Tornado slams Sioux Falls overnight; heavy rains again Wednesday night
Damage is extensive in Sioux Falls, S.D.
A midnight tornado? In September?
A damaging tornado struck Sioux Falls, S.D., overnight. Storm reports indicate the twister touched down around 11:25 pm.
The tornado was on the ground long enough to do extensive damage. Some injures have been reported.
I sent this tweet at 11:21 p.m. warning southwest Minnesota that this damaging storm was approaching just minutes before the twister hit Sioux Falls. You can see the storm swirling into Sioux Falls on the radar loop.
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The Sioux Falls National Weather Service office has a survey team in the field Wednesday assessing damage. Expect a rating and details on wind speed, path length and width later today.
Looking at the damage, my hunch is this will rate at least EF-2 and possibly higher.
Multi-inch rains last night
Torrential rainfall swept across southern Minnesota Tuesday night, as expected. Rainfall totals between 2 and 3 inches were common south of the Twin Cities overnight.
More rain Wednesday night
We catch a break on rainfall most of Wednesday. The next waves develop again in the evening and spread north into the Twin Cities and across Minnesota late Wednesday night.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s NAM 3 km resolution model paints additional bands of heavy storms late Wednesday night and Thursday. Another 2 to 4 inches could fall in some areas.
There is a marginal risk for severe storms Wednesday night across southern Minnesota, including the Twin Cities. A slight risk covers southwest and southeast Minnesota.
Keep the weather radio handy, and the sump pump backup battery charged Wednesday night.