Wind destroys Water Carnival tent in Bemidji; Storm impacts reported across region

UPDATE: This story was updated at 3:54 p.m. to include information on power outages.

A strong storm system in Northern Minnesota on Monday, June 29, prompted several warnings for severe thunderstorms and tornadoes as it marched from west to east.

Reports of funnel clouds, strong wind gusts, large hail and power outages accompanied the well-defined “bow echo,” a type of storm system that often produces straight-line wind events.

Lake Country Power line crews were working to restore electricity to more than 6,400 cooperative members, according to a 3:45 p.m. news release. A 75-mph gust was reported in Wadena, and a Wireless Emergency Alert was sent at about 11:30 a.m. to those in the Brainerd lakes area and around Mille Lacs Lake, warning of the potential for destructive 80 mph winds and 2-inch hail.

It was winds that developed on the back side of the system that caused noticeable damage in Bemidji, however. Wake low winds reaching about 50 mph destroyed the Bemidji Jaycees’ tent set up on the Lake Bemidji lakefront for the 82nd Annual Water Carnival scheduled for July 1-5. The large tent was lifted by the winds and shredded by trees, with debris blowing around Paul Bunyan Drive and Bemidji Avenue.

“Sometimes those [wake low winds] follow thunderstorm complexes and precipitation and can produce some damage outside the actual thunderstorm, and that's kind of what played out in Bemidji this midday,” said Chris Muller, Beltrami County emergency manager.

According to the National Weather Service, a wake low is a small area of low pressure that forms 30 to 50 miles behind a line of thunderstorms. This creates a large pressure gradient between the thunderstorms and the wake low, making air accelerate from the storm to the low-pressure area.

Emergency responders including the Bemidji Fire Department arrived at the scene to assist with traffic control as the winds whipped the tent remains.

Within a couple of hours, the Bemidji Jaycees already had a new plan for the Fourth of July festivities, thanks to an outpouring of community support. Jaycees President Larissa Donovan said the tent typically used for the Lake Bemidji Dragon Boat Festival will be raised Tuesday morning.

“We have amazing partners down here,” Donovan said. “Like every event rental place in town came down to help us with this. Police, Fire, downtown businesses. I mean, it's just incredible how many people stepped up in our hour of need.”

The Jaycees first purchased the tent destroyed Monday in the aftermath of losing a tent in a damaging storm in 2012 and have used it ever since. Donovan said the tent is insured. Last year, the Jaycees had to adjust the Water Carnival schedule because of the highly destructive derecho that hit the Bemidji area.

“We still pulled off the carnival [last year]. I mean, even in the 2021 storm, we still put something together,” Donovan said. “So, we keep on trucking.”

Other storm reports

The storm system first caused power outages near Leech Lake and Walker, then continued through Cohasset, Grand Rapids, Blackduck, Hibbing, Cotton, Side Lake, Mountain Iron and areas north of Virginia. There were 134 separate outage locations to restore, mostly concentrated in three of the eight counties served by the cooperative: St. Louis, Itasca and Cass.

Crews were responding to damages, including downed trees, downed lines, storm debris and a few broken poles. Additional help from Lake States Construction was called to assist all available Lake Country Power crews, the company reported in a news release.

"Lake Country Power appreciates members’ support as restoration efforts continue through the night," the release stated. "Crews are working safely and as quickly as possible to restore power."

While the highest wind gust was reported in Wadena at 75 mph, reports of those ranging 50-60 mph were recorded in Chisholm, Cass Lake, Federal Dam, Grand Rapids, Coleraine and Deer River. A 46-mph gust was reported at the Brainerd Lakes Regional Airport.

Weather spotters reported trees down on County Highway 1, north of Pillager, and Highway 64, north of Motley. As the storm moved to the east, trees were reported down in the roadway 2 miles north of Cherry, along with power outages.

A storm chaser reported a funnel cloud north of Motley.

Hail ranging in size from a half-inch to 1.5 inches occurred north of Mille Lacs Lake and in Crosby, Grand Rapids, Nimrod and Wadena.

Editor’s Note: Larissa Donovan is also a reporter for KAXE News. Reporter Megan Buffington contributed to this story.