Authorities: 1 Dead After Tornado Hits Western Minnesota

DALTON, Minn. (AP) -- A powerful tornado damaged farms and left one person dead in western Minnesota as severe storms moved across parts of the Midwest, authorities said.

The tornado struck at 5:30 p.m. near Dalton. Three farmsteads were hit, and one of those farmhouses was flattened, said meteorologist Vince Godon with the National Weather Service in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

Two people were taken to a hospital, according to Otter Tail County Sheriff Barry Fitzgibbons. Their conditions were unknown. The county later said in Twitter and Facebook posts that one fatality was confirmed.

Additional details weren't immediately available and the county said updated information would be released later Thursday.

The tornado crossed Interstate 94 but no vehicles were affected, according to the weather service.

A weather service staffer was at the scene checking the tornado aftermath, Godon said, but the tornado is believed to be at least in the EF-3 category, with winds of 136-165 mph (219-266 kph).

Other possible tornado activity was reported Wednesday in Colorado as well as parts of Nebraska and Illinois, the weather service said.

In Sedgwick County, Colorado, near the Nebraska state line, KDVR reports video from a trained weather spotter captured a tornado that caused property damage. No injuries were reported.