Snow plows clear flood water from Interstate 94 in Maple Grove, Minnesota

A powerful storm dumped 10 inches of rain on some parts of the Twin Cities, causing flash flooding that stranded cars and shut down Interstate 94 and Interstate 694 in the north metro. At one point, MnDOT snow plows were brought in to try and push the water off I-94 as they worked to clear clogged drains.

Thursday morning, the northbound Highway 169 ramp to westbound Interstate 694 ramp remained closed due to flooding, and westbound Interstate 694 at Highway 169 is down to two lanes. the Hennepin County Sheriff urges drivers to avoid unnecessary travel through this area until the ramp has re-opened.

Cars stranded

In Brooklyn Park, Minn., a number of drivers found themselves stranded after they tried to drive through flooded intersections. Volunteers who live in the area and know flooding is a problem came to try and help clear the sewer grates, but it was too late for some drivers.

MEANWHILE, IN WASECA – 6 inches of standing water on ice at hockey arena

According to the Hennepin County Emergency Management Director Eric Waage, Brooklyn Park, Brooklyn Center, and Maple Grove got hit the hardest from the flooding. Waage says about 10 to 20 cars were completely submerged in the county. He says there was a handful of car rescues, where fire crews needed to help people out of their cars. So far, there are no reports of injuries.

In Maple Grove, barricades were put up to keep cars from driving into flooded areas, but several cars ignored the warnings.

In the southern part of Hennepin County, wind damage and power outages were reported. 

Rainfall totals for the Twin Cities metro
All measurements in inches

Maple Grove – 9.98
Brooklyn Park – 7.23
Waseca - 6.5
Rockford – 5.78
White Bear Lake – 3.93
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport – 2.0

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