EF0 tornado in Benson County, North Dakota

A brief tornado touchdown occurred in an open field just north of highway 2. The tornado continued to the east for less than a quarter of a mile. Peak winds were estimated at 70 mph. The tornado was wrapped in heavy rain and downburst wind, on the leading edge of a squall line.

The summer of 2020 had more hot days than 2019, and July 17, 2020 was one of those hot days, with the exception of the Lake of the Woods region. Afternoon high temperatures ranged in the 80s to low 90s, with dew points in the mid 60s to mid 70s. During the early afternoon, a line of thunderstorms over north central North Dakota moved into the Devils Lake region. By the early evening, showers and storms covered most of the area north of Interstate 94 in North Dakota, and highway 10 in Minnesota. By mid to late evening, these showers and storms continued to sag southward, covering the rest of eastern North Dakota and west central Minnesota. These storms produced large hail and damaging wind gusts. In addition, most areas received from 1 to 4 inches of rain.