Cleanup continues after EF2 tornado devastates Detroit Lakes area

Wednesday was another day of picking up the pieces after an EF2 tornado touched down Monday night in the area of Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, injuring at least three people.

Roofs were ripped off and debris was strewn all over yards and in local bodies of water, with Floyd Lake getting hit the hardest. Many docks were still a mangled mess due to winds that reached up to 115 mph. Dozens of trees were also ripped from the ground.

It remains early in the process of recovery. Chainsaws are still revving in some backyards on the lake's east side as workers and homeowners worked to get tree debris out so that they could get repairs going on the structures that had taken heavy damage.

On Friday, Becker County officials said power had been restored to all but two homes.

Wading into the water in the wake of the tornado, Todd Simison and his crew with TS Dock and Lift are finding carnage. They use specialized equipment to flip over boats, haul away debris and reunite people with the things that can be saved.

"Normally we haul stuff out and it gets flipped over, upside down, whatever, and we flip it up and it has a bend here and a bend there," Simison said. "The stuff we're hauling out of here is just, it's like shredded, you know. They got hit pretty hard."

Simison says he's flooded with calls from homeowners asking for help. 

All of the objects they've pulled from the water are, of course, just stuff — but the items tell a story about the lives lived on this shoreline.

Nick Midthune visited his parents' place Wednesday. He says a July day there normally means laughing in the backyard, playing on the lake.

"It's emotional," Midthune said.

Heartbroken to see it now, with many of his parents' belongings scattered across the lake, he says he takes solace in the way neighbors are rallying.

"I'm really just amazed by all the people who have come out and helped," he said.

And help is coming in all sorts of ways. Trucks are hauling away trees, strangers delivering sandwiches and experts are out on the water navigating a minefield.

"The storm was so strong that the last house we just worked at, some of his stuff was 100 yards down the beach," Simison said. "Cleaning all that up, it takes time."

With cleanup in the early stages, some are unable to return home. The Red Cross was in Detroit Lakes Wednesday helping people and trying to determine how many people now need shelter after losing their homes.

County officials said a disaster relief fund has been created to help people impacted by the twister.