North Minneapolis and parts of nearby suburbs were hit by tornado damage on Sunday, leaving at least one man dead and many wounded. The tornado was part of a huge weather system that also killed many people in Joplin, Missouri. The city is enforcing a curfew into Monday morning, for possibly as long as three days. The Red Cross of MN has opened the NE Armory as an emergency shelter at 1025 Broadway St NE near Central & Broadway. (see @redcrosstc). Families can also get help at Henry High, North High and Folwell, and several schools will be closed tomorrow. [School press release]
On Tuesday morning volunteers will get to work cleaning up from the tornado at 8AM at 1823 Emerson Ave N (MAP). Volunteers can contact Ryan Petersen at 612-701-2653 / email ryan.petersen AT urbanhomeworks.com. Also needed at 18th & Emerson according to NE Mpls Crime Watch: Chain saws, replacement chains, rakes, work gloves, etc. • Diapers of all sizes, adult and infant, and wet wipes• Bottled and Gallon Drinking Water• Tarps of all sizes• Sunscreen• Rubbermaid containers of all sizes• Coolers• Batteries• Personal care products (soap, wipes, deodorant, toothpaste, combs, brushes, etc)• Feminine care products• Cleaning supplies (convenience items like lysol wipes, presoaped sponges, shop towels, etc.)• First-aid items• Bug spray• Trash bags and ziploc storage bags of all sizes• New unopened medicines such as Children's Tylenol/Advil, adult versions, etc.• Work gloves• Packing tape, duct tape, etc.
On internets the best place for updates is the North Minneapolis Post Tornado Watch page ( http://facebook.com/mplstornado ). Posted around midnight: "Contact in the curfew zone says the scene is surreal and movie-like...pitch darkness, helicopters hovering above and shining bright spotlights on to ground, police heavily patrolling too. Many residents are unaware of the curfew. They believe there are more injured people still trapped indoors"
Also Mpls Firefighters Local 22 has put out a call for volunteers for clearing debris or "whatever else". The Minneapolis / St. Paul emergency services radio online feed @ RadioReference.com has a lot of listeners right now.
[photo still from video by Black Nickill / mabmindz]
Below the fold: Videos from damaged streets of north Minneapolis including Webber Park, the wide tornado funnel and residents recovering after the disaster.
On the officials-touring front, Gov. Dayton, Sen. Klobuchar and Mayor Rybak will be at Broadway & 20th Avenue at 9:45AM Monday for media appearances said a press release. It is unclear if the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA has been activated, or what other authorities may arrive.
While curfews have been called after tornados elsewhere (in Wadena, a June 17th 2010, tornado triggered more than 30 arrests & wasn't lifted until July 4th) the vague descriptions of looting and gunshots carried by the Star Tribune and FOX9 in particular seem like the standard media framing seen in disaster coverage like Hurricane Katrina. Northside residents & the rest of Minneapolis will have to work together whether the media covers it or not.
Video of the tornado itself - no audio from some elevated distance by Tom Sandelands Photography.
TheFanta drives through severely damaged neighborhood - Nordeast Minneapolis Tornado damage
Videos by uspimpclub: Shocking Video Right After N Minneapolis Tornado // North Minneapolis Destroyed by Tornado
Video by mabmindz during the storm: YouTube - Northside Fxcked Up
Me and my wife survived the tornado by Kevin Craft.
Webber Park suffered extreme damage as shown by TheQuickoats - YouTube - Aftermath of North Minneapolis Tornado - 5/22/11 - Webber Park Part 2: Aftermath - Webber Park (Webber Park official page)
Penn Ave area by Rossyamg - Part 1 - Part 2.
Downed power lines & ripped trees by jcn36 - YouTube - North Minneapolis tornado 2011:
Star Tribune video with police chief declaring it would be a "soft curfew" at first. Residents talk about the tornado.
Footage from elsewhere in Minneapolis by GregoryLog: Tornado Warning Minneapolis Minnesota May 22, 2011
The Star Tribune featured a Minneapolis officer with an assault weapon in a green vehicle on its website: This police officer patrolling North Mpls after the storm app... on Twitpic -- and another photo with the same officer & no adjacent police car is posted in the Strib gallery.
Fox9: Gunshots, Looting Prompt Mpls Curfew. The official narrative: problem, reaction, solution.
Photos by Tony Webster: North Minneapolis Storm Damage [May 22, 2011] - a set on Flickr
Here's to wishing North Minneapolis a positive recovery that pulls people together - they need it!