Thunderstorms produced damaging winds at several locations in southwest Minnesota during the late afternoon of August 12th.
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 FSD wrote it up.
Thunderstorms produced damaging winds at several locations in southwest Minnesota during the late afternoon of August 12th.
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 Aug 12, 2:50 PM CST, 1 hour 10 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR SOUTHEAST SD/SOUTHWEST MN/NORTHWEST IA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
350 PM CDT WED AUG 11 2010
.DISCUSSION...
ATTM...CURRENT HEAT INDICES HAVE EXTENDED JUST A BIT NORTH AND WWD
FROM OUR CURRENT ADVY. HOWEVER TO THE WEST...ELEVATED CONVECTION HAS
FIRED UP AND THE ASSOCIATED MID AND HIGH CLOUDS SHOULD HELP TO PUT
THE BREAKS ON ADDITIONAL HEATING...AT LEAST AROUND YANKTON AND THE
JAMES RIVER VALLEY. SO WL NOT EXPAND THE ADVY UP TOWARD MITCHELL SD.
OTHERWISE...THE AFOREMENTIONED CONVECTION ACCORDING TO THE 3KM HRRR
WL BE THE FOCUS FOR INTENSE CONVECTION LATE THIS AFTERNOON...MOVG
EWD THIS EVENING. BELIEVE THERE IS ENUF INSTABILITY AND WIND SHEAR
THAT THE CURRENT CAPPING WL BE RATHER EASILY OVERCOME...SO SPED UP
THE TIMING OF THE CONVECTION IN OUR FA TO MORE OF A LATE AFTN AND
EVENING EVENT. THE NATURE OF THE CONVECTION DOES LOOK FAIRLY
PROGRESSIVE...WITH H850-300MB WINDS AVERAGING 30 KTS EARLY THIS
EVENING. SO STILL BELIEVE THAT 1 TO 2 INCHES UNDER MOST CELLS IS
REASONABLE...WITH 3 INCH AMOUNTS VERY ISOLATED IF THE TSRA MOVES AS
EXPECTED AND DOES NOT TRAIN. THE LATE AFTN AND EARLY EVENING SVR WX
THREAT CANNOT BE MARGINALIZED. AS MENTIONED IN THE LATE MORNING
DISC...WIND SHEAR IS ASTOUNDING...WITH PRE CONVECTIVE NAM PARAMETERS
SHOWING OVER 70 KTS FOR EFFECTIVE TOTAL SHEAR AND VERY HIGH 0-1KM
AND 0-3KM HELICITY VALUES. 0-1KM STORM RELATIVE WIND IS 27.7 KTS. SO
ALL OF THESE PARAMETERS POINT TOWARD SIGNIFICANT ROTATING SUPERCELLS
WHICH WILL BE DISCRETE INITIALLY WEST OF I 29. AS FAR AS
INSTABILITY...ML CAPES ARE AVERAGING OVER 3000 J/KG...0-3KM EHI
VALUES OF 6.9 AND EVEN 0-1KM EHI VALUES OF 2.97. STILL...WITH THE
LACK OF DECENT WRMFNT IN THIS AREA...TORNADIC DEVELOPMENT WILL
PROBABLY BE MINIMAL. WE WILL WATCH FOR BOWING SEGMENTS AND LARGE
HAIL...EVEN WITH FREEZING LEVELS AROUND 14K FEET AGL...DUE TO STRONG
ROTATING UPDRAFTS. NO CHANGE TO THE FFA HEADLINES AS THAT AREA STILL
LOOKS ON TRACK FOR THE HEAVIEST RAINFALL. /MJF
TRICKY FORECAST TOMORROW AS RAIN CHANCES WILL LARGELY BE DEPENDENT
ON THE SPEED OF THE COLD FRONT MOVING THROUGH THE AREA. GFS SLIGHTLY
SLOWER THAN THE NAM...AND LEANED A LITTLE BIT MORE ON THE NAM THAN
THE GFS BASED ON UPPER LEVEL Q VECTORS. AIRMASS AHEAD OF THE FRONT
IS CERTAINLY UNSTABLE WITH 2500-3500 J/KG OF CAPE. THE LOW LEVEL
WIND FIELD IN THE NAM APPEARED TO BE CLOUDED OVER WITH CONVECTIVE
DEBRIS...BUT THE GFS STILL SHOWS SOME FAIRLY IMPRESSIVE SHEAR FOR
THIS TIME OF YEAR WITH A VEERING PROFILE IN THE WARM SECTOR. SHEAR
IS RELATIVELY WEAK IN THE 800-600 MB LAYER...BUT DRY AIR IN THIS
LAYER MAY HELP ACCELERATE THE DOWNDRAFT INCREASING THE THREAT FOR
DAMAGING WINDS. STILL HAVE A CAP TO WORK THROUGH...SO MAY AGAIN BE A
PERIOD IN THE LATE MORNING/EARLY AFTERNOON WHERE RELATIVELY SENSIBLE
WEATHER IS OCCURRING. WITH MORE CLOUD COVER AROUND THE AREA
THROUGHOUT THE DAY TOMORROW...TEMPERATURES SHOULD BE SLIGHTLY COOLER
KEEPING THE AREA BELOW HEAT ADVISORY CRITERIA.
