Minnesota
Minnesota weather outlook suggests warmer-than-average autumn
MINNEAPOLIS — If Friday’s cloudy and cooler weather has you excited for autumn, you’re not alone.
The start of meteorological fall, Sept. 1, is just about two weeks away and the Climate Prediction Center just released their outlook for the season.
Typically over September, October and November, the Twin Cities has an average temperature of about 49 degrees. If you remember last fall, conditions were well above average, with an average temperature of about 53 degrees.
Fall of 2023 was also wetter than average around the metro, with more than 10 inches of rainfall, compared to the average of 7.21 inches.
Like it or not, October also typically brings our first snow of the season with about 7.5 inches of snow through the end of November. One of the more shocking stats of the season — from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30, we lose about four hours of daylight.
A driving factor of this year’s forecast is the fact we’re transitioning away from El Nino into a La Nina. Currently, it’s in a neutral phase, but La Nina is likely by October.
According to the Climate Prediction Center, it is more likely that we’re going to be warmer than average, not just across Minnesota and Wisconsin, but really most of the country.
But when it comes to precipitation in our part of the world, it’s a little tougher to decipher what La Nina is going to mean for us. So it’s more of a toss up with the drier conditions looking to stay farther south.
Minnesota
Federal agents raid 2 Twin Cities stores in SNAP fraud probe
Federal agents say they executed criminal search warrants at two Twin Cities stores on Thursday as part of an investigation into $2.1 million of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program fraud.
Eighteen other stores were part of the investigation and are suspected of violating the SNAP program; they were issued administrative charging letters, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The probe — called “Operation Cold SNAP” — started in February. The USDA says that as part of the schemes, retailers would exchange taxpayer-funded SNAP benefits for cash or other items.
“They bring the card into the store and instead of buying an eligible food item, which is what SNAP is for, they exchange the benefits of that card for cash, for money. And then the retailer will take that money on the card, spend it,” USDA Inspector General John Walk said.
In the past, the USDA has said the cardholder usually winds up with less cash than the card is worth, benefitting the business.
Walk says fraudulent SNAP retailers steal from victims, including children that rely on the funds.
“If the responsible adult, whether it be parent or guardian are trafficking the funds, it’s actually that child that’s going to suffer from it, because the food benefits will never reach that child,” Walk said.
Data from the federal government shows about $1.2 billion in SNAP benefits were trafficked between 2015 and 2017 — about 1.5% of the total cost of the program, which is around $100 billion. However, Walk said on Thursday that reports show improper payments could be as high as 10%.
The USDA did not share what the cash is being used for in these cases, but said in past investigations, people have trafficked benefits for cash, guns and drugs.
Minnesota
Storylines | What Portland’s Win Over LAFC Means for Minnesota | Minnesota United FC
When it comes to finding a storyline to pick up on in Portland, there’s no two ways about it. Matchday 7 in the City of Roses saw the Timbers become the first team all season to score on LAFC. Nobody really expected the first team to breach LAFC’s impenetrable defense to be a floundering Timbers side sitting below the play-in line, but that 2-1 scoreline doesn’t lie. Or does it?
Setting the Scene
First, some context. If you haven’t been religiously following the whole of the Western Conference for some bizarre reason, you might not know that after winning their first match of the season against the Columbus Crew (who have six points in seven games), Portland didn’t win another game until last weekend.
Meanwhile, LAFC have started the 2026 season on an absolute tear. The attacking unit of Denis Bouanga and Son Heung-Min, with some David Martínez and Nathan Ordaz sprinkled in, is an absolute beast, and the squad boasts a goal differential of +13. Their season-starting shutout streak of 572 minutes broke the league record.
How it Happened
So how did the underdogs break LAFC’s streak? No matter how you slice it, it’s a very impressive result, but when you look at the lineup, a lot of things start to explain themselves. With the Black and Gold prioritizing Leg 2 of their Concacaf Champions Cup quarter-final against Cruz Azul, Head Coach Marc Dos Santos opted to rotate almost the entire team to give the starters a well-deserved rest. Bouanga and defender Nkosi Tafari were the only men on the XI to carry over from the squad’s midweek fixture, a 3-0 home win against Cruz Azul in Leg 1.
Squad rotation had backup keeper Thomas Hasal starting out in net, and he was replaced by Cabral Carter on a concussion substitution before any of the scoring took place. Now, something to note here is that even though starting keeper Hugo Lloris has the most clean sheets in the league, he’s not even in the top 10 for saves. LAFC’s usual back line is so good that those shots don’t typically get all the way to the Frenchman. With only one of those defensive staples starting on Saturday, it’s not a huge surprise that the net was breached a couple of times.
This was a case of intense squad rotation, and the visitors suffered for it.
A Turning Tide for the Timbers
Don’t worry, any rogue Timbers fans who have found their way to our glorious website — I’m not done yet. A win is a win, and it’s not as if Portland didn’t do any heavy lifting of their own. They needed these three points, and if they continue to convert like they did over the weekend, this might mark a bit of a tipping point that stems the tide on what has otherwise been a lackluster start to the season.
Phil Neville has rolled out a 4-3-3 every single match this season, and though the starting XI hasn’t been identical game-to-game, the consistency of the roles and a handful of heavy hitters isn’t something to be brushed under the rug. Kristoffer Velde has been the star of the season, leading the charge with three goals. He’s the only Timber to have logged more than one, but having eight other goal-scorers on the roster points to a healthy amount of range. Kevin Kelsey has been a consistent impact sub and secured the game-winner against LAFC. Finn Surman is a back line regular who’s logged 30 clearances in seven games.
Portland is 11th in the West right now, with seven points in as many matches. Regardless of the result this weekend, they won’t be able to climb above the playoff line, but it could happen over the next few weeks if they’re consistent. It’s early enough in the season that the table is still very much in flux. If one loss knocked LAFC from the top like that, anything could happen.
While I have my doubts as to whether this Timbers squad could have beaten a full-strength LAFC prioritizing their regular-season play, there’s still plenty to be admired on their recent performance. Portland will be bringing a lot of momentum into this match, and Minnesota is going to need to be ready to lock down a motivated attack and exploit any hole they can find in the back. It’s always an exciting match when the Timbers come to town, and this one won’t be any exception.
Minnesota
Woman found dead in Mississippi River in southeastern Minnesota, sheriff’s office says
A woman was found dead at a complex on the Mississippi River in Winona County, Minnesota, on Wednesday morning.
Officials in Trempealeau County, Wisconsin, called Winona County Dispatch around 7:45 about a report of a body, later identified as the woman, in the water at U.S. Lock and Dam 6, according to the Winona County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies responded after learning the location of the woman was within Winona County.
“Due to the difficult location, Winona firefighters rappelled down the dam and were able to safely secure the body,” the sheriff’s office said.
The woman has been taken to the Southern Minnesota Regional Medical Examiner’s Office in Rochester, Minnesota, for an autopsy, according to officials. Her identification will be released at a later time.
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