National Weather Service Confirms Tornado Damage in Winona County

Rollingstone, MN (KROC-AM News) - The National Weather Service has determined that a tornado was responsible for some of the storm damage in parts of Winona County yesterday evening.

A survey team inspected the damage today and found evidence of an EF1
tornado with estimated peak winds of around 105 mph. The maximum width of the twister was around 50 yards and the tornado traveled for a bit more than 18 miles while it caused intermittent damage in mainly rural areas before crossing the Mississippi River into western Wisconsin.

The National Weather Service says the path of the tornado began just west of Utica and then continued to the northeast in an area south of Altura before it struck Rollingstone and crossed the river to Merrick State Park in Wisconsin. The twister took down trees and power lines along that path, and the National Weather Service found damage to a barn near Utica, along with other structures at farms in the Rollingstone area, where a large camper was blown over and there was damage to the façade of a convenience store.

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Another EF1 tornado was confirmed in western Wisconsin across the Mississippi River from Minneiska near Cochrane. It had peak winds estimated at 90 mph and was only on the ground for about 4 miles. The National Weather Service says it caused damage to several barns and outbuildings.

The fast-moving line of thunderstorms that produce the tornado activity also delivered damaging straight-line winds to the region. The National Weather Service reported a 63 mile-per-hour wind gust near Canton and gusts of almost 60 mph at the Rochester Airport, along Highway 14 near Byron, and along I-90 in the Eyota area.

The winds toppled trees and large tree branches which caused widespread power outages throughout southeastern Minnesota. Nearly 7000 customers a Rochester Public Utilities lost electrical service during the peak of the storm.

Some areas, including Rochester, saw a very heavy rain from the thunderstorms. The National Weather Service reported more than 2.5 inches of rain in an unspecified part ofRochester, while the total at the Rochester Airport was only a bit over a half of an inch. Nearly 2 inches of rain fell in sections of Houston County, just over 1.2 inches was reported in Lanesboro in Fillmore County, and Lake City reported 1.5 inches of rain.

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