Minnesota State Fair fairgoers flee for safety as severe weather blasts across Midwest
Clusters of strong to severe storms are expected to slide across the region through early Tuesday morning. A storm spotter reported hailstones as large as 4 inches in diameter Monday evening near Inman, Nebraska, which damaged a car windshield.
More severe weather set to blast the Midwest, Great Lakes on Tuesday
It was a restless night for millions of people in the Midwest on Monday night as severe weather blasted across the region knocking out power to tens of thousands of utility customers, and more severe weather is possible Tuesday from the Midwest to the Great Lakes region.
MINNEAPOLIS – Severe weather barreled across portions of the Midwest on Monday, knocking out power to tens of thousands of utility customers, snapping trees like twigs and forcing people attending the Minnesota State Fair to seek shelter.
The powerful thunderstorms came as the region is seeing some late-summer extreme heat that has some feels-like temperatures soaring above 100 degrees. And the threat of severe weather will continue on Tuesday across portions of the Midwest and Great Lakes region, including cities such as Chicago and Detroit.
Trees snapped, power knocked out in Minnesota
Watch: Severe weather knocks down trees in Minnesota
A video shared from Waconia, Minnesota, shows trees that were snapped like twigs when powerful thunderstorms rolled through the Midwest on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024.
Monday's storms snapped trees and knocked out power across the region from South Dakota to Wisconsin.
A video recorded in Waconia, Minnesota, showed trees knocked down by powerful thunderstorms, and vivid lightning illuminating the sky as heavy precipitation falls.
Watch: Flash flooding at Minnesota State Fair
Heavy rain led to flash flooding at the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul on Monday. A video shared from the fair shows people running for safety as heavy rain fell and water covered sidewalks and walkways.
Another video showed flash flooding at the Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul. As the torrential rain fell, people could be seen running for safety through floodwaters.
Because of the severe weather, fair officials said they would delay the opening of the fairgrounds Tuesday.
"Due to heavy winds and rain, the fairgrounds opening is delayed to allow for damage assessment and cleanup," officials said on X, formerly Twitter.
After the damage assessment was complete, the decision was made to open the fairgrounds at 10 a.m. ET.
Watch: Severe weather delays Minnesota Twins game
Severe weather blasted across portions of the Midwest on Monday, and even delayed the baseball game between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves.
Strong thunderstorms also affected the baseball game between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves on Monday night.
At the top of the second inning, the ground crew raced out to cover the field until the storm passed. Fans were asked to leave the stands and seek shelter because of the threat of lightning.
The game was able to resume after about a two-hour delay, and the Braves went on to win 10-6.
Watch: Strong winds, heavy rain lash Minneapolis
A video shared from Minneapolis shows whipping winds and torrential rain as powerful thunderstorms swept across the Midwest on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024.
It wasn’t only rain that led to issues, however. There were reports of large hail, including 4-inch hail that fell and damaged a windshield near Inman, Nebraska.
Damaging wind gusts were also reported across the region, including a 70-mph gust near Edgemont, South Dakota.
Powerful winds in Minnesota also uprooted trees in communities such as Mendota and Bloomington.
Tens of thousands of power outages also remain, with Minnesota reporting the largest number. According to poweroutage.us, more than 136,000 outages remain in Minnesota while more than 14,000 outages remain in Wisconsin.
Work to restore power began after the storms passed and conditions improved. Officials with Xcel Energy in Minnesota said they were hoping a majority of customers would have their power restored by the end of the day Thursday.