Farming communities in Minnesota and Iowa cleaning up after tornadoes

National Weather Service confirms four tornadoes touched down

By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com

Agricultural communities in Rushmore, Minnesota and Melvin, Iowa are beginning to pick up the pieces after a total of four tornadoes damaged farms in both states last week.

The National Weather Service confirmed two tornadoes directly hit in Minnesota on August 18. Another started in Minnesota and crossed the border into Iowa and the final tornado stayed in Iowa.

Communities come together to clean up after tornadoes destroy farms

While the weather was quiet Saturday, Friday brought a big night of severe weather. The National Weather Service confirmed that three E-F1 tornadoes touched down in southwest Minnesota Friday night. The first two hit near Rushmore around 7:30 P.M., the third struck near Bigelow shortly after. Then just before 8:30 P.M.

None of the tornadoes lasted more than 30 minutes, but left extensive damage to local farms, destroying crops and killing about 30 hogs.

“The neighbours and I together were well over $200,000 worth of loss in less than 20 minutes,” Rodney Bosma, a producer from Rushmore, told KSFY.

At 7:26 p.m. on August 18, an EF1 tornado (86-100 mph winds) touched down in Rushmore, North of the I-90.

Then at 7:37 p.m., another EF1 tornado touched down in Rushmore, South of the I-90.

And at 7:47 p.m., an EF1 tornado touched down near Bigelow, MN, and crossed into northern Iowa.

Then at 8:07 p.m., an EF2 tornado (111-135 mph winds) touched down near Melvin, IA.

And despite the damage done by the twisters, there were no human injuries to report.

“(The Melvin, IA tornado) actually struck two farmsteads and thankfully no one was home at that point in time,” Todd Heitkamp, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, told Radio Iowa.

Since the storms, the communities have collected donations to help the impacted families.

“We will always figure out different options and living in a small town somebody always is there for you to help you if you need it,” Bosma told KSFY.

Top photo: Damaged corn near Rushmore, MN/National Weather Service