FALCON HEIGHTS, Minn. (FOX 9) – Two severe storms with high winds and heavy rains Monday through Tuesday caused damage in some areas and led to power outages for thousands of Xcel Energy customers.
What we know
Xcel Energy said its crews are working to assess the damage and restore power to about 150,000 customers in the Twin Cities metro and western Wisconsin on Tuesday.
The storms caused extensive damage, including downed trees and power lines, Xcel says. Emergency crews worked through the night to restore power to 50,000 of the 87,000 customers affected by the first wave of severe storms on Monday.
Xcel Energy expects power to be restored to about half of the 150,000 affected customers by Tuesday. Power should be restored to the remaining customers by Thursday evening.
Storm strength
Storms quickly moved in Monday afternoon after the warmest day yet in the Twin Cities, where the heat index rose above 103 degrees in some areas. The intense storms moved quickly eastward across the Twin Cities, bringing with them plenty of wind and rain, with gusts over 60 mph in the metro area and gusts over 70 mph just outside the center of the Twin Cities in parts of Carver County, and then another area from Cambridge to the Rush City areas.
The rain came quickly, lasting no more than 20 minutes in most areas, but some spots saw as much as an inch of rainfall. Then there was a lull for most of the night before another fast-moving line pushed into and through the subway at speeds of nearly 70 mph.
The heaviest rain on Tuesday morning came even quicker than on Monday. The downpours lasted no more than 10 to 15 minutes. Now the clean-up work is beginning, and tens of thousands of people have been without power since Tuesday morning.
State Fair postponed
The storms also swept through the Minnesota State Fairgrounds, causing delays in fairgoers entering the facility so authorities could assess the damage Tuesday morning.
