Funnel clouds and a tornado were reported between Waseca and Waterville Wednesday night but no injuries or serious property damage was reported.

Shortly after 8 p.m., trained weather spotters reported a tornado on the ground, with debris, about 6 miles northeast of Waseca. The cell moved east and more funnel clouds were spotted at about 8:20 p.m. west of Owatonna.

The first severe thunderstorms and tornadoes in southern Minnesota hit sporadically Wednesday.

On Wednesday, thunderstorms with high winds moving in from South Dakota were headed for the Mankato area but veered southeast without hitting the local area.

Stormy weather and a small twister on the ground were reported in far west-central Minnesota near Wheaton. Other storm cells producing heaving rains and funnel clouds were moving through the Austin area.

The entire 9-county region — along with much of southern Minnesota — was in a tornado watch or warning late into the night.

The National Weather Service in Chanhassen predicts the conditions will be ripe for thunderstorms and possibly tornadoes through Friday, with the weekend to be clear, hot and calm.