Remembering 'The Longest Night': The May 6, 1965 Twin Cities Tornado Outbreak

At least six tornadoes tore through the southwestern, western and northern suburbs of the Twin Cities on May 6, 1965, killing 13 and injuring hundreds. Climatologist Kenny Blumenfeld and Jim du Bois discuss this historic event, how excellent warnings kept the death toll down and the prospects for a similar tornado outbreak in the future. You can hear WCCO radio’s dramatic coverage from that evening on the RadioTapes website. The National Weather Service’s Twin Cities forecast office compiled extensive documentation of the outbreak in 2015 including animated radar film and a timeline of events transcribed from the WCCO tapes. Watch a 50th anniversary video interview with Kenny and Rob Brown, one of the WCCO staff members on duty the night of May 6, 1965.