Minnesota, 2002

Damaging Wind in Minnesota, April 16, 2002

April 16, 2002 · NWS FSD · 1 event in 1 county or zone

1 thunderstorm wind, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. 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
0
Property damage
$50,000
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 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 Sioux Falls, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Apr 16, 2:35 PM CST, 4 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Apr 16, 2:35 PM CST, 4 hours 50 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR SOUTHEAST SD/SOUTHWEST MN/NORTHWEST IA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
335 PM CDT TUE APR 16 2002

CONVCTN FIRNG ALG FNT JUST S OF AREA AND SHUD CONT TO DVLP. WILL GO
SCT TSTMS N/S THRU FSD AND TSTMS LIKELY FRTHR E IN MN/IA...WITH
MENTN OF SVR BOTH AREAS. NO PCPN MENTN WRN THIRD. FNT HAS SLOWED AS
SHRTWV APPCHS FROM SW BUT SHUD PICK UP PROGRESS LATR THIS EVE AND
CLR OUT TSTMS BEFORE MIDNGT. WND ADVSY WILL BE KEPT FOR NWRN IA AND
MUCH OF SWRN MN XCP WRN BDR COS. SUSTAINED S WNDS AHD OF CDFNT OVER
30 MPH WILL BE SLOW TO DCRS AND WILL GO TO 7 PM CDT. SKIES SHUD GO
PTCLDY TNGT AND CONT PTCLDY WED...WITH GUIDNCE TEMPS LOOKG OK FOR
WED. SYS FOR WED NGT AND THU HAS GOOD WAA THO WILL HAVE LESS MOISTR
AND INSTBLTY. WILL CARRY CHC SHWRS/TSTMS LATE WED NGT AND IN SOME
AREAS INTO THU MRNG. WITH BETTER MOISTR RETURN THIS CUD BE A BETTR
PCPN PRODUCER...FOR NOW WILL CARRY AS WE HAVE BEEN. AFTR PASSAGE OF
THIS SYS COOL AIR SHUD REIGN FOR A FEW DAYS. WEAK WV CUD PRODUCE
SOME LGT PCPN OVER THE WEEKEND...FOR NOW WILL GO MOCLDY WITH COOL
TEMPS AS SYS TENDS TO GET SHEARED OFF. SOME WARMNG FOR MON THEN WILL
GO WITH A CHC OF SHWRS TUE AS BROAD TROF APPCHS AS PER MRF.

.FSD...WND ADVY     THIS EVE THRU 7PM    SWRN MN AWAY FROM WRN BRDR
                                         AND MOST OF NWRN IA.
WILLIAMS

The radar

The Sioux Falls radar (KFSD), 124 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 01:23 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Cottonwood

When
April 16, 7:25 PM CST
Where
Cottonwood County, Storden
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Property damage
$50,000
Reported by
NEWSPAPER
Coordinates
44.050, -95.317

Thunderstorm winds blew the roof off a vehicle repair shop. The roof knocked down power lines when it fell, causing a power outage.

What these are

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

More

Every storm in Minnesota in 2002Every state in 2002This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, April 2002

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: 5290308.