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Lightning strikes electrical contractor’s home not once but twice
They say lightning never strikes the same space twice, but one family in the Hastings area would disagree.
DAKOTA COUNTY, Minn. — The Neumans were returning to their Nininger Township home after dinner Saturday when, without warning – not even a raindrop – they heard a loud noise and saw a flash of light.
“As soon as we got to the step, a lightning bolt hit the house within fifteen feet of us,” homeowner Jeff Neuman said. “It completely took us all off guard.”
Their Ring surveillance camera captured the flash of light before freezing and powering off. It later started working again. Still, Neuman is in talks with insurance and estimates tens of thousands of dollars in other replacements and repairs.
“It put a hole in my roof,” he explained. “Garage door opener, irrigation system. My well pump went bad. A couple of TVs. The refrigerator.”
The best part? No one was hurt.
“It was just amazing that we’re all alive,” the grandfather of three said. “I mean, it was scary but what an awesome experience because of the fact that we’re alive.”
The ironic part? Neuman is an electrical contractor. In 2006, he and his sister took over the family business, Merit Electric Company in St. Paul.
Neuman says his parents were with him and his wife when lightning struck.
“Right away, me and my dad were thinking, ‘We better make sure there’s no fire here,’ he said. “Luckily I had a thermal imaging camera. We went up in the attic and checked everything right away. You could tell it was hot there, but the difference wasn’t enough to concern us.”
Even stranger? This isn’t the first time.
“When the house was being built it got struck worse than this one,” Neuman said. “It blew like five basketball-sized holes in our roof.”
Some sources say the odds of getting hit by lightning in a person’s lifetime are one in one million. Others say one in 15,300. Yet this Hastings-area home has been hit twice in only five years.
Neuman says when lightning struck the first time, it was storming and no one was home.
“I don’t know, I think it’s just a freak of nature,” Neuman said. “Just unlucky but actually we’re lucky because we’re still here … Third one’s not a charm on this one, that’s for sure.”
The CDC offers indoor and outdoor lightning safety tips, including equipping your house with whole-house surge protectors to help protect appliances.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey questioned the legality of the new measure while issuing his veto on Wednesday.
MINNEAPOLIS — The City of Minneapolis will move ahead with new carbon fees after a contentious back and forth at City Hall concluded with the council overriding the mayor’s veto.
The new fees, which target carbon emissions from city businesses, will be implemented on July 1, 2025, according to the council.
Minneapolis already has a pollution fee system, known as the Pollution Control Annual Registration or PCAR. The fees go into the city’s Green Cost Share program, helping pay the costs companies incur bringing down their emissions.
The current PCAR system covers emissions of other air pollutants, including volatile organic compounds, heavy particulates, and sulfur oxides, nitrous oxides, lead, and carbon monoxide. Companies are required to report their emissions levels to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, which, in turn, charges fees of $100 per ton.
The City Council voted Oct. 2 to add carbon dioxide to the list. The resolution seeks to impose a $452 per ton fee for carbon dioxide.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey questioned the legality of the new measure while issuing his veto on Wednesday.
“I am all on board for PCAR fees—but it’s time the Council stops playing games and follows the processes in place to enact lasting change,” said Mayor Jacob Frey, in a statement to KARE.
Before his veto was overridden, Frey had told KARE that if the measure were to move forward, companies hit with the fees would likely sue the city and win.
Council Member Robin Wonsley, who co-authored the measure, took to X (formerly Twitter) to respond to Frey’s veto on Wednesday night.
Wisconsin law enforcement said Katrina Baur, and her partner, Jesse Vang, are facing charges in connection with 3-year-old Elijah Vue’s death, including obstruction.
TWO RIVERS, Wis. — About a month after 3-year-old Elijah Vue’s remains were recovered from a private property in Wisconsin, state authorities announced Thursday that charges have been filed against the boy’s mother and her partner.
Wisconsin law enforcement said Katrina Baur, and her partner, Jesse Vang, are facing charges in connection with 3-year-old Elijah Vue’s death, including obstruction.
Vue went missing in February and it wasn’t until September that his body was recovered and identified.
Wadena-Deer Creek head coach Kyle Petermeier told families in a letter that a rash of injuries has reduced the roster to the point that playing is a “safety issue.”
WADENA, Minn. — A central Minnesota high school is pulling the plug on the remainder of its varsity football season, saying continuing to play would not be “safe or realistic.”
Wadena-Deer Creek head coach Kyle Petermeier sent a letter home to families earlier in the week, explaining the decision to skip the Wolverines’ final game and subsequent district playoffs. Petermeier said injuries began piling up as the club reached midseason, and roster numbers hit a dangerous low following Wadena-Deer Creek’s game in week 7.
Heading into the final regular season game against Staples-Motley, Wadena-Deer Creek had just eight healthy players from 10th to 12th grade. At that point, the coach said, a difficult but necessary decision had to be made in the interest of safety.
“We are in a position now where we would have to trot out a majority of our team that is 14 and 15 years old, and that is not in the best interest of our kids,” coach Petermeier explained. “To us, safety is ahead of any individual game result. Football is a physical sport and putting out a team of mostly 14-15 year olds vs. 17-18 year olds is not safe or realistic for our team, and even the opposing team playing. “
Before the decision to end their season, the Wolverines were 1-6 on the year, losing games by up to 50 points.
Coach Petermeier credited this year’s varsity squad for their preparation, training and effort, and told parents he believes the future of the Wadena-Deer Creek football program is bright with big participation numbers with players at the fifth- to ninth-grade levels.
“Football is a game that requires strength in numbers, and we will do anything we can to keep these numbers high and keep kids out for football,” he promised.
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