Updated: 07/08/2009 9:37 AM KSTP.com | Print Story
By: Dave Dahl

Remembering a night that changed my life forever!

May 6th, 1965 was a day that started out like many others here in Minnesota during the spring.  It was sunny and mild with a touch of humidity.  By the time I was walking home from Lovell Elementary in Circle Pines that afternoon, the temperature had climbed into the upper 70s and it was very windy!  Even at the age of 10 I was very interested in the weather!  I knew that something was up by the way the clouds were building out west and the humidity was climbing into the uncomfortable range, which was unusual for so early in May. 

I was glued to the radio that evening as the weather warnings started coming in from the western suburbs of the Twin Cities shortly after 6 PM.  We lived in a small home that unfortunately didn't have a basement, so my brothers and sisters and I huddled in an interior hallway, which was going to be our safety zone for hours that night.  My dad was at a bowling banquet and my mom was trying to keep all of us safe.  One of the six tornadoes that night missed our home by a little over a mile as it traveled down Old Highway 8 through Circle Pines and into Centerville.

Our family was safe that night, but unfortunately many others were not.  13 people died in the storms, while nearly 700 others were injured.  1500 homes were either damaged or destroyed.  Countless lives were changed that night as was mine.  I still believe that the experience that night caused me to pursue a career in meteorology.

Meteorologist

Dave Dahl