STURGIS, S.D. – A line of severe weather rolled across western South Dakota Saturday evening, bringing wind gusts as high as 90 mph.
The high winds led to power outages, downed trees, blown over semi-trucks and other damage.
A thunderstorm wind gust of 94 mph was reported 13 miles north-northwest of Belle Fourche in Butte County — the highest recorded gust.
Spearfish recorded wind gusts in the 70’s and Rapid City reported wind gusts in the 60’s. The Facebook Black Hills Citizen Storm Report page reported significant damage in the campgrounds around Spearfish. At least one camper and several vehicles were reportedly crushed by two trees.
in Sturgis, it was rain and gusty wind, but not much hail. Local storm reports in Sturgis indicated wind gusts between 50-60 mph.
Reports of large tree branches being blown down were coming in Saturday night from Spearfish and Rapid City.
As the storms moved out onto the plains, they blew over semi trucks on I-90. Two trucks traveling on I-90 were flipped 8 miles east of Cactus Flat.
In Haakon County, seven miles west of Billsburg, storm chasers reported to the National Weather Service that a brief tornado lifted and flipped upside down a vehicle with an attached camper. There were no known injuries.
