Courtesy: Grand Forks NWS
...NWS SURVEYS EXTREME WIND DAMAGE IN NORTHERN WALSH AND SOUTHERN KITTSON COUNTIES...
A NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE STORM DAMAGE TEAM TRAVELED TO DONALDSON MINNESOTA AND GRAFTON NORTH DAKOTA AREAS TO REVIEW EXTREME DAMAGE FROM EARLY MORNING STORMS.
A MILE WEST OF DONALDSON... PEAK WESTERLY WINDS TO 121 MPH WERE MEASURED AT THE MNDOT RWIS SITE LOCATED ALONG HIGHWAY 11 AND WERE REPORTED FROM 303 AM CDT TO 314 AM CDT. DAMAGE TO DOWNWIND FIELDS... FARM SHELTER BELTS AND THE COMMUNITY OF DONALDSON WERE FOUND TO BE COMMENSURATE WITH WINDS TO THAT EXTREME RANGE.
IN DONALDSON...TWO LARGE COMMERCIAL GRADE STEEL BINS AND THEIR HORIZONTAL TRANSFER SYSTEM WERE TORN OUT FROM THE LOCAL GRAIN ELEVATOR FACILITY AND WERE SPLAYED TO THE EAST... PARTIALLY BLOCKING U.S. HIGHWAY 75. SEVERAL WOODEN POWER POLES IN THE AREA WERE ALSO SNAPPED. NUMEROUS LARGE TREES AND TREE LIMBS WERE TORN DOWN AROUND THE COMMUNITY AND MOST HOMES SUSTAINED SHINGLE... ROOFING AND SIDING DAMAGE.
Courtesy: Grand Forks NWS
A MILE EAST OF DONALDSON...THREE FARM GRADE STEEL GRAIN BINS WERE TORN OFF THEIR FOUNDATIONS AND BLOWN OUT INTO A FIELD. THREE MORE STEEL BINS AT THE FARM YARD WERE SEVERELY DENTED IN AND PARTIALLY REMOVED FROM THEIR FOUNDATIONS. NUMEROUS SHINGLES WERE TORN OFF OF A HOME AND ALL WEST FACING WINDOWS ON THE HOME WERE CRACKED. A NEARBY METAL HIGHWAY SIGNPOST WAS SNAPPED.
IN GRAFTON... NUMEROUS LARGE TREES WERE SNAPPED OFF...INCLUDING SOME 60 TO 70 FOOT TALL EVERGREENS. AT LEAST FIVE HOUSES AND MULTIPLE VEHICLES WERE DAMAGED BY TREES FALLING ON THEM. ONE TRAILER HOUSE HAD SUBSTANTIAL DAMAGE FROM A TREE FALLING ON IT. LARGE COMMERCIAL GRADE STEEL GRAIN BINS WEST OF TOWN WERE DENTED BY THE FORCE OF WIND WHILE GRAIN ELEVATOR FACILITIES NEAR DOWNTOWN ALSO RECEIVED SOME DAMAGE. SEVERAL COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS HAD METAL SIDING BLOWN OFF. FIVE OR SIX WOODEN UTILITY POLES WERE SNAPPED OFF AND ONE CANTILEVERED STEEL LIGHT POLE WAS BLOWN DOWN. SEVERAL STREET AND HIGHWAY SIGNS WERE BENT OR TWISTED. PEAK WINDS IN THE COMMUNITY WERE ESTIMATED TO 90 MPH BASED ON DAMAGES. THE PEAK WIND REGISTERED AT THE AIRPORT... LOCATED 2 MILES EAST-SOUTHEAST OF TOWN WAS 64 MPH.
Courtesy: Grand Forks NWS
DAMAGING DOWNBURST WINDS OF FROM 60 TO 75 MPH WERE REPORTED ACROSS SEVERAL PORTIONS OF WESTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH DAKOTA DURING THE LATE EVENING HOURS OF WEDNESDAY... AUGUST 31ST. THE SQUALL LINE RESPONSIBLE FOR THESE DAMAGING WINDS CONTINUED ACROSS NORTHEAST NORTH DAKOTA AND FAR NORTHWESTERN MINNESOTA DURING THE OVERNIGHT HOURS. SO FAR... THE MOST EXTREME WIND DAMAGE HAS BEEN NOTED ACROSS NORTHERN PORTIONS OF WALSH COUNTY ND INTO SOUTHERN PORTIONS OF KITTSON COUNTY MN. THESE MORE EXTREME DAMAGES WERE ASSOCIATED WITH A BOWING SEGMENT OF THE SQUALL LINE THAT MOVED AT FORWARD SPEEDS APPROACHING 65 MPH... AND PRODUCED POCKETS OF DAMAGING WINDS IN WELL IN EXCESS OF 85 MPH.
By: Lucas Graunke Climatology Volunteer