Severe weather hit hard Monday afternoon, especially in the Edgar area, pelting the town with large hail and gusty winds.
The National Weather Service in Hastings put Clay County under a tornado watch until 9 p.m., Monday, with storm activity hitting around 4 p.m.
Although the NWS recorded wind gusts up to 34 mph, one Edgar resident, Chris Gregory, who was at work in downtown Edgar when the storm hit, said it looked and sounded more like a tornado was coming through town.
Gregory was one of many whose home was hit with large hail, resulting in damage to siding and windows.
It appeared that most damage to businesses happened on the west side of town. Shuck Drilling and Beck’s Farm & Auto Parts Service Center had boarded up windows, while Beck’s NAPA sign was broken and laying on the ground a foot or so east of its original placement.
Trees were also hit hard, covering the streets in a layer of leaves, showing more green than actual street.
Recently, weather has leaned more toward the extreme, with strong winds hitting the area last week resulting in blackouts along roadways due to blowing wind.
A welcomed rain finally hit the county Sunday. The NWS-Hastings reported between 2.78 and 4.78 inches fell near Edgar, while near Saronville, 3.99 inches were reported.
On Monday, NeRain reported Clay County receiving between 1.0 inches and 3.79 inches of rainfall.
Edgar had the highest amount recorded with 3.79 inches, while other towns such as Sutton and Fairfield received 2.9 and 2.4 inches, respectively.
Clay Center reported between 2.25 and 2.37 inches, while southeast of Harvard and south of Glenvil received 1.80 and 1.83 inches, respectively.
Trumbull was on the lower end of rainfall, receiving 1.0 inches, while Fairfield had 1.70 inches.
