–160 km/h) remained widespread. The more extreme corridor of wind gusts transitioned into

5590-417: The storm and continued to do so even on the day of the event. On August 3, the SPC noted in a Convective Outlook that a series of shortwave troughs was forecast to move through northern portions of the U.S. in the coming days, becoming possible impetuses for thunderstorm development leading up to and on August 10. Three days before the event, the SPC assessed a Marginal Risk of severe weather for

5676-405: The storm during this period. Aloft, the storm was being supported by a rear-inflow jet sporting winds of 80–100 kn (90–115 mph; 150–185 km/h) with the downwind airmass exhibiting convective available potential energy (CAPE) values between 2000–2500  J /kg. At 11:25 a.m., a severe thunderstorm watch tagged as denoting a particularly dangerous situation was issued by

5762-481: The storm front traveled west-to-east at an average speed of 55 mph (88.5 km/h; 24.6 m/s). A combination of strong ambient winds and extreme convective instability facilitated the strength and unusual characteristics of the derecho. The latter factor resulted from the conducive overlapping of moist air drawn northward across the Mississippi Valley and warm and dry air aloft originating from

5848-474: The storm moved through Sioux City, Iowa , crossing the Big Sioux River and entering western Iowa. Heating associated with the daytime hours made for warmer conditions near the ground, allowing strong winds produced by the storms to descend to and reach the surface. The storm's winds began to increase considerably after the storm reached west central Iowa at around 10: a.m. During this time, some of

5934-459: The storm tracked farther east, weakening below damaging levels shortly after 7 p.m. as the storm was moving into Ohio and Michigan . In its October 2020 review, NOAA updated its database of billion-dollar disasters to include this event (along with other disasters from the summer season) with preliminary estimated damages averaging 7.5 billion dollars, before upgrading the estimate to $ 11 billion. As of October 2020, it

6020-656: The storm was a "devastating blow" to the Iowa agricultural industry, especially since it took place mere weeks before the beginning of the seasonal harvest. On August 19, he said the storm destroyed an estimated 100 million US bushels (3.52 million cubic metres) worth of grain storage and processing infrastructure as well. The average projected yield for the state was nearly halved, from 202 US bushels per acre (1,760 m /km ) to 100–150 US bushels per acre (871–1,310 m /km ). Prescient Weather CEO Jan Dutton estimated that 180–270 million US bushels (6.34–9.51 million cubic metres) had been destroyed or degraded,

6106-503: The storm was estimated at $ 21.6 million. Several major roads in Iowa City were closed due to storm debris, including Interstate 380 between Iowa City and Cedar Rapids. Four state parks were closed through the end of August for cleanup; as of December 2020, all had reopened except Palisades-Kepler State Park, which was closed indefinitely due to storm damage until reopening on April 23, 2021. Emma Hanigan, an urban forester for

6192-421: The storm's motion. However, the August 2020 derecho was unusual for the longevity of the damaging winds it produced; some areas were subjected to these winds for up to an hour compared to the 10–20 minutes of sustained damaging winds in a typical derecho, resulting in conditions similar to the passage of a hurricane's eyewall . Media outlets described the storm as an "inland hurricane". On average,

6278-416: The storm, Cedar Rapids had completed the first pass of storm debris collection on only 37.5 percent of its streets. By September 28, the city had removed 53,598 truckloads of debris for an approximate total of 230,000 short tons (210,000 t). As of November 24, 2020, cleanup was ongoing with the city currently working on the final public collection of non-organic debris. Collection of organic/tree debris

6364-436: The storm. Large vehicles (such as semi-trailer trucks and recreational vehicles ) as well as mobile homes were blown over, sent flying, or destroyed. Terry Dusky, chief executive officer of electrical infrastructure company ITC Midwest, described the storm damage as "...equivalent of a 40-mile wide tornado that rolled over 100 miles of the state." Farmers in Iowa, a major agricultural state and top corn producer in

6450-551: The storm; professional arborists and state foresters urged residents to seek professional help for their tree damage, saying it could take months to clean up. Many local businesses were forced to close, some indefinitely due to damage. Most of the city's roads became impassible due to storm debris. Without electrical refrigeration, food spoiled en masse while trash and recycling pickup had been halted until August 31 due to impassable streets causing bags of rotting trash to line curbsides, subjecting them to scavengers . In