THE FRONT IS EXPECTED TO MOVE SOUTH FRIDAY EVENING BECOMING MORE
EAST/WEST ORIENTED AS IT WORKS TO THE SOUTH. AS THIS OCCURS...LOW
LEVEL JET INCREASES FROM THE SOUTH INCREASING THE POTENTIAL FOR
BACKBUILDING AND TRAINING OF ECHOES....THOUGH THIS SHOULD MAINLY
OCCUR SOUTH OF THE FORECAST AREA. COOLER AND POTENTIALLY DRIER
CANADIAN HIGH PRESSURE WILL WORK INTO THE NORTHERN PLAINS THIS
WEEKEND. STILL MAY SEE SOME CUMULUS DEVELOP DURING THE LATE
AFTERNOON ON SATURDAY...ESPECIALLY IN THE SOUTHEAST. STEEP LAPSE
RATES IN THE 800-600 MB LAYER MAY CREATE AN OUTSIDE THREAT FOR
ELEVATED STORMS LATE IN THE DAY BUT CONFIDENCE IS LOW SO LEFT DRY
FORECAST AT THIS TIME.
FORECAST BECOMES MUCH MORE UNCLEAR NEXT WEEK AS MODELS ARE
DISAGREEING ON HOW STRONG THE INFLUENCE OF THE NORTHERN BRANCH OF
THE JET WOULD BE WRAPPING AROUND AN UPPER LEVEL LOW NORTH OF THE
GREAT LAKES REGION. THE ECMWF AND GEM ARE MUCH STRONGER WITH THE
NORTHERN STREAM USHERING DOWN MUCH COOLER AIR IN NORTHWEST FLOW
COMPARED TO THE GFS. HAVE RAN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD FOR NOW IN
TERMS OF TEMPS...TILL A SOLUTION BECOMES MORE CLEAR. MODELS STILL
SHOW SOME SEMBLANCE OF AN AGREEMENT WITH A WARM FRONT LIFTING
THROUGH THE AREA MONDAY NIGHT...AND AN INCREASING LOW LEVEL JET BOTH
TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY NIGHTS AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT ON THURSDAY
NIGHT. HAVE ADDED POPS THROUGHOUT THE EXTENDED...BUT MAINLY TRIED TO
KEEP THEM FOCUSED IN THE 00-12Z TIME FRAME. IT APPEARS AS THOUGH
THESE STORMS WOULD BE LESS LIKELY TO PRODUCE HEAVY RAIN THAN THE
STORMS TONIGHT AND TOMORROW AS THE ENVIRONMENT APPEARS TO BE MUCH
DRIER.
&&
.AVIATION...
TSRA WL CERTAINLY BE A THREAT LATE THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. UNDER
THE HEAVY SHOWERS...SHORT TERM LIFR TO IFR CONDS ARE LIKELY. /MJF
&&
.FSD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
IA...HEAT ADVISORY UNTIL 8 PM CDT THURSDAY FOR IAZ012>014-
020>022.
FLASH FLOOD WATCH FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY
EVENING FOR IAZ001>003-012>014-020>022-031-032.
HEAT ADVISORY UNTIL 8 PM CDT THURSDAY FOR IAZ031-032.
MN...FLASH FLOOD WATCH FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY
EVENING FOR MNZ071-072-080-081-089-090-097-098.
NE...HEAT ADVISORY UNTIL 8 PM CDT THURSDAY FOR NEZ013-014.
FLASH FLOOD WATCH FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY
EVENING FOR NEZ013-014.
SD...HEAT ADVISORY UNTIL 1 PM TO 8 PM CDT THURSDAY FOR SDZ070-071.
FLASH FLOOD WATCH FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY
EVENING FOR SDZ040-055-056-061-062-065>071.
