A sudden thunderstorm July 7 whipped up a torrent of hard feelings in Lyle, Minn.

After the town's emergency warning system failed to sound a siren as a severe storm swept through the small town last Sunday, Mower County Sheriff Wayne Goodnature and Mower County Civil Defense Director Robert Nelson told Austin reporters that the siren in Lyle had been inoperable for some time.

Lyle Mayor Harold Rohne and Lyle City Council members are adamant that their system works and angry about the remarks. They say they did all they could and the storm came too quickly to do more.

Lyle City Clerk Nancy Williamson said siren had to be activated manually because it was missing the receiver that gets signals from Austin. But it could not even be manually activated that day, she said, because the power was out and they have no backup source.

``There is nothing that would have happened any differently on Sunday even if we did have that receiver,'' Williamson said. ``It was just a freak thing. The storm just kind of started here.''

Lyle officials felt that the county officials' remarks put them in a bad light.

The missing siren part was repaired and returned this week and the miffed Lyle and Mower County officials have agreed to work out their differences in private. They say it was all a misunderstanding.

``We've all made an agreement not to discuss it with the press and take care of it among ourselves,'' Goodnature said.

Nelson also declined comment, saying, ``We've got it resolved.''