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4 confirmed tornadoes in MN from Monday’s storm
The National Weather Service confirms at least four tornadoes hit Minnesota on Monday. The storms left damage across the southern portion of the state. FOX 9's meteorologist Cody Matz has more on the tornadoes.
(FOX 9) - The National Weather Service confirmed an additional three tornadoes hit southern Minnesota on Aug. 5, bringing the total up to seven twisters.
Tornadoes from Aug. 5
The NWS survey crews previously confirmed four tornadoes ranked as EF-1, touched down in St. James, Janesville, south of Waseca, and the Twin Lakes/Emmons region.
Since then, the NWS reported an additional three tornadoes touched down east of Austin, north of Taopi, and in the City of Wells.
The tornado in Wells, Minnesota, touched down at 7:28 p.m. and traveled for nearly 5 miles. It had winds of 80 mph, earning a rating of an EF-0 tornado. The NWS reported that a few trees were uprooted and broken, but the tornado mostly moved through corn and ben fields.
Almost an hour later, a tornado landed about seven miles east of Austin. It had winds of 75 mph and traveled 1 mile. The NWS said the tornado was mainly in a farm field, but there was some reported tree damage.
At 8:43 p.m., another tornado touched down about five miles north of Taopi. The tornado was on the ground for approximately five minutes and traveled just over 2 miles. The NWS reported the tornado stayed in open fields, and was located via satellite data. No other damage was reported.
Tornado rankings
The NWS ranked the three new tornadoes from the storms as EF-0 on the Enhanced Fujita (EF) scale. An EF-0 is considered a "weak" tornado with winds of 65-85 mph, while an EF-5 is considered "catastrophic" with winds of 200+ mph.
The other four tornadoes from the Aug. 5 storm were ranked as EF-1.
Tornadoes in Minnesota
Minnesota, on average, has 42 tornadoes per year. So far, there have only been 21 confirmed tornadoes in 2024. Of those tornadoes, 11 were ranked as EF-0, eight were an EF-1, and two were an EF-2.
The two strongest tornadoes, the EF-2s, occurred on June 12 and were from the same storm that ran from just northeast of Pequot Lakes to east of Crosby.
July is typically the busiest month for tornadoes — only one was confirmed in July 2024.