Severe Thunderstorm Sweeps Through Rochester

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Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Residents and businesses in some parts of Rochester were busy late Tuesday afternoon and into the evening cleaning up the mess caused by a strong storm cell that blasted its way through the city. 

There were periods of intense, heavy rain that totaled more than an inch in some areas. The National Weather Service issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning that included Rochester around 5:45 p.m. 

The damage was caused by very strong wind gusts measuring more than 50-mph that brought down trees, branches and power poles in some areas. The top wind gust reported as of Wednesday morning was 60 mph. 

There were also reports of pea-sized hail. Hundreds of RPU customers lost power and some were without service for a few hours.

One area that was especially hard hit was in the southwest part of the city, spread out in residential neighborhoods between Folwell School on the west and around Soldiers Field on the east. 

The storm cell missed some parts of the city and the official weather station at the Rochester airport where only 2-hundredths of an inch of rain was recorded.