&&HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD 1125 AM CDT THU AUG 12 2010 SDZ038>040-050-052>071-MNZ071-072-080-081-089-090-097-098- IAZ001>003-012>014-020>022-031-032-NEZ013-014-131200- AURORA-BEADLE-BON HOMME-BROOKINGS-BRULE-BUENA VISTA IA- CHARLES MIX-CHEROKEE IA-CLAY-CLAY IA-COTTONWOOD MN-DAKOTA NE- DAVISON-DICKINSON IA-DIXON NE-DOUGLAS-GREGORY-HANSON-HUTCHINSON- IDA IA-JACKSON MN-JERAULD-KINGSBURY-LAKE-LINCOLN-LINCOLN MN- LYON IA-LYON MN-MCCOOK-MINER-MINNEHAHA-MOODY-MURRAY MN-NOBLES MN- OBRIEN IA-OSCEOLA IA-PIPESTONE MN-PLYMOUTH IA-ROCK MN-SANBORN- SIOUX IA-TURNER-UNION-WOODBURY IA-YANKTON- 1125 AM CDT THU AUG 12 2010 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA... SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...NORTHWEST IOWA...AND NORTHEAST NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS... LATE THIS AFTERNOON...SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP WEST OF INTERSTATE 29. IF THESE STORMS CAN DEVELOP THAT EARLY...ROTATING SUPERCELLS COULD PRODUCE HAIL AS LARGE AS TENNIS BALLS AS WELL AS ISOLATED TORNADOES. THE STORMS WILL THEN PROGRESS EASTWARD TO ALONG AND EAST OF INTERSTATE 29 THIS EVENING. THE SITUATION SHOULD THEN MORPH INTO CONVECTIVE COMPLEXES INSTEAD OF INDIVIDUAL CELLS. THIS MEANS HAIL SIZE WILL DECREASE TO HALF DOLLAR SIZE AND SMALLER...BUT THE POTENTIAL FOR STRAIGHT LINE WINDS OF 70 MPH OR GREATER WILL INCREASE. FLOODING... THUNDERSTORMS WILL LIKELY DEVELOP THIS EVENING OVER SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA AND SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...THEN LATER IN THE EVENING OVER NORTHWEST IOWA. THESE STORMS WILL HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO PRODUCE VERY HEAVY RAINFALL IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME WITH 1 TO 2 INCHES POSSIBLE...WITH MANY AREAS ALREADY SATURATED. RIVER FLOODING WILL CONTINUE ALONG THE JAMES RIVER FOR AN EXTENDED PERIOD. AREAS OF HEAVY RAINFALL TUESDAY HAVE ALSO RESULTED IN RENEWED RIVER FLOODING ALONG PARTS OF THE MISSOURI RIVER...AS WELL AS PARTS OF THE LOWER BIG SIOUX...LITTLE SIOUX...FLOYD AND OCHEYEDAN RIVERS IN NORTHWEST IOWA. EXCESSIVE TEMPERATURES... HEAT INDEX VALUES WILL APPROACH AND EXCEED 105 DEGREES ALONG AND SOUTH OF A VERMILLION TO SPENCER IOWA LINE. THE HOTTEST READINGS SHOULD BE THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY THIS EVENING. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE POSSIBLE THROUGHOUT THE DAY ON FRIDAY...SOME OF WHICH COULD BECOME SEVERE...ESPECIALLY EAST OF INTERSTATE 29. A FEW OF THESE STORMS MAY ALSO CONTAIN HEAVY RAINFALL. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY AFTER 5 PM. && FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SIOUXFALLS. THIS INCLUDES THE GRAPHICAL HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK.
PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
445 PM CDT THU AUG 12 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0405 PM TSTM WND GST MONROE 43.49N 97.22W
08/12/2010 E60.00 MPH TURNER SD TRAINED SPOTTER
0431 PM TSTM WND GST WALL LAKE 43.53N 96.96W
08/12/2010 M60.00 MPH MINNEHAHA SD TRAINED SPOTTER
&&
RRYRHOLMPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
456 PM CDT THU AUG 12 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0450 PM TSTM WND GST 1 SW GARRETSON 43.71N 96.51W
08/12/2010 E60 MPH MINNEHAHA SD TRAINED SPOTTER
50 TO 60 MPH WINDS WITH BRANCHES DOWN
&&
RRYRHOLMPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD
459 PM CDT THU AUG 12 2010
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0440 PM TSTM WND DMG 1 S CROOKS 43.65N 96.81W
08/12/2010 MINNEHAHA SD LAW ENFORCEMENT
LARGE TREE DOWNED ON HIGHWAY
&&
RRYRHOLMThe Sioux Falls radar (KFSD), 39 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:01 UTC.
8 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including up to 4 inch diameter branches blown down.
Thunderstorm winds blew the roof off a bowling alley, and caused tree damage.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including several branches blown down.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including several branches blown down.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including several branches blown down.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Minnesota in 2010Every state in 2010This day in weather historyWarnings in Minnesota, August 2010
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: 257159, 257162, 257164, 257165, 257167, 257168, 257170, 257172.