On 8/19/2009, severe thunderstorms formed in Iowa and the Dakotas. The storms moved to the north and east during the day, spreading into Wisconsin and Minnesota. At 1:50 pm CDT, an EF0 tornado touched down in south Minneapolis, Minnesota, uprooting trees and causing minor structural damage to buildings, including Minneapolis' neo-Gothic-styled Central Lutheran Church. The tornado continued north-northwest for 4.5 miles (7 km) before dissipating near the Minneapolis Convention Center in downtown Minneapolis where the ELCA Churchwide Assembly was being held.[32]
The coincidence of this tornado with the day of the 2009 ELCA Churchwide Assembly's vote on the Social Statement "Human Sexuality: Gift and Trust" sparked an increased interest in the Assembly across social media, local print and broadcast news, the religious blogosphere, and a few national-level media outlets including the magazine Christianity Today[33] and a blog by the religion editor of The Washington Times.[34] While this was the first significant tornado to strike the city of Minneapolis since June 14, 1981,[32] ten additional tornadoes also touched down that day in eastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin.