Hail and Damaging Winds in Minnesota, July 17, 2001

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in Minnesota, July 17, 2001
Start: 2001-07-17T19:35
End: 2001-07-17T22:30
Location: Minnesota

July 17, 2001 · NWS MPX · 12 events in 7 counties and zones

8 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 lightning, as filed by the National Weather Service.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 25
Property damage: $160,000
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 12

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 forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Twin Cities, MN wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 17, 2:30 PM CST, 5 hours 5 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 17, 2:30 PM CST, 5 hours 5 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TWIN CITIES/CHANHASSEN MN
330 PM CDT TUE JUL 17 2001

SIMILAR SITUATION TO PAST SEVERAL DAYS.  MODELS HAVING DIFFICULTY
WITH WEAK S/W CIRCULATIONS IN SWLY LOW LEVEL FLOW.  ETA SHOWING A
BIT MORE CONSISTENCY WITH S/W IN SRN MN LAST SEVERAL RUNS BUT BACKED
OFF ON STRONGER WAVE FARTHER NORTH.  MAIN FORECAST QUESTIONS CENTER
ON CONVECTION DEVELOPMENT THROUGHOUT FORECAST PERIOD.  LEANING TWD
ETA SOLUTION FOR FORECAST NUANCES FOR NOW.  ETA DOES SHOW DEVELOPING
25 TO 35KT LLJ THIS AFTN AND EVE ACROSS CENTRAL PLAINS...MAY BE
HELPING TO PRODUCE CONVECTION ACRS SRN SD AND NRN NE.  WIND PROFILER
NETWORK SHOWING BACKING WINDS IN SRN NE..SHOWING A REFLECTION OF S/W
TROUGH/JETLET PUSHING INTO CENTRAL PLAINS.  NE CONVECTION ALSO
LINING UP WELL WITH INCREASING LOW LEVEL MOISTURE
CONVERGENCE....WHICH PUSHES INTO WESTERN AND SOUTHERN MN DURING THE
NGT...BUT DOES DMSH A BIT.  HENCE WL CONT TO POPS FOR TNGT.  ETA
BUFKIT MESO-BETA ELEMENTS SLOW DOWN TO LESS THAN 10 KTS DURING THE
NGT...SO WL MENTION POSSIBILITY OF HEAVY RAINFALL.  AREAS AROUND
LAKE MILLE LACS RECEIVED 2 TO 4 INCHES LAST NIGHT!

MID LEVEL CAPPING BUILDS IN ACROSS SRN/WRN COUNTY WARNING AREA ON
WED WITH NO OBVIOUS FORCING MECHANISMS.  HOWEVER THETA-E RIDGE
LINGERS ACRS AREA AND AIR MASS WL RMN QUITE UNSTABLE.  WL CONT LOW
POPS IN NRN/ERN AREAS WITH SULTRY CONDITIONS IN SW.  S/W LOBE
ROTATING ROUND SWRN CANADIAN LOW PRESSURE SENDING SECOND IMPULSE TWD
UPR MIDWEST WED NGT...HOWEVER ETA MORE AGGRESSIVE THAN AVN.  HOWEVER
BOTH MODELS SHOW WEAK LOW PRESSURE TRAVERSING NE ALONG FRONTAL
BOUNDARY INTO AREA WED NGT INTO THU.  SOME QUESTION AS TO STRENGTH
OF THU WAVE BUT HIGH INSTABILITY WILL BE IN PLACE WITH POSSIBLE
BOUNDARY IN AREA...SO NEED TO CONTINUE LOW POPS.  FWC/MAV GUIDANCE
LOOKING GOOD.
.MSP...NONE.
KAVINSKY

The radar

The Minneapolis radar (KMPX), 185 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:34 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

8 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail, 1 lightning. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Morrison

When: July 17, 7:35 PM CST
Where: Morrison County, Motley
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 46.333, -94.650

Lightning, Morrison

When: July 17, 7:40 PM CST
Where: Morrison County, Camp Ripley
Injuries: 25 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 46.013, -94.268 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

One U. S. Marine Reservist was critically injured, but survived and was released the next afernoon. Twenty four others were treated and released within hours of the strike.

Hail, Morrison

When: July 17, 8:00 PM CST
Where: Morrison County, Cushing
Measured: 2.75 in hail
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 46.150, -94.583

Thunderstorm Wind, Morrison

When: July 17, 8:40 PM CST
Where: Morrison County, 4 mi E of Little Falls
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 45.983, -94.283

Grove of trees felled.

Thunderstorm Wind, Mille Lacs

When: July 17, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Mille Lacs County, Onamia
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Property damage: $10,000
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.083, -93.667

Numerous trees down, some falling on homes.

Thunderstorm Wind, Douglas

When: July 17, 9:15 PM CST
Where: Douglas County, 3 mi W of Carlos
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 45.967, -95.367

Tree down, slight damage to home.

Thunderstorm Wind, Mille Lacs

When: July 17, 9:15 PM CST to 9:20 PM CST
Where: Mille Lacs County, Vineland
Measured: 64 kt (74 mph)
Property damage: $100,000
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 46.167, -93.750

Swath of damage along the south side of Mille Lacs Lake. Many boats and docks turned over. Numerous trees down, some onto houses and vehicles.

Thunderstorm Wind, Benton

When: July 17, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Benton County, 1 mi NW of Rum River
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: LAW ENFORCEMENT
Coordinates: 45.833, -93.850

A few trees down.

Hail, Mille Lacs

When: July 17, 9:30 PM CST
Where: Mille Lacs County, 3 mi N of Page
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER
Coordinates: 45.950, -93.650

Thunderstorm Wind, Kanabec

When: July 17, 9:55 PM CST
Where: Kanabec County, 1 mi W of Mora
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 45.883, -93.317

Numerous trees toppled. Roof taken off garage under construction.

Thunderstorm Wind, Isanti

When: July 17, 10:10 PM CST to 10:15 PM CST
Where: Isanti County, Cambridge
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph)
Property damage: $50,000
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 45.583, -93.233

Bleachers blown over. Portion of Walmart greenhouse ripped off and destroyed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Chisago

When: July 17, 10:30 PM CST
Where: Chisago County, Taylors Falls
Measured: 50 kt (58 mph)
Reported by: GENERAL PUBLIC
Coordinates: 45.417, -92.667

Trees down

What these are

Hail: Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.
Lightning: A lightning strike that killed, injured or caused damage.
Thunderstorm Wind: Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Minnesota in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Minnesota, July 2001

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: 5262011, 5262010, 5262012, 5262013, 5262014, 5262015, 5262017, 5262020, 5262021, 5262016, 5262018, 5262019.