NWS confirms Hartland damage caused by historic tornado

HARTLAND, Minn. (KEYC) — The National Weather Service was in Hartland on Thursday to survey the damage caused by Wednesday’s rare December storm.

The team sent to Hartland confirmed that the damage there was caused by a tornado.

The weather service says the tornado touched down at 7:10 p.m. Wednesday and had a maximum width of 40 yards.

This map from the National Weather Service depicts the path that an EF-2 tornado took over the... — This map from the National Weather Service depicts the path that an EF-2 tornado took over the town of Hartland, Minn., on Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021.(KEYC via National Weather Service)

The weather service also said that tornadoes were located near Lewiston, Rudd, Iowa, and Neillsville, Wisconsin.

The tornadoes on Wednesday were the first to touch down in the month of December in Minnesota history.

Prior to Wednesday, the latest Minnesota tornado on record was November 16, 1931, near Maple Plain in Hennepin County.

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