A weak surface low pressure system lifted northeast up the Red River Valley, with a warm front extending to its east. Surface dew points were quite juicy, nearly 70F in some areas.
Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS FGF wrote it up.
A weak surface low pressure system lifted northeast up the Red River Valley, with a warm front extending to its east. Surface dew points were quite juicy, nearly 70F in some areas. As it progressed through, it produced some damaging wind reports across portions of northwest and west central Minnesota.
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 Grand Forks, ND wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 28, 9:47 PM CST, 2 hours 43 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND 1047 PM CDT MON JUL 28 2008 .SHORT TERM...03Z OBSERVATIONS AND REGIONAL RADAR TRENDS ARE SHOWING THE SURFACE FRONT HAS REACHED CENTRAL ND. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY IS SHOWING A STRONG VORTICITY CENTER HAS ENTERED SOUTHWESTERN MANITOBA AND CONTRIBUTED TO DYNAMIC DESTABILIZATION ACROSS THE NORTHWESTERN FA. SOUTHERN MANITOBA CONVECTION APPEARS TO HAVE CRESTED THE RIDGE AND SHOULD FOLLOW THE 1000-500 MB THICKNESS SOUTHEASTWARD INTO NORTHEASTERN ND AND NORTHWESTERN MN. ANOTHER THUNDERSTORM COMPLEX HAS FORMED IN THE DEVILS LAKE BASIN. IT IS EXPECTED THAT THESE THUNDERSTORM CLUSTERS WILL MERGE INTO ONE MCS BY 06Z. AFTER COORDINATION WITH SPC...A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL ND COUNTIES AND MN COUNTIES ALONG AND EAST OF THE HIGHWAY 59 CORRIDOR UNTIL 4 AM TUESDAY. .AVIATION...THUNDERSTORM ACTIVITY WILL CONTINUE TO INCREASE AND PROPAGATE SOUTHEASTWARD DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. THUNDERSTORMS ARE CURRENTLY OVER DVL AND SHOULD REACH GFK BY 05Z. TVF SHOULD BE IMPACTED BY THUNDERSTORMS BETWEEN 06Z AND 07Z. && .FGF WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... ND...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 4 AM TUESDAY FOR ALL COUNTIES. MN...SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH UNTIL 4 AM TUESDAY FOR COUNTIES ALONG AND WEST OF HIGHWAY 59. && BRAMER
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GRAND FORKS ND 1141 AM CDT MON JUL 28 2008 MNZ001>009-013>017-022>024-027>032-040-NDZ006>008-014>016-024- 026>030-038-039-049-052>054-291200- WEST POLK-NORMAN-CLAY-KITTSON-ROSEAU-LAKE OF THE WOODS- WEST MARSHALL-EAST MARSHALL-NORTH BELTRAMI-PENNINGTON-RED LAKE- EAST POLK-NORTH CLEARWATER-SOUTH BELTRAMI-MAHNOMEN- SOUTH CLEARWATER-HUBBARD-WEST BECKER-EAST BECKER-WILKIN- WEST OTTER TAIL-EAST OTTER TAIL-WADENA-GRANT-TOWNER-CAVALIER- PEMBINA-BENSON-RAMSEY-EASTERN WALSH COUNTY-EDDY-NELSON- GRAND FORKS-GRIGGS-STEELE-TRAILL-BARNES-CASS-RANSOM-SARGENT- RICHLAND-WESTERN WALSH COUNTY- 1141 AM CDT MON JUL 28 2008 ...MODERATE RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS SOUTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA INTO ADJACENT PORTIONS OF MINNESOTA... ...SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS THIS AFTERNOON THROUGH MIDNIGHT ACROSS THE REMAINDER OF THE REGION... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF EASTERN NORTH DAKOTA...WEST CENTRAL AND NORTHWEST MINNESOTA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS WITH MODERATE TO HEAVY RAINFALL WILL MOVE ACROSS THE NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE REGION THROUGH MID-AFTERNOON...MAINLY NORTH OF A LINE FROM COOPERSTOWN TO BEMIDJI. THERE IS A MODERATE RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS FROM MID- AFTERNOON THROUGH MIDNIGHT FOR AREAS SOUTH OF A LINE FROM COOPERSTOWN TO FARGO TO FERGUS FALLS. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THIS AREA DURING THE AFTERNOON HOURS. LARGE HAIL...STRONG WINDS...AND TORNADOES WILL BE POSSIBLE. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL IS ALSO POSSIBLE. A SLIGHT RISK FOR SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS EXISTS NORTH OF THE MODERATE RISK AREA. LARGE HAIL AND STRONG WINDS WILL BE THE MAIN THREATS ACROSS THIS AREA. LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL IS ALSO POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. TG
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
906 PM CDT MON JUL 28 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0857 PM HAIL 3 WSW BAKER 48.14N 99.71W
07/28/2008 E0.75 INCH BENSON ND PUBLIC
&&
BBRAMERPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE EASTERN ND/GRAND FORKS ND
1237 AM CDT TUE JUL 29 2008
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
1226 AM HAIL 3 SE MAYVILLE 47.47N 97.28W
07/29/2008 M0.88 INCH TRAILL ND NWS EMPLOYEE
&&
G2The Fargo/Grand Forks radar (KMVX), 63 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 06:29 UTC.
9 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Corn fields were churned and flattened by strong winds.
Several large branches were blow down in a shelter belt.
Roofs were lifted and torn off, which resulted in walls collapsing on two large hog finishing barns in southeast Land Township. The 800 hogs were not injured.
Several large trees were blown down.
A two stall garage was demolished and the contents strewn downwind due to downburst winds. Nearby roofs received shingle or roofing damage and numerous trees were snapped or toppled over from northeast Carsonville into northern Osage Township.
Several large trees were blown down between Fish Hook and Potato Lakes. Some homes nearby received shingle damage. Boats and docks were blown about on area lakes.
Several large trees were blown down, which blocked highway 13. Power lines and power poles were also blown down. Boats and docks received damage on area lakes.
Several 2 to 3 inch diameter branches were blown down along with one 10 inch diameter apple tree.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, July 2008
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: 108983, 108984, 126888, 126889, 126890, 108985, 126892, 108986, 126894.