Overnight, strong winds tested the resilience of trees across the Twin Cities metro area, accompanied by severe storms that brought monstrous hailstones to some parts of the state.
Xcel Energy mobilized over 1,200 crew members on Sunday to restore power to approximately 135,000 affected customers.
“We’ll have full crews out there in the morning [on Monday], aiming to restore all customers by the end of the day,” said John Marshall, Xcel Energy’s regional vice president.
Residents of Monticello reported seeing baseball-sized hail late Saturday, with photos showing hailstones as large as 4 inches in diameter. Damage to cars and homes was evident, with some storing hailstones in freezers as souvenirs.
“It sounded like giant rocks,” said Nora Kulberg, recalling the intense noise during the storm.
In the Twin Cities, overnight storms brought down trees in areas like south Minneapolis and St. Louis Park. The Linden Hills neighborhood faced power outages, prompting businesses like Picnic to adapt quickly, turning a planned sushi dinner into a successful lunch event.
Cleanup efforts in public spaces, complicated by a city parks worker strike, may face delays despite mediation efforts scheduled for Monday.
