Cleanup continues in St. Paul after strong overnight storms

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Descriptions of Tuesday morning’s storm make Mother Nature out as a supervillain. But after a glance at some St. Paul streets, locals wish this scene had stayed in the movies.

"Ferocious, wicked rain was thrashing. Just pure evil. You couldn’t see anything outside when you looked," St. Paul homeowner Diane Bertsch told FOX 9.

What happened?

Strong winds cast trees aside like dominoes, blocking roads and keeping workers busy on the Phalen Golf Course.

"All hell broke loose. It was so windy. Our trees were blowing sideways, and we were just begging them to hold on for dear life," St. Paul homeowner Matt Schueffner said.

Power lines were also damaged, leaving 150,000 Xcel Energy customers in the dark across the Twin Cities.

Residents react

Schueffner says his power went off around 6 a.m., "In our neighborhood, you can see this one spot where powerlines are supporting a dead tree right now," Schueffner said. "So yeah, pretty chaotic… there’s a lot of stuff that’s pretty wrecked."

Some locals were lucky enough to avoid power outages, but for unlucky ones, power restoration efforts could take days.

"We have no power," Bertsch said. "I have called Xcel, and I’m waiting for them to come out… I’ve had one estimate already, and likely I’m going to need an electrician."

"[It] just makes the house a little sweaty without the air conditioning running, we’ll be fine," Schueffner said.  "Maybe we’ll have to throw some groceries out."

"Most likely [we’re] losing food, so that will be a big loss," Bertsch finished.