Tornadoes, Hail, Torrential Rains Menace Midwest

Extreme weather battered states across the Midwest Tuesday.

Torrential rains, high winds and several tornadoes were reported in Iowa and Nebraska.

Winds of 85 miles per hour uprooted trees, tore off roof tops, and knocked over tractor trailers.

Near Omaha, up to four inches of rain fell, forcing evacuations in low lying areas. Police used boats to rescue dozens of stranded drivers.

"They were driving along Interstate 29, had no place to go, and whether they were driving or pulled over, they just didn't escape the hail," said Terry Landsvork, an observation program leader for the National Weather Service in Valley, Nebraska.

Hail the size of baseballs slammed into houses, shattered windows and smashed through car windshields.

The severe weather arrived during an unusually quiet spring, with far fewer documented tornados in May than in previous years.