ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Minn. — Crews are assessing the damage in the aftermath of storms that possibly produced a tornado Thursday evening in northern Minnesota.

KARE’s Audrey Russo reported Friday morning that officials with the National Weather Service were en route to survey the damage. 

The suspected tornado was reported just east of Cotton, where St. Louis County law enforcement said contained the bulk of the damage.

Crews were seen immediately cleaning up after the storms, clearing snapped trees and branches that dangled over power lines.

The good news, officials said, is that no one was reportedly injured.

The bad news? This is the second time since June that people in Cotton have dealt with storm cleanup.

The National Weather Service confirmed a tornado touched down three months ago to the day.

ST PAUL, Minn. — The City of St. Paul is replacing its Community Outreach and Stabilization Unit (COAST), for a new program called Familiar Faces, beginning in January. 

The COAST Program included social workers who would follow up with individuals who made mental health-related 911 calls. Familiar Faces plans to go beyond the assessment period, building relationships with individuals until they are back on stable ground.

“It is taking the relationship and the interaction beyond service referral,” said Familiar Faces program administrator Chris Michels. “It’s partnering and brokering trust with the individual, so we’re following with them through however many steps it takes to get to that kind of stabilizing place.”

The city says Familiar Faces will be made of individuals that police officers, paramedics or EMTs see so often they become familiar. Many of those individuals are unhoused. With the program, officers will make direct referrals to the Familiar Faces team about potential individuals to whom they should reach out.

According to St. Paul’s Homeless Assistance Response Team (HART), as of Sept. 4, there are 28 active encampment sites in St Paul, with a total of 185 occupants. Seventy-six percent of those occupants are men.

“We’re going to build a relationship; we’re going to build trust; we’re going to know you as an individual and what your challenges are,” said St. Paul Deputy Mayor Jaime Tincher. “We want to make sure that we have a clinical team that also knows that person and is working in partnership with our emergency responders to address those needs.”

KARE 11 spoke with Sue Abderholden, the executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Minnesota, who says she is concerned that the city is ending an effective program in COAST, without being clear about what this new program will look like.

MINNESOTA, USA — Minnesota’s north woods and boundary waters are breathtaking, serene, and remote – a rare place where you can get back to nature. 

But that isolation can be detrimental if something goes wrong, which is where Department of Natural Resources helicopter pilot Grace Zeller comes in.

Her skills were put to the test back in May when Zeller was tasked with saving two canoeists who were badly hurt after their canoe went over a waterfall. 

“My job was to fly the aircraft,” said Zeller. “Everything that happens as a result of that is a benefit.”

She was responding to a call about four people who had gone over Curtain Falls near the Canadian border, including Reis Grams and his friend who, at the time, were still missing. The other two, one of whom was Grams’ brother, were badly hurt.

“I’d say landing remotely in the dark was definitely the most challenging,” said Zeller about the rescue. 

She had to fly from her office in Brainard to the airport in Ely and then another 15 minutes to the scene. The area is surrounded by trees that the helicopter’s rotors had to clear. And if the water level was low enough, landing on rocks was her only option. 

The helicopter weighs about 2,000 pounds. 

“You don’t necessarily need to bring the helicopter all the way out of flight mode, so you’re still hovering, but you’re balanced on something,” said Zeller. “That was a moment I had to take real slow, real careful.”

Zeller made the trip twice to rescue two men, without knowing where the others were. 

“I can’t imagine leaving people still missing,” said Zeller. “I knew that was going to be really hard for the guys.”

She has been flying helicopters for a decade and says she has to stay focused on her job during emotional missions.

“They’re already better off with the helicopter there, so you can’t try to make anything go faster, you can’t try to do anything more than just fly the aircraft,” said Zeller, who was recently recognized for her efforts that day with a lifesaving award from the DNR. 

Grams’ brother has since been recovered and was at the event, along with Reis’ wife. According to the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office, Reis’ body was found on June 3 – several weeks after the tragedy. 

“It could have been a lot worse situation and it was already bad enough, but things could have spiraled from there, so we’re very fortunate for the rescue effort, from everyone involved, especially Grace,” said Erik Grams. 

Zeller will also be a guest at an event on September 21st called Girls in Aviation which is designed to introduce young women to aviation. It’s at Flying Cloud Airport and will run from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the Jet Lynx private hangar and will offer speakers, exhibitors, educational activities, demonstrations and static displays.

Admission to the event is free, but registration is required.