photo by Eric Johnson

A funnel cloud forms above Interestate 90 as storms raged through Mower County Wednesday night.

Tornadoes strike Austin

1 injured when outdoor stage flips

By Katie Johnson (Contact), | Albert Lea TribuneJason Schoonover | Albert Lea Tribune

Published Thursday, June 18, 2009

AUSTIN — Multiple tornadoes dotted the region Wednesday, striking Austin and knocking the power out for much of the night.

Power returned to this city at 4:15 a.m. today after it went out around 8:25 p.m. Wednesday.

One injury is confirmed after one of the tornadoes touched down in Austin at approximately 8:20 p.m. Wednesday.

Patrons at the Windrift Lounge on 11th Street Northeast, across from Todd Park, reported that one man inside an outdoor stage was flipped several times inside the structure before coming to a stop in the parking lot. The man was transported by ambulance to the hospital. There have been no other confirmed reports of injuries sustained from the storm.

A tornado grazed the northern and northwestern sides of Austin, hitting the Mapleview, River Oaks Golf Course and Todd Park areas. Fences were down and trees toppled over in the baseball complex. Power lines were leaning along 11th Street Northeast.

Tenants of a home on 236th Street said they feel lucky a large tree fell away from their home.

“We were in the basement, but we looked in the back window and their was a lot of wind,” said Justin Molina, 13. “It just happened that none of the trees fell on the house.”

A few members of the family of six were home at the time but said their neighbors to the east were not home.

“We were lucky,” said Sanjuana Molina, a Texas native who has experienced hurricanes. “We’ve never been in this kind of situation.”

Austin Mayor Tom Stiehm said it appeared two or three tornadoes — and possibly up to five — had hit.

“It kind of developed on top of us,” Stiehm said. “It just kind of ’boom,’ it was just there and the intensity got real bad.”

Austin Police Chief Paul Philipp surveyed the damage by helicopter early today. There was a press conference at 9 a.m., too.

National Weather Service meteorologist Todd Shea said evidence points to a tornado, but officials wouldn’t know for sure until they surveyed the damage.

Philipp said he saw three tornado touchdowns in Austin, including one at a distance of about 100 yards.

A tornado from the same system was reported on the ground near Corning shortly after 8:10 p.m.

The National Weather Service was tracking a tornado near Rose Creek at 8:34 p.m., moving southeast at 15 mph.

As of 8:45 p.m. the tornado was said to be on the ground near Adams.

It was expected to be near Le Roy and Taopi around 9:15 p.m.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation reported U.S. Highway 218 was closed Wednesday north of Austin because of downed power lines.

A funnel cloud was spotted near Geneva after 7 p.m. Spotters in Ellendale reported a system hovering over Interstate 35 around that time. Debris was also reported near the interstate.

Many residents sought shelter, while others sought to take photographs of tornadoes.

A tornado was also reported on the ground east of Owatonna. Around 8:50 p.m. reports said the tornado was no longer on the ground and was moving east toward Claremont. At 9:10 p.m., a dangerous part of the storm was nearing Hayfield.

Many areas of Freeborn County lost power around 8:10 p.m., with power returning in 20 minutes.

The National Weather Service first issued a tornado warning for Freeborn County at 6:35 p.m. with the center of the storm about four miles north of Freeborn moving north east at 10 mph.

Click here to see National Weather Service radar.

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