Volunteer firefighter identified as man killed during Thursday storms
A volunteer firefighter from Lake Lillian, Minnesota has been identified as the person killed in Thursday night's storms.
The Kandiyohi County Sheriff's Office said 63-year-old Ryan Erickson was killed when a grain bin fell during the storm and landed on him around 7 p.m.
He was readying himself to leave his farm to carry out storm-watching duties in his local area when the tragic accident happened.
An employee with the sheriff's office said that Erickson had been volunteering with the Blomkest Fire Department for "around 40 years." Bring Me The News reached out to the fire department for more information.
According to Facebook comments on the sheriff office's page, Erickson was described as "someone who always had a smile on his face." Another said, "he was such a caring man" and "would give the shirt off his back to anyone."
The Blomkest and Lake Lillian area was the subject of a tornado warning Thursday evening. It has not been confirmed if a tornado was responsible for the heavy damage sustained in the area, or if it was the high straight line winds that in parts of the state exceeded 90 mph.
Storms ripped through western and central Minnesota Thursday night, with numerous reports of roofs being blown off, structures destroyed, trees toppling power lines and semis overturned as the weather system blew through.
Major damage was also reported in Douglas, Kandiyohi, Stevens and Todd counties, while the Minnesota State Patrol was dealing with multiple storm-related issues on I-94. Winds were toppling over trailers, which resulted in a closure near Alexandria.