6536-538: The total counties to 23 , allowing for Public Assistance Program use in those counties; a separate declaration was declared for the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa as well. On August 13, Vice President Mike Pence held two campaign rallies in Iowa. He promised to help Iowa rebuild, but did not tour areas damaged by the storm. On August 14, Reynolds arrived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa with more than 100 Iowa National Guard members, activated to help repair

6622-486: The total revenues for Linn County, Iowa . Pleasant Creek Reservoir, a 410-acre (1.7 km) lake, was developed by Alliant Energy and the Iowa Conservation Commission to provide a recreation area and act as a source of cooling water during times of low flow in the Cedar River. While the DAEC site covers 500 acres (2.0 km), only a portion of that is used for power production. The remainder

6708-427: The way the daughter, Henrietta, of the previous chairman Sutherland Dows. Arnold was very committed to nuclear energy despite the controversy surrounding that source of energy, and oversaw the construction and opening in 1974 of the plant that bears his name. “In my opinion, nuclear power is the most beneficial method of anything we could possibly do to provide energy to our customers in the future,” Mr. Arnold stated in

6794-714: Was 107,880, an increase of 8.2 percent in a decade, according to an analysis of U.S. Census data for msnbc.com. The 2010 U.S. population within 50 miles (80 km) was 658,634, an increase of 7.1 percent since 2000. Cities within 50 miles include Cedar Rapids (10 miles to city center). August 2020 Midwest derecho An intense derecho affected much of the Midwestern United States on August 10–11, 2020, primarily eastern Nebraska , Iowa , Illinois , Wisconsin , and Indiana . It caused high winds and spawned an outbreak of weak tornadoes . Some areas reported torrential rain and large hail . Damage

6880-411: Was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.99. Age spread: 25.30% under the age of 18, 10.10% from 18 to 24, 30.30% from 25 to 44, 22.10% from 45 to 64, and 12.20% 65 or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.40 males. The median household income was $ 46,206 and the median family income was $ 56,494. Males had

6966-520: Was announced FEMA added seven additional Iowa counties (for a total of 23) to the August 17 federal disaster declaration, as well as the Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa . Cedar Rapids, Iowa , the Linn County seat and second-largest city in the state, was one of the hardest hit areas of the storm. Adjutant General Benjamin Corell, Commander of the Iowa National Guard , compared

7052-516: Was found by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to have illegally dumped 800 US gallons (3,000 L) of spoiled milk into storm sewers , contaminating a local waterway. The company assisted the state in cleanup efforts, blaming misinformed employees. Buccaneer Arena , home ice of the Des Moines Buccaneers minor-league hockey team, sustained significant roof damage. Marshalltown suffered extensive property damage. Over

7138-493: Was moderate to severe across much of the affected area, as sustained wind speeds of 70 miles per hour (110 kilometers per hour; 31 meters per second) were prevalent. The greatest damage occurred in eastern Iowa , and northern Illinois , where multiple tornadoes touched down. The highest winds occurred in Iowa, measured at 126 mph (203 km/h; 56.3 m/s) and highest estimated from post-event damage surveys at 140 mph (225 km/h; 62.6 m/s). Millions across

7224-425: Was significant, downed limbs blocked some roads. At least one person was injured. In Omaha , the state's largest city, over 50,000 were left without power, a couple thousand remained so for two or three days. The Iowa Governor's office estimated on August 16 that the storm severely damaged or destroyed over 8,000 homes and caused $ 23.6 million in damage to public infrastructure. The cost of cleaning up debris from

7310-454: Was to complete construction in 40 months at an estimated cost of $ 250 million. The energy center was named after Duane Arnold who grew up in Sanborn, Iowa. Arnold was educated at Grinnell College and went to work for Iowa Electric Light and Power Company in 1946. At the time of his death in 1983, at the age of 65, he was chairman of the board and CEO of that company, marrying along

7396-441: Was unlikely that DAEC would operate beyond 2025. The plant was given a 20-year license extension to 2034 but considered closing after Alliant Energy, which contracts for 70% of the plant's electricity, announced it would instead be buying electricity generated by wind and natural gas. In July 2018 the expected closure date was amended to October 2020. The unit permanently ceased making power on 10 August 2020, due to storm damage from

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