Weather

A day in Hugo

Bob CollinsBob Collins May 26, 2008

Here are some images taken by MPR staffers in Hugo on Monday. (10:26 p.m. – Five more pictures added.)

A couple of things to pass along:

  • Paul Huttner says the National Weather Service believes there were actually two tornadoes on Sunday: One in Coon Rapids and one in Hugo. Here’s the weather service page on the tragedy.
  • Farm Bureau Financial Services sends along the following: “If you’re a Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company policyholder and have experienced damage during the recent storm, the company is ready to help you file your claim. Contact your agent or call our toll-free Quick Claims Hotline at 800-226-6383 and a company representative will contact you regarding the damage you’ve incurred.”
  • The Red Cross service center will relocate to the Hugo City Hall (14669 Fitzgerald Avenue North) on Tuesday. The service center will open at 9:00 am. Red Cross disaster response operations, including serving breakfast, lunch and dinner on May 27th and 28th, will be based out of the new service center location.
  • According to the Red Cross, here’s the storm damage assessment:

    *27 (Homes) Destroyed – Total collapse, not economically feasible to repair.

    *16 Major – Large portions of the roof or walls missing, one or two walls missing.

    *75 Minor – Minor structural damage, numerous broken windows, damage to small sections of roof.

    *397 Affected – Some shingles missing, minor hail damage to siding, debris around dwelling. This number includes 311 townhome units.

  • The Twin Cities Red Cross, by the way, is supplying updates via Twitter.
  • School will open as usual in Hugo on Tuesday.
  • Interesting story on KARE. They retraced the storm, stopping at locations along the way to talk to people.
  • The Hugo Citizen newspaper has an interesting scrapbook of pictures. Many looked as though they were taken immediately after the storm, showing the value of community media.
  • Update 10 p.m. – WCCO is airing home video from inside a house as the tornado hit. I’m not sure what to think about this. There’s a time to put down your videocamera and save yourself. Has “citizen journalism” made it more difficult for us to determine when that time is?

    • Comments are closed.