Winds, Rain Cause Moderate Damage In Southern MN

ELYSIAN, Minn. (WCCO) -- High winds and heavy rain pounded the south-central Minnesota town of Elysian, disrupting power, knocking down trees and blowing some roofs off sheds.

Neighbors living near Lake Francis are cleaning up on Tuesday. Jerome and Shirley Richter were watching a movie when it hit.

"We heard something slam into the house, and glass break, and then instantly it was over," said Richter.

His wife Shirley spent the morning picking up in the backyard.

"That's our neighbor's mailbox. She came over to see the backyard, and she said 'Hey you have my mailbox,'" Shirley said.

NewsRadio 830 WCCO's Susie Jones Reports

Brenda Kanhnke and her husband were out to dinner and came home to find a pretty big mess in their yard.

"That looks like part of a dock," she said while looking around the yard. "Nobody got hurt."

Elde Kretlow has a cabin on the lake and was just checking in to see how it fared in the storm. He was surprised to see all the damage.

"There's wood, roofs, everywhere. It's kind of a mess." Kretlow said.

Don Lowe was out picking up debris. He said he's been in other storms and realized how lucky he and his wife were to not have that much damage.

"We are really thankful. We came out of it pretty nicely. There are a few neighbors with a lot of work to be done. A lot of shingles missing," he said.

The National Weather Service estimated winds were in excess of 60 miles per hour. Xcel Energy has restored power to the area.