Updated: 8:15 p.m.
Tens of thousands of homes and businesses were left without electricity in southern Minnesota on Thursday morning after strong storms brought devastating winds, floods, hail and several tornado reports.
The storms are responsible for at least one death – a woman who died in an accident caused by a power outage on Interstate 90 near Worthington.
Stronger storms raged in far western Minnesota early Thursday – and more severe weather is possible in much of the state on Thursday afternoon and evening.
Fatal crash on Interstate 90
A Minnesota state patrol said a 30-year-old woman was killed and four others were injured in an I-90 crash in Nobles County, east of Worthington.
The patrol said strong storms knocked down power lines across the highway shortly before 6pm on Wednesday. An eastbound car stopped to avoid hitting the wires and was hit by a semi-eastbound.
A passenger in the car, identified as Martha Lillian Lanos Rodriguez of Mexico City, died on the spot. The driver and two other passengers were injured. Social media posts from Wednesday show that these are meteorologists who have been in the region to monitor the bad weather.
The driver of the third vehicle was also injured after hitting the fallen wires.
Power failure
Xcel Energy reported about 35,000 customers without power at 8:15 a.m. Thursday in its Minnesota service area, most of them on the Twin Cities subway. That’s less than more than 75,000 late Wednesday night. Other utilities also responded to widespread overnight power outages.
In addition to tearing down power lines, gusts of nearly 80 mph also sent trees on cars and buildings around the twin cities – and even knocked down the front door of Target’s Roseville store, according to a report from the National Weather Service.
Meteorological observers also reported damage to some structures in Madelia, including a severed roof of a building under construction. Damage to farm buildings has been reported in the areas of Lake Sanborn and Buffalo.
The Meteorological Service reported gusts of wind up to 79 mph in Morristown, 77 mph near Shakopee and 76 mph near Windom. There have been reports of gusts above 60 mph in Eden Prairie, Anoka, Hopkins and Roseville; Minneapolis-St. A peak wind gust of 61 mph was recorded at Paul International Airport.
Heavy rain causes floods
Heavy rain on Wednesday night flooded some streets and highways in the metro area, with several reports of vehicles being blocked by the sudden flood. Street floods and canals have also been reported in the Hutchinson area. The storms also brought hailstorms larger than the Shakopi golf balls.
And observers also reported several tornadoes as the volatile storms raced, one near New Ulm and three others in Cottonwood County, west of Wyndham. There have been no immediate reports of damage from these possible tornadoes in southwestern Minnesota, which have not yet been confirmed by the National Weather Service.
Tornado warnings were issued in many of the twin cities on Wednesday night, but there were no immediate reports of a tornado landing in the subway area.
The Meteorological Service says there is an “increased risk” of severe storms in much of Minnesota on Thursday – with some storms already raging in the western part of the state and more storms expected on Thursday afternoon and evening.
Any additional rainfall could cause more flooding in northern Minnesota, where rivers are still filling up after recent rains and snowmelt. Flood monitoring is in effect from the Red River Valley in the east to Duluth and the north coast.
Find forecast updates on MPR Weather’s Updraft blog.
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