Southwest Minnesota was spared from the 17 confirmed tornadoes that hit the state on Thursday, but that doesn’t mean that the damage wasn’t felt by local community members.
The families and friends of locals traverse the state and Granite Falls resident Sue Bergquist’s parents were in the direct path of one of the three tornadoes, including an F4, that touched down in the area.
The tornado struck the Bluffton home of Bill and Regina Weniger, which is the first town north of Wadena, at about 5:02 p.m. According to Les, his two in-laws had no advanced warning save the sudden spatter of torrential rain, the intense wail of high speed wind and a timely phone call from their son, Don, a Verndale fire fighter, warning them of an approaching funnel. When they felt the walls of the home vibrating in and out the two headed toward the basement, they had just reached the bottom steps of the basement when the entire structure overhead was separated from its foundation. Sue’s husband Les said that the Weniger’s farmstead was “totally obliterated.”
Disorientated, temporarily deafened and in utter disbelief the pair were assisted out of their basement by the Ottertail County Sheriff’s staff. They were uninjured except for a minor head injury, which Regina was treated for in a nearby hospital and then released.
The real wounds were emotional. The house, barn, and machine shed, which were a part of a total of nine supplementary buildings and grain bins were either destroyed or literally “gone.” Most of the house and its contents were lying 150 feet northeast of their original location.
The following day, the Berquists traveled to assist Sue’s parents, where family members and some 50 volunteers were on hand to lend their energies. Little progress was made the first day, he said, with the majority of the time spent searching for photographs and other personal tokens that were salvageable. By Saturday Les said that about half a truck full of items had been recovered. What remained at the location was burned.
Despite it all, “Sue’s folks are doing well,” Les said. “They’re still rattled and in a state of shock. And they’re still figuring things out, they’re not even sure where they’re going to live temporarily.”
But Sue Bergquist’s parents weren’t the only relatives in the area. Her brother and sister-in-law, Don and Brena Weniger, of Verndale live southwest of Wadena and were left with only the frame of their house remaining. Les said that they believed that they would be able to at least retrieve much of their personal belongings, whereas Sue’s aunt and uncle, Sally and Rodney Rasmusson, were not so fortunate.
The Rasmussons are located one-and-a-half miles north of the Wenigers. Their home was not only a total loss, but both were injured in the disaster. Sally was treated at a hospital and later released while Rodney required extensive surgery after sustaining multiple fractures in one of his legs. Les said it was hard to imagine, but he believed that the wind speeds at the Rasmusson property had been worse than at his parents.
“Everything was just pulverized into very small pieces,” he said. Conversely, “at Sue’s parents there were chunks of debris.”
How to help
The communities of Granite Falls and Clarkfield are no strangers to what the victims of the tornados are experiencing. Clarkfield was struck by a funnel in June 16, 1992, which is still the date of the most tornadoes to ever hit Minnesota in one day with 27. And come next month it will be the 10th anniversary of the last F4 tornado to hit the state, which roared into Granite Falls on July 25.
Both communities received an abundance of volunteer help, and Granite Falls received approximately $575,000 in donations toward the recovery effort.
Les said that through the darkness of the destruction, “It is heart warming to see response from the whole community. Neighbors, volunteers, the red cross. That kind of thing is really encouraging.”
He went on to say that if people have the desire to help out, they can head up to Wadena next weekend or at some point in the future. ”The need will go on there a number of months.”
Volunteers can call (218) 640-3432 to find out how to help. And a tornado relief fund has been set up at Mid-Central Federal Savings Bank in Wadena.
Individuals who want to make contributions should contact the bank by sending correspondence to:
P.O. Box 152
Attention: City of Wadena
Disaster Recovery Fund
Wadena, MN 56482
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Southwest Minnesota was spared from the 17 confirmed tornadoes that hit the state on Thursday, but that doesn’t mean that the damage wasn’t felt by local community members.
The families and friends of locals traverse the state and Granite Falls resident Sue Bergquist’s parents were in the direct path of one of the three tornadoes, including an F4, that touched down in the area.
The tornado struck the Bluffton home of Bill and Regina Weniger, which is the first town north of Wadena, at about 5:02 p.m. According to Les, his two in-laws had no advanced warning save the sudden spatter of torrential rain, the intense wail of high speed wind and a timely phone call from their son, Don, a Verndale fire fighter, warning them of an approaching funnel. When they felt the walls of the home vibrating in and out the two headed toward the basement, they had just reached the bottom steps of the basement when the entire structure overhead was separated from its foundation. Sue’s husband Les said that the Weniger’s farmstead was “totally obliterated.”
Disorientated, temporarily deafened and in utter disbelief the pair were assisted out of their basement by the Ottertail County Sheriff’s staff. They were uninjured except for a minor head injury, which Regina was treated for in a nearby hospital and then released.
The real wounds were emotional. The house, barn, and machine shed, which were a part of a total of nine supplementary buildings and grain bins were either destroyed or literally “gone.” Most of the house and its contents were lying 150 feet northeast of their original location.
The following day, the Berquists traveled to assist Sue’s parents, where family members and some 50 volunteers were on hand to lend their energies. Little progress was made the first day, he said, with the majority of the time spent searching for photographs and other personal tokens that were salvageable. By Saturday Les said that about half a truck full of items had been recovered. What remained at the location was burned.
Despite it all, “Sue’s folks are doing well,” Les said. “They’re still rattled and in a state of shock. And they’re still figuring things out, they’re not even sure where they’re going to live temporarily.”
But Sue Bergquist’s parents weren’t the only relatives in the area. Her brother and sister-in-law, Don and Brena Weniger, of Verndale live southwest of Wadena and were left with only the frame of their house remaining. Les said that they believed that they would be able to at least retrieve much of their personal belongings, whereas Sue’s aunt and uncle, Sally and Rodney Rasmusson, were not so fortunate.
The Rasmussons are located one-and-a-half miles north of the Wenigers. Their home was not only a total loss, but both were injured in the disaster. Sally was treated at a hospital and later released while Rodney required extensive surgery after sustaining multiple fractures in one of his legs. Les said it was hard to imagine, but he believed that the wind speeds at the Rasmusson property had been worse than at his parents.
“Everything was just pulverized into very small pieces,” he said. Conversely, “at Sue’s parents there were chunks of debris.”
How to help
The communities of Granite Falls and Clarkfield are no strangers to what the victims of the tornados are experiencing. Clarkfield was struck by a funnel in June 16, 1992, which is still the date of the most tornadoes to ever hit Minnesota in one day with 27. And come next month it will be the 10th anniversary of the last F4 tornado to hit the state, which roared into Granite Falls on July 25.
Both communities received an abundance of volunteer help, and Granite Falls received approximately $575,000 in donations toward the recovery effort.
Les said that through the darkness of the destruction, “It is heart warming to see response from the whole community. Neighbors, volunteers, the red cross. That kind of thing is really encouraging.”
He went on to say that if people have the desire to help out, they can head up to Wadena next weekend or at some point in the future. ”The need will go on there a number of months.”
Volunteers can call (218) 640-3432 to find out how to help. And a tornado relief fund has been set up at Mid-Central Federal Savings Bank in Wadena.
Individuals who want to make contributions should contact the bank by sending correspondence to:
P.O. Box 152
Attention: City of Wadena
Disaster Recovery Fund
Wadena, MN 56482
