Extreme Minnesota: Tornado and ice out records shattered

What we reported as likely Monday night is now official. Monday's tornadoes are the earliest on record in Minnesota.

Survey teams from the Twin Cities NWS confirmed the EF-1 Zimmerman tornado packed 107 mph winds. The tornado tore across the ground for 8.9 miles in 16 minutes. By my math that's a forward speed of 33 miles per hour.

Damage photos show trees down and some structural damage. The candy coating of snow just hours after the tornado only adds to Minnesota's extreme weather lore. From tornadoes to snow in 9 hours? Welcome to Minnesota.

Second tornado near Clark's Grove

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Another NWS survey team confirms a second tornado near Clark's Grove in southern Minnesota north of Albert Lea.

Climate perspective

It's notable that Monday's tornadoes come 12 days earlier than the previous record. Also, the Zimmerman tornado occurred about 115 miles further north than the previous record of March 18, 1968 just north of Truman. Those records fit seasonally and geographically with longer tern climate trends pushing weather events earlier in the season and further northward.

Record early ice outs

Our February warmth and howling March winds have combined to produce many record early ice out dates on Minnesota lakes. Wind gusting to near 50 mph took out the ice on Minneapolis bellwether Lake Calhoun today.

Today's ice out on Calhoun is the earliest on record. It's also a full month ahead of the average ice out date.

Many smaller Twin Cities lakes are now ice free. My colleague MPR meteorologist Bill Endersen sends this update from Lake Harriet.

I circled Lake Harriet again late this (Tuesday) afternoon. While there is still a thin layer of ice along the east and south sides, at least 90% of the ice is gone and more will break up this evening. So I would say that the ice is out.

Bill

Many of the bays on bigger west metro Lake Minnetonka are now ice free. But the main lake is still holding a darkening (failing) cover of ice. Here's the view from Excelsior Bay Tuesday afternoon.

3 7 excelsior
Excelsior Bay on Lake Minnetonka via Maynard's webcam.

Steve Woods of the Freshwater Society sends this update.

As of this morning, the wind is doing a pretty good job of breaking the ice sheet up and a number of the smaller western bays and lakes are showing open water. The forecast shows temps going below freezing into the middle of next week—we’re guessing ice out will happen within 7 – 10 days.  Note the word “guessing”—rain, wind, and cloud cover all influence the rate at which the ice sheet melts…  The Main Lake has both whitecaps and white ice (that has yet to turn dark).

Steve Woods, Executive Director

Freshwater Society

Last year the ice went out on March 17th, the second earliest on record. March 11th is the earliest ice out on record for Lake Minnetonka. We have a shot at breaking the record on bellwether Lake Minnetonka this year.

Tonka ice out dates
Freshwater Society

Full disclosure. I'll be emcee again this year for the Freshwater Society's annual Ice-Out Loon In Gala on April 9th.

Common Loon, Mortenson
Common Loon, Mortenson

Southern Minnesota lakes ice free

Many lakes in southern Minnesota have gone out as much as 5-6 weeks earlier than average this year.

MPR's Mark Steil sends me this photo of whitecaps on a wide open Okabena Lake near Worthington.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
Okabena Lake. Mark Steil/MPR News

I wonder what records tomorrow will bring?