After the potential for strong tornadoes and damaging storms forced a number of institutions to cancel activities and close early on Monday, the Twin Cities ultimately avoided the severe weather that impacted other parts of Minnesota.
As two lines of storms generating 80 mph winds, 3-inch hail and possible tornadoes made its way east through Minnesota Monday afternoon, they proceeded to pass Minnesota’s most populous area to the north and the south.
The two lines brought multiple severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings, with reports of possible funnel clouds seen near Princeton and Winnebago.
Later in the day, a possible tornado inflicted damage on a farm in the Faribault area.
As its height, Xcel Energy said it was dealing with reports of more than 7,000 households without power, but that had reduced to just under 3,000 by 9 p.m. Monday.
The situation could have been significantly worse for Xcel line workers had the storm system broke into the metro area. School districts including Minneapolis canceled after-school activities due to the threat, while several municipalities closed city offices earlier ahead of the weather.
After the tornadoes, the biggest threat of damage came from heavy hail, with reports of hailstones up to 3 inches in diameter in parts of the state.
Whether Minnesota experienced any tornadoes will now be a matter for the National Weather Service, which is sending staff out on Tuesday to assess damage around the state.
