Power Outage in Brookings, SD

Numerous vehicles were blown over. Trees were snapped with widespread damage to houses and roofs throughout town, and most without power into the next day. The Brookings Marathon scheduled for a couple days later was cancelled.

Blizzard conditions led to a shutdown of government offices and schools, and travel was not recommended due to the widespread whiteout conditions. Interstate 29 was closed from the evening of April 10 through noon on April 12. Storm-total snowfall from 7 to 18 inches occurred, with 18.0 inches 2 miles south southeast of Astoria, 16.0 inches 5 miles west of Bruce, 10.3 inches at Brookings and 7.8 inches near White. With winds gusting at times from 40 to 50 mph, many areas had snow drifts of several feet, making roads impassable. Ice accumulation up to a tenth of an inch occurred, resulting in spotty power outages as wind increased.

Grain bin and and large barn destroyed. Also power poles and several trees were downed.

High winds from a westerly direction followed a low pressure system which had brought Christmas Day rain and thunderstorms. There were several reports of power lines and branches down and resulting power outages, and traffic lights and some signs were damaged. The winds included measured sustained winds of 40 mph and a peak gust of 53 mph at Brookings Airport, but stronger winds and gusts were suspected to have occurred.

Westerly winds behind a cold front reach sustained speed of 40 to 45 mph for a few hours. The high winds caused spotty power line and traffic light damage.

Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines.

Freezing rain produced ice accumulations, estimated at one quarter inch. The freezing rain was followed by 1 to 2 inches of snow. Strong northwest winds produced some drifting snow. Roads were made very icy, there was damage to power lines and resulting power outages, and school classes were cancelled.

Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines, power poles, and bent other poles and signs. The winds also caused roof damage and extensive tree damage, including numerous branches and at least one large tree blown down.

Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines and caused tree damage, including several trees blown down. The winds also partially peeled off the roof of a commercial storage building.

High winds not directly associated with a thunderstorm damaged trees and power lines.

Snow, beginning as rain and freezing rain, fell from around noon on April 10th to midday on April 11th. The snow accumulated 4 to 7 inches and was accompanied by north winds averaging around 30 mph and gusting to 45 mph. This produced blizzard conditions for much of the time, with zero visibilities and drifting snow making travel impossible. Schools and numerous businesses were forced to close. Power outages were reported as some power lines were downed by the combination of wet snow and strong winds.

Lightning struck an electrical cable, cutting off power to 180 Brookings customers for a half hour.

High winds not associated with thunderstorms caused tree and power line damage in a path from Volga to Elkton, including the city of Brookings. Several trees were uprooted in Elkton.

Heavy freezing rain coated roads, trees, power lines, and most other objects with ice up to 3 inches thick. Travel quickly became difficult to impossible. Many roads including Interstate Highways 90 and 29 were closed for extended periods of time. Most schools and businesses were forced to close. Electric power was lost over widespread areas when many miles of power lines and thousands of poles were knocked down, with more damaged. Strong winds which accompanied the ice storm and the immediately following blizzard combined with the weight of the ice to bring down many of the power lines and poles. Tens of thousands of households and businesses lost power, with the time power was out ranging from most of a day, to two or three weeks in some rural areas. Even a few communities were without power for extended periods, such as more than 5 days at Avon and Wessington Springs, and 9 days at Woