MINNEAPOLIS — Thousands of households are starting Wednesday powerless - literally - as Xcel Energy crews work to restore electricity following two powerful storms that blew through Monday night and Tuesday morning.
As of 11:30 a.m. Wednesday just over 2,000 separate outages were still on the board, impacting in excess of 22,000 customers. Most were caused by trees and limbs knocked down by winds that in some areas were estimated at nearly 80 mph.
In a post on X Tuesday evening, Xcel said electricity has been restored to 70% of the 250,000 customers who were impacted by the storms. The company said it expects that most residents will have power restored by the end of the day Thursday.
Residential customers are not alone in their storm woes. The storm also sidelined the start of the Minnesota State Fair on Tuesday morning, with the gates opening at 9 a.m. instead of the normal crack-of-dawn 7 a.m.,
On Monday night, thousands took shelter at the fairgrounds, with vendors closing and the "Happy Together" Grandstand show being canceled. Fair officials urged fair-goers to seek shelter while rides, attractions and some vendors were temporarily closed due to the severe weather. Most vendors were allowed to reopen by about 8:30 p.m. if they desired.
According to State Fair officials, people who purchased tickets will receive an email from Etix with refund information, and those who paid cash should contact the State Fair Ticket Office after Sept. 3. The All Mighty Midway, Kidway, Adventure Park and all other ticketed attractions were also shut down for the night.
In addition to the fairgrounds, Xcel Energy reported more than 90,000 people across the Twin Cities were impacted by power outages Monday night. According to Xcel Energy, that number surged to about 143,000 by 6 a.m. Tuesday.
The Minnesota Twins were also in a delayed in the second inning of their game against the Atlanta Braves.
KARE 11 Meteorologist John Zeigler also reported a tree down in Waconia, saying winds reached more than 70 mph.
The National Weather Service reported multiple large trees down, including one near the Minneapolis College of Art and Design believed to be 23.75 inches in diameter. The NWS also received reports of 1.75-inch hail. In Isanti County, the officials reported multiple trees down and thousands without power. According to PowerOutage.us, about 1,160 people were still without power as of 8:45 p.m. Tuesday.
A time-lapse posted by KARE 11 Chief Meteorologist Belinda Jensen showed just how quickly the storms developed in the metro.
After the storm, some people posted photos on social media of some of the scenery, including colorful skies and double rainbows.
The Twins also posted a photo of a rainbow over Target Field just before play was set to resume.