Summer Solstice Storm Sweeps Through Albertville, St. Michael

The storm season of 2011 continues to be a bumpy one, as the first in a series of Summer Solstice storms expected through the next 36 hours hit Albertville and St. Michael last night. 

The first front came through around 2 a.m. Tuesday morning, bringing heavy rain and a lot of lightning. 

One of the bolts ripped through the home of Mark Green and his family in the 10200 block of Karston Avenue in Albertville, just to the east of Cedar Creek Golf Course. 

"I'd say it hit around 3 a.m.," Mark said from the home's driveway Tuesday, some five hours later. "It just exploded one of the outlets in my son's bedroom. The blankets on his bed were charred and everything. He has his bed right up to the wall." 

Two teams of firefighters from the Albertville Fire Department knocked down the fire, limiting damage to an exterior wall and a portion of the attic above the boy's room. Some siding was removed to get into the blaze. 

Crews from Schoen Electric and JZac, two local repair businesses, were on the scene this morning. 

"The Albertville Fire guys couldn't have been nicer. They got the [damage] tarped up so the heavy rain didn't get in. Then Jerry [Zachman] and Pat [Schoen] were here in the morning to check wires and make some repairs," Green said. 

High winds, which followed the lightning and thunder, had Albertville Firescrambling for about three hours last night. Chieif Tate Mills said a tent at the 152 Club crashed into a power pole, disrupting power in downtown Albertville. Another lightning strike hit a tree near the intersection of 80th Street and MacIver on the Albertville/Ostego border, and damaged a power line there. 

"It's was pretty crazy for a while," Mills said. "Fortunately, not a lot of damage." 

There were a few small trees downed, but mostly big branches littered yards and residential roads.

In nearby Rogers, power had been knocked out briefly, but the traffic signal at Highway 101 and County Road 144 hadn't recovered. Morning traffic was moving slowly through that area.  

In Minnetonka, two trees – one more than 30 feet tall – were uprooted by the wet turf and high wind, disrupting traffic on Hennepin County 101 and County 62, a major intersection west of Interstate 494. 

More storms are expected later today (Tuesday) and throughout the night. Some may be severe, bringing high winds, lightning and some very heavy rain. Drivers should watch out for floodwater in low-lying areas, and ponding on county roads, particularly tonight.