A storm system brought up to quarter sized hail and tornado warnings to the area Monday.
The National Weather Service issued several tornado warnings and severe thunderstorm warnings in the area late yesterday afternoon and early evening.
A confirmed tornado was reported around the ground near Ceylon in Martin County at around 4:25pm. There were no reports of damage or injuries.
The weather service also received reports of multiple tornadoes near Winnebago. The Blue Earth Police Department reported a tornado at 170th Street, near Highway 169 between Blue Earth and Winnebago. These have yet to be confirmed to be actual tornadoes.
Melissa Dye, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s Office in the Twin Cities, said spotters likely saw “gustnadoes,” which are small whirlwinds that form during thunderstorms but are not connected to a cloud base, as a tornado is. She said they can look like tornadoes because they kick up dust and debris.
Heavy rains and pea to marble sized hail also pelted parts of Faribault County. In Minnesota Lake a storm report lists winds caused a large pine tree to blow over.
Wind gusts of up to 60mph and quarter sized hail were reported in Swea City and Buffalo Center.
After Monday’s storms, area residents should be aware of storm chasers asking to do roof inspections. If you do have damage, make sure you don’t pay for anything until you contact your insurance provider and they schedule an appointment with their adjuster to do an inspection.
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