August 20, 2020 | Community Spotlight: The Derecho on Main Street | By: Abby Huff, Executive Director, Czech Village/New Bohemia Main Street District | 
Damage and debris caused by the Derecho in Czech Village-New Bohemia Main Street. Photo credit: Abby Huff
On Monday, August 10, at approximately 12:00pm CST while the Czech Village-New Bohemia Main Street promotions committee was having their monthly meeting outside at a local restaurant—one of the first since February and pre-Covid 19—the meeting was interrupted by tornado sirens that started blasting in the District. Although the sun was shining, we moved the meeting indoors. Within minutes the sky darkened and the winds picked up incredible speed. For the next 45 minutes we watched in disbelief as trees, lamp posts, street signs, and other debris flew by in the winds that reached over 100 mph.
When the storm passed and we were able to step outside the sight was unfathomable. Not only were large trees down but roofs on historic buildings had been blown off, brick buildings crumbled, and one cafe had all of its windows blown out. To add to the devastation, power went out throughout the entire metro area.
Over a week later, nearly half of businesses in the District are still without power. These organizations that worked hard through COVID 19 to remain in business, have now been forced to close their doors and throw away hundreds of pounds of food due to lack of electricity, pay for costly repairs due to the storm, and find more ways to continue to support employees who are out of work until they can, again, get their doors open.
When all is said and done, the total cumulative loss for businesses in the Czech Village-New Bohemia Main Street District will be between $2 - $3 million. This includes cost of clean-up and repairs, lost inventory, and lost revenue for being closed for over a week. (Ten days and counting as 8/19/2020.)
One thing we all keep telling ourselves is “It could be worse.” This is because as Iowans faced with an additional disaster in the middle of a pandemic, we step up and help each other. We wear brave faces, help our neighbors and go to bed worn out from work and worry. But, now, even though we hesitate to ask for it, we could really use everyone's help.
Please think about ordering from the businesses in Czech Village-New Bohemia. You can find all businesses listed on our website at crmainstreet.org.
Ways to Support Communities Effected by Derecho
Our thoughts are with Cedar Rapids as well as the other Main Street communities affected by the Derecho. If you are able, please consider donating to one of the following organizations to support recovery efforts.
#WeAreMainStreet