Strong Wind, McLeod
- When
- May 5, 9:20 AM CST
- Where
- McLeod forecast zone
- Deaths
- 1 direct, 0 indirect
- Injuries
- 10 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 44.824, -94.272 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Strong Wind in Minnesota, May 5, 1997
Gradient wind gust caused apartment building under construction in Hutchinson to collapse, killing one worker and injuring 10. Wind gust of 50 knots recorded at local radio station.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 1
- Injuries
- 10
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS MPX wrote it up.
Gradient wind gust caused apartment building under construction in Hutchinson to collapse, killing one worker and injuring 10. Wind gust of 50 knots recorded at local radio station.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 strong wind. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strong Wind, McLeod | 1997-05-05 | 33 | Male | Other | Direct |
What these are
- Strong Wind
- Non-thunderstorm winds below high wind criteria that nonetheless caused damage or casualties.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Wind in Iowa, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Wisconsin, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Michigan, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Minnesota, May 5, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Colorado, May 5, 1997
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Michigan, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Wisconsin, May 5, 1997
- High Wind in Alaska, May 5, 1997
- Damaging Wind in Pennsylvania, May 5, 1997
- Flood in Hawaii, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Kansas, May 5, 1997
- Hail in Illinois, May 5, 1997
More
Every storm in Minnesota in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, May 1997
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5602167.