Bad weather hits Zumbrota

The last week of June found Minnesota's only covered bridge, barely out of water. On June 27th, 1998, over six inches of rain fell in just a few short hours, causing major damage to homes, property and a loss of two people's lives. For more details on the story, see the Zumbrota newspaper link below.

The Zumbrota Covered Bridge was moved to its original location above the Zumbro River just last year (1997), and luckily escaped major damage during the storm. Previously, it had been located in Covered Bridge Park. One of the other buildings in the park, the log cabin, was broken apart during the storm, and washed away in the flood. The Zumbrota Covered Bridge Society had just voted to support the renovation of the log cabin as a historical site just weeks before the floods carried it away.

Find out more about the flood and how it affected the citizens of Zumbrota. The online Zumbrota newspaper has a very interesting story about the flood and the damage it did. There are also many more pictures of the bridge right in the middle of it all. Laurie Grimsrud's writing shares the horrors of the weather with the newspaper's readers.

Thanks to Milo Lowe for sending us this picture of the Zumbrota bridge during the flood. Compare it to the picture on the main page to see how high the river was during June and early July 1998.

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