5th Anniversary of Historic Tornado Outbreak in Minnesota

It was a stormy afternoon in portions of southern Minnesota on the fifth anniversary of a historic tornado outbreak.

4 people were killed, including an Albert Lea woman, by the 48 tornadoes that hit areas of Minnesota on June 17, 2010. Four of the twisters were later rated as powerful EF-4 storms with winds over 200 mph.

One of those twisters devastated the town of Wadena in northwestern Minnesota. It was the largest single day tornado total in state history and the four fatalities that occurred that day represented the highest tornado-related death toll in Minnesota since July 5, 1978 when four people were killed by a tornado that smashed into the town of Gary in far northwestern Minnesota.

The same weather system responsible for the torrential rains that produced devastating flooding in Rochester, which led to the construction of the city's expansive flood control system.

Today’s storms produced a tornado warning in Waseca County, followed by severe thunderstorm warnings in portions of Steele and Freeborn Counties. Preliminary reports indicate the storms produced strong winds that downed a number of trees.