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Three Dead, Damage Across Dozens of Communities After Derecho Slams Midwest, Northern Plains

By Jan Wesner Childs

May 16, 2022

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At a Glance

  • Two people are confirmed dead in South Dakota and another in Minnesota.
  • At least 28 counties in South Dakota were reporting damage.
  • Several semis and train cars were blown over.
  • WInds gusted over 100 mph in some areas.
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At least three people were killed and homes and businesses in dozens of communities were damaged when storms packing hurricane-force winds and at least one tornado tore through parts of the Midwest and Northern Plains Thursday.

"We have had many storms before, but the amount of communities that have been affected, we just haven't seen before," South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem said during a news conference Friday morning

Noem said at least 28 counties in the state were reporting damage.

(FORECAST: Severe Thunderstorms Possible From the Midwest to Plains Into the Weekend)

The dead included 61-year-old Wendy Lape of Wentworth, South Dakota, who died Friday morning of injuries sustained as a massive wall of blinding dust and debris blew into areas around Sioux Falls on Thursday.

“In that situation a husband and wife were driving home … and that wall cloud, or the wall of dust and dirt and debris hit them," Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstad said at the news conference. "They slowed down to probably under 5 miles an hour because of the almost zero visibility from the blowing debris, and a chunk of wood came through the window of the car."

The identity of a person killed during the storms Thursday night in Sioux Falls had not been released as of late Friday afternoon. There were also reports of several injuries.

(MORE: Plains, Midwest Derecho a Top-Two Significant Severe Wind-Producing Event)

In Minnesota, the Kandiyohi Sheriff's Office said in a news release Friday morning that a man was killed by a large grain bin that blew over in Lake Lillian, about 87 miles west of Minneapolis. A 71-mph wind gust was reported in the area.

Crews were still assessing the damage.

“We had two train cars tipped ... We’ve had poultry barn roofs blown off, lots of power lines down and some of our communities are still without power," Kandiyohi County Emergency Management Director Stephanie Felt told weather.com in a phone call Friday.

A tree toppled by high winds from an overnight thunderstorm smashed into a house, splitting it in two Thursday, May 12, 2022, in Coon Rapids, Minnesota. (David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)
A tree toppled by high winds from an overnight thunderstorm smashed into a house, splitting it in two Thursday, May 12, 2022, in Coon Rapids, Minnesota.
(David Joles/Star Tribune via AP)

A state of emergency was declared in South Dakota in the storms' aftermath.

Drone video showed damage to homes and other buildings in Castlewood, South Dakota, where both the derecho and a confirmed tornado hit. A high school in the town sustained extensive damage. Castlewood is about 90 miles north of Sioux Falls.

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Hangars were ripped apart at the airport in the nearby community of Watertown, South Dakota.

Trees were uprooted, structures damaged and semis tipped over across the region.

More than 110,000 power outages were being reported across eastern South Dakota and western Minnesota as of about 9:15 p.m. CDT, according to PowerOutage.us. By 10:15 this morning, that number dropped to about 68,000.

(MORE: Falling Trees: An Underreported, Deadly Danger During Severe Weather)

A wind gust over 105 mph was measured near Tripp, South Dakota, about 60 miles southwest of Sioux Falls. There were dozens of other reports of winds over 75 mph.

To the southeast, a semi was blown over near Meckling, South Dakota, according to the Storm Prediction Center's daily log of severe weather reports. Winds gusting up to 70 mph were reported in the region.

Several photos were posted to social media of tipped semis north of Sioux Falls.

Officials in Sioux Falls asked people to avoid travel due to power lines down throughout the city Thursday evening.

"Emergency crews are trying to assess storm damage which involves downed power lines and downed tree limbs all over the city," Sioux Falls Fire Rescue tweeted. "Extra traffic is making things difficult and causing more problems."

(MORE: Derecho Spawns Massive Wall of Dust That Slams Sioux Falls)

High winds also knocked down or uprooted trees in parts of Nebraska and Kansas.

The National Weather Service in North Platte, Nebraska, posted video of strong winds blowing dust, leading to low visibility.

The storms met the criteria for a derecho. Derechos are large clusters of thunderstorms that most commonly form in late spring and summer and leave wide, long areas of straight-line wind damage.

Damage is seen near Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Thursday, May 12, 2022. (Michelle Leigh)
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Damage is seen near Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Thursday, May 12, 2022. (Michelle Leigh)

The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.

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