Eight tornadoes were recorded on July 31, 1966, across the Dakotas. The strongest was later rated F3. It tracked from south of Ashley, ND, and into North Dakota, north of Long Lake. It was in the Long Lake area that a car carrying Mr. and Mrs. Leo Fischer and their 3 children was carried down a county road. Per a newspaper article in the Argus-Leader, Sioux Falls, “all but one child were thrown from the car.” Mr. Fischer was found dead at the scene. His wife died later in the hospital due to injuries caused by the crash.
Five farms near Ashley were destroyed, and per Thomas Grazulis in Significant Tornadoes, one had near-F4 damage. Per the Argus-Leader article, “A section of Highway 101 south of Long Lake was ‘rolled up like a rug.'”
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Weather History: July 31st – Weather History · July 7, 2021 at 3:49 pm
[…] dollars. An estimated 90 mph wind gust was also reported northeast of Aberdeen. Click HERE for more information from […]