By Deb Kroon
Review Staff Writer
A line of thunderstorms formed across portions of western Minnesota and eastern South Dakota during the late afternoon hours of Friday August 18th. These thunderstorms initially were capable of very large hail and damaging winds, with 67 mph winds measured in Minneota, MN.
While strong storms continued to move through Lake Shetek, it was a strong cyclic supercell that formed on the tail end of this line that become the main weather story. This supercell produce large hail and strong winds, but also became a prolific tornado producer with multiple tornadoes moving across far southwestern Minnesota and into Northwest Iowa during the evening hours.
Damage from these tornadoes was reported near Rushmore, MN, just west of Bigelow, MN, with the strongest tornado taking place further south near Melvin, IA.
At 7:26 p.m. an EF-1 tornado touched down northwest of Rushmore, MN, on the north side of Interstate 90. The tornado traveled 1.6 miles on the ground with a 50 yard wide path of destruction left behind. In this path was one of Son-D Farms hog sites, the Thom site. The tornado took one hog barn while leaving a feed bin and an adjacent building standing, relatively untouched. Some of the steel was found wrapped around wind towers to the north.
“ We lost approximately 50 hogs” said Delbert Bullerman. “We were lucky that it was a finishing barn. The hogs in this building were ready for market. With the help of all the friends who came out, we loaded the remaining hogs and took them to JBS that night. I don’t know what we would have done with the hogs.” The barn held about 2000 hogs.
The National Weather Service reported that a second EF-1 tornado touched down on the south side of I-90, leaving behind a path of destroyed bean and corn fields. Along with the tornadic activity, the area received large hail, strong winds and rain. The storms moved into Northeast Iowa, where two more tornadoes touched down, the strongest, an EF-2, close to Melvin, IA where significant damage was done.
The area also saw damage from high winds and large hail. With reports of roof damage and downed trees north of of St. Kilian and extensive crop damage in the Wilmont area.
