Minnesota, 2002

High Wind in Minnesota, February 11, 2002

February 11, 2002 · NWS ABR · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

High winds of 35 to 45 mph gusting to 60 to 65 mph occurred across Big Stone and Traverse counties from the late afternoon into the early evening hours causing some spotty damage. Some wind gusts included, 55 mph at Wheaton, and 63 mph at Graceville.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

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  • Floods
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  • Hail
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  • Cold
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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 ABR wrote it up.

High winds of 35 to 45 mph gusting to 60 to 65 mph occurred across Big Stone and Traverse counties from the late afternoon into the early evening hours causing some spotty damage. Some wind gusts included, 55 mph at Wheaton, and 63 mph at Graceville.

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 Aberdeen, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 11, 3:45 PM CST, 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 11, 3:45 PM CST, 15 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR CENTRAL/N-EAST SD AND W-CENTRAL MN
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
345 PM CST MON FEB 11 2002

MAIN FCST CONCERN DEALS WITH STRONG WINDS THIS EVENING. STRONG PRES
RISES OF 4-6MB/3HR CONTS TO PUSH INTO CWA AS COLD FRONT SLIPS INTO
WRN MN. CURRENTLY WINDS AT 40 TO 50KTS OVER ERN CWA WITH HIGHER
GUSTS RECORDED. GOOD SUBSIDENCE BEHIND EXITING WAVE AND ADIABATIC
LAPSE RATES SHOULD ENSURE GOOD MOMENTUM DOWNWARDS FOR THE NEXT FEW
HOURS. AS CAA STRATOCU BUILD INTO CWA...SHOULD SEE A SLIGHT
RELAXATION OF WINDS AS CLOUDS WORK TO DECOUPLE LOWER LAYERS.
STRENGTH OF LOW WILL WORK TO KEEP WINDS UP ALL NIGHT...AND AFTER
WIND WARNING EXPIRES ACROSS ERN CWA...A WIND ADVRY MAY BE NEEDED
THROUGH 08Z. AFTERWORDS...THINGS TURN MUCH QUIETER WEATHER WISE.
MINOR WAVES AT 5H AND 7H PUSH THROUGH CWA THROUGH WEDNESDAY...BUT
LITTLE IN THE WAY OF LIFT OR MOISTURE WILL PREVENT ANYTHING MAJOR
FROM HAPPENING. NEXT CONCERN TURNS TO THURSDAY. VERY STRONG WAVE
DROPS DOWN INTO CWA DURING DAY WITH FAIR AMOUNT OF TROP FOLDING
TAKING PLACE. AM SURE THAT A FEW FLURRIES WILL BE SQUEEZED OUT...BUT
AM AGAINST PUTTING FLURRIES INTO THE 3RD AND 4TH PERIOD. NOT MUCH
MOISTURE SEEN ISENTROPICALLY. HOWEVER...WITH STRENGTH OF
SYSTEM...SHOULD ONCE AGAIN BE BREEZY ON THURSDAY AHEAD AND BEHIND
SFC FRONT AS IT DROPS THROUGH. TEMP WISE...MODEL GUIDANCE SEEMS
REASONABLE GIVEN CURRENT CONDS OF NO SNOW...AND GENERALLY FOLLOWED.

.EXTENDED DISCUSSION...

EXTENDED PORTION OF PACKAGE FEATURES FAIRLY QUIET CONDITIONS. WEAK
WAVE PROGGESD THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY...BUT NARY A CHANCE OF PRECIP.
HAVE MOSTLY CONCENTRATED ON MONDAY. MRF SHOWING BIG SURFACE CYCLONE
MOVING FROM SOUTHWEST WITH IMPRESIVE QPF/SNOW OUTPUT. LOOKS LIKE A
GOOD WEATHER PRODUCER...EXCEPT FOR BEING 150-PLUS HOURS OUT. THE
ENSEMBLES OF THE MRF KEEP MOST POP SOUTH...AND NUMERICAL ENSEMBLE
MOS FROM THE MRF DOESNT REACT MUCH TO SYSTEM. ECMWF ALSO IS
SUBSTANTIALLY WEEKER ON SURFACE LOW...SHOWING MOSTLY AN ENHANCED
LEE-TROUGH WITHOUT AS AGGRESSIVE A PRECIP FIELD. SO THE RESULT OF
THIS DISAGREEMENT IS TO INCREASE CLOUDS ON SUNDAY AND MONDAY. WILL
KEEP TEMPS FAIRLY WARM SUNDAY NIGHT WITH EXPECTED WARM ADVECTION AND
CLOUDS...BUT WILL HOLD OFF ON ANY MENTION OF PRECIP ATTM.

.ABR...HIGH WIND WARNING THROUGH 04Z ERN CWA...INCLUDING ABR AND ATY.
    ...WIND ADVISORY THROUGH 04Z REMAINDER OF CWA...INCLUDING PIR
       AND MBG.

HINTZ/HARDING

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Big Stone

When
February 11, 4:00 PM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where
Big Stone forecast zone
Measured
48 kt (55 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
45.426, -96.411 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

High Wind, Traverse

When
February 11, 4:00 PM CST to 7:00 PM CST
Where
Traverse forecast zone
Measured
55 kt (63 mph)
Reported by
AWOS,ASOS,MESONET,ETC
Coordinates
45.772, -96.472 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

High Wind
Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

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, February 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: 5281001, 5281002.