Apparent tornado sweeps through Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Sioux Falls, South Dakota — A severe storm spawned an apparent tornado that left a trail of damage here late Tuesday night, reports CBS Sioux Falls affiliate KELO-TV. There were no reports of serious injuries.
According to The Associated Press, Fire Chief Brad Goodroad said at an early morning news conference Wednesday that at least 37 structures collapsed or had structural issues. KELO said many trees and street lights were down.
The National Weather Service lead meteorologist in Sioux Falls, Todd Heitkamp, told the AP a survey would be conducted in daylight to confirm it was a tornado that caused the damage. Heitkamp added that most of it was probably the result of strong straight-line winds.
Access to the Avera Heart Hospital was blocked except for doctors, nurses and ambulances. They had to drive through debris to get there, KELO said. The hospital sustained significant damage and some people were hurt. Officials were trying to relocate some patients.
The storm prompted police to issue a No Travel advisory in the city, which opened an emergency operations center to coordinate the response to the storm.
As of 2:15 a.m. EDT, Xcel Energy's power outage map showed around 20,000 homes and businesses in the dark in the Sioux Falls area. That number was reduced to 8,000 several hours later.
KELO sent out numerous crews to chronicle the storm's aftermath. One anchor-reporter took photos of the interior of a Tuesday Morning home goods store:
Among many other tweets:
