by Eliza Hartley
Member since:
May 27, 2009

Open Discussion: Tornado touchdown in Minneapolis, warnings throughout Twin Cities and greater Minnesota

August 19, 2009 04:04 PM EDT (Updated: August 19, 2009 08:36 PM EDT)
views: 723 | comments: 31

MPR NewsQ is reporting a tornado touchdown north of downtown Minneapolis, and numerous warnings for other parts of the Twin Cities, including: Anoka, northeastern Hennepin County, and western Ramsey County. Read the AP article.

We're keeping up with this here at MPR, but tell us what you know. How is this affecting you? Share your perspectives here.

 

 

This is an open discussion, so you're welcome to link to your related Gather articles or other online resources. Your comments & articles may be quoted on http://minnesota.publicradio.org/your_voice/ or on mpr.org.

______________

Eliza Hartley
Digital Media Intern
Minnesota Public Radio
American Public Media

 

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Comments: 31

Peter Joseph Swanson Aug 19, 2009, 4:15pm EDT
I live just west of the Electric Fetus record store and didn't even know it was so bad. I just thought we were having too much rain. Maybe the tornado siren (just up the alley) made so much noise I couldn't hear a tornado smashing things up. Eeek !!!!
Julia Schrenkler Aug 19, 2009, 5:03pm EDT
Glad you're okay Peter. Are your neighbors okay? If you share pictures and you'd be willing to let MPR feature them, let me know.
Peter Joseph Swanson Aug 19, 2009, 5:13pm EDT
Even though I'm a few blocks from electric fetus, we just had rain and some wind right around here. No trees down at all, or power outage even. We're all perfectly fine right here.

I'm not going out in yucky rainy weather to get photos that I'm sure a lot of other people are getting. I hate getting wet when it's only 72 out !!!!
Julia Schrenkler Aug 19, 2009, 9:24pm EDT
*laughing* Well, we did get some great photos submitted at mprnewsq.org, check them out!
Peter Joseph Swanson Aug 20, 2009, 10:00am EDT
wow
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:18pm EDT
Twitter is showing that Electric Fetus was hit, and the damage is requiring it to close. The Salvation Army is tweeting that they're getting ready to help emergency personnel, but for the most part it looks like people are alright.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:19pm EDT
Numerous people are tweeting that it touched down actually on or near 35W.
Jason Nickolay Aug 19, 2009, 4:22pm EDT
I am about 5 minutes south of Lakeville and it got really dark and windy for a while, but that was the extent of it. We have gotten a lot of rain all day though.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 5:05pm EDT
That's definitely a stroke of luck! Do you have friends in Minneapolis dealing with the tornado? How are they faring?
Peter Joseph Swanson Aug 19, 2009, 4:24pm EDT
I have the TV on and was surprised to hear Electric Fetus was hit but then it faces the highway so it should be no real surprise, I guess. The tornado seemed to go down the highway. I bet a lot of people in a lot of cars are freaked out now.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:55pm EDT
I'm sure! You should check out the video I linked of people driving down the flooded freeway.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:24pm EDT
Lots of people quipping in their Tweets that this is Mother Nature exacting revenge on Brett Favre. For instance:

GregDiener: Favre signs with Minnesota yesterday and today a Tornado hits downtown Minneapolis coincidence?
Peter Joseph Swanson Aug 19, 2009, 4:26pm EDT
No no no, It's God punishing the Lutherans. That was a Lutheran church hit by the Convention Center. They were having a Synod Convention and had tents out for that. You don't want to be in a tent in a tornado.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:55pm EDT
Ooo, that sounds risky. Tents are not substantial.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:34pm EDT
2 tornado touchdowns: one north of downtown Minneapolis, the other at 35W and Lake Street. MPR's Than Tibbetts is keeping NewsQ updated. Check out his updates here.
Wow, I was driving near 46th & Bloomington - the rain was coming down so hard...but no sirens.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:39pm EDT
Beware of the wrath of the tornado. As per Cazling on Twitter:

Cazling: When the tornado touched down in Minneapolis, a lady on the sidewalk was thrown in the air and slammed on the ground twice. Crazy storms!!
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:49pm EDT
The latest on News Q shows that the warnings have extended in Wisconsin. Read the AP story.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:50pm EDT
Check out this recent YouTube video from Greg Swan of Perfect Porridge.com. It's of driving on a flooded 35W.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:52pm EDT
Interactive Producer Julia Schrenkler just Tweeted that 7,000 homes in Minneapolis have been cut off from power, according to Xcel Energy.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 4:58pm EDT
Slideshow just put up of tornado damage. Take a look! And keep your browser on mprnewsq.org for all the latest on the tornadoes!
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 5:04pm EDT
Any photos of the storm damage you'd like to share? Please submit them to MPR - we appreciate it!
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 5:08pm EDT
Various reports of toppling tents and chairs at the recent ELCA convention in Minneapolis, and tearing apart of church steeples in downtown Minneapolis from this tornado on Twitter. Search: minneapolis tornado.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 5:10pm EDT
MPR's Than Tibbetts' latest update:

Latest update: 3:51 p.m.

Minneapolis — A tornado touched down in Minneapolis Wednesday afternoon causing damage to a church and briefly closing Interstate 35W due to flooding.

The National Weather Service says it has received a report of a tornado just north of downtown, and Minneapolis Fire Department personnel reported a tornado in south Minneapolis, near Interstate 35W and Lake Street.

Keep up with his updates here.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 5:30pm EDT
Get this: According to Than's updates a siren did not sound before the first tornado hit.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 8:25pm EDT
According to MPR meteorologist Paul Huttner, we're not quite in the clear yet for the evening when it comes to severe weather (check in with his Updraft blog at MPR NewsQ). The latest from MPR NewsQ states that Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan says his force is going door to door to check on residents, and telling them to call 311 if they need help.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 8:42pm EDT
A meteorologist from Pennsylvania was in town visiting his daughter, and he captured the tornado's touchdown on his iPhone. Watch the video here.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 9:16pm EDT
Read this story on MPR NewsQ by MPR's Tom Weber and Madeleine Baier, and be sure to listen to the audio!

We're still looking for your storm stories and photos. Please, share them with us!
Julia Schrenkler Aug 19, 2009, 9:25pm EDT
A friend of mine drove in from Northern Minnesota this afternoon, and reported storms from south of Duluth on, all the way to the cities on 35.
Eliza Hartley Aug 19, 2009, 9:33pm EDT
The Red Cross now tweeting that they are getting ready to help those affected by the tornado. Search: minneapolis tornado.
The flooding in the roads was pretty bad, making it hard for many cars to drive. I heard nothing about the tornado until this evening!

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