Most of west central Minn. escapes storm damage Sunday

WILLMAR -- Severe thunderstorms ripped Minnesota Sunday night but most of this region appeared to escape major damage.

Sauk Centre took the brunt of the hit with 80 mph straight-line winds that tore down numerous trees and power lines through much of the town.

The National Weather Service said there were several reports of a funnel cloud near Grove City with radar indicating rotation occurred northwest of Grove City around 8:48 p.m. Sunday.

That funnel cloud briefly touched down in a field but caused only minor crop damage, according to Meeker County Deputy Chief Sheriff Brad Lindgren.

"It could've been a lot worse. There have been no structure damage reported so far, and no injuries reported. That's the good news," Lindgren said.

He said strong wind and rain pounded the area and there were reports of a few trees down and a few trees struck my lighting, as well as several power lines down throughout Meeker County.

Renville County, which got hit hard earlier this month, experienced minimal damage this time around, according to the Sheriff's Office. There were no verified tornadoes and damage was limited to small branches being torn from trees.

Kim Lindahl, deputy director of Kandiyohi County Emergency Management, said a trained spotter saw a funnel cloud on the south side of Eagle Lake, but the office had not received reports of any damage in the county. "I'm not saying that there hasn't been any, but we haven't had any reports," Lindahl said.

Emergency sirens were activated at all of Kandiyohi County's parks and in Atwater, Spicer, New London, Kandiyohi and Lake Lillian. Sirens were not activated in Willmar Sunday evening, other than in the early evening when they were activated by mistake.