Communities from Minnesota to Illinois are assessing damage after a rare concentration of tornado warnings swept the Upper Midwest on Friday, with the National Weather Service office in La Crosse issuing 26 alerts in a single day—the most since it began operations in 1995.
The outbreak left over 70,000 customers without power across the Midwest and Great Lakes regions by Saturday morning, though most had service restored by evening as cleanup crews began clearing downed trees and debris from roads and yards.
In Rochester, Minnesota, David Vetsch described the tornado’s approach as sounding “like a freight train” before it struck his 89-year-old father’s home, causing extensive structural damage while leaving the elder Vetsch unharmed.
Nearby in Marion, Minnesota, another tornado damaged homes in the Rochester area, adding to a pattern of concentrated destruction reported southeast of Minneapolis and west-central Wisconsin, where the La Crosse NWS said the majority of warnings were focused.
In Lena, Illinois, a tornado knocked out power and rendered the village inaccessible Friday afternoon as massive trees blocked roads and downed wires hampered entry, according to the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Office.
Marcia, a Lena resident, said she first thought the crash she heard was her roof collapsing before realizing a tree had fallen in her yard, prompting her to seize her dog to the basement shower for shelter.
Radio traffic from public safety officials indicated “fairly extensive damage” at Lena’s elementary and high schools, both occupied at the time of the tornado, though no injuries were reported among students or staff.
Stephenson County Sheriff Steve Stovall confirmed the storms caused no loss of life or serious injury in the county, despite repeated rounds of severe weather throughout Friday night.
The Weather Channel noted that tennis-ball-sized hail fell near Tama, Iowa, between Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, while quarter-sized hail was reported earlier in Kasota and Latest Ulm, Minnesota.
A semi-tractor was flipped by a tornado near Elgin, Minnesota, with damage as well reported on two nearby farmsteads, underscoring the rural reach of the storm system.
Meteorologists attribute the persistent severe weather to a high-pressure system over the eastern U.S. Funneling Gulf moisture northward, combined with southward jet stream troughs plunging from the West into the Central Plains—a pattern that has triggered repeated storm outbreaks across the Plains and Midwest since early in the week.
From Monday through Thursday night, over 750 severe weather reports were logged, including nearly 50 tornado accounts, though the National Weather Service notes final confirmation totals remain pending additional ground surveys.
While another round of isolated to scattered thunderstorms is possible ahead of a cold front moving into the eastern Great Lakes and Ohio Valley early Sunday, forecasters say activity will not match Friday’s intensity.
The nation may see at least a three-day reprieve from severe weather as the cold front pushes off the East Coast, offering a window for recovery efforts to proceed without additional atmospheric strain.
How many people were under threat of severe weather during the Saturday forecast period?
Twenty-eight million people were under the threat of severe weather across parts of the Southern Plains, Mississippi Valley and Great Lakes on Saturday afternoon and into the night, according to the National Weather Service.
What specific damage occurred to infrastructure in Lena, Illinois?
In Lena, Illinois, a tornado knocked out power and caused extensive damage, with downed trees and wires making the village impossible to enter, according to the Stephenson County Sheriff’s Office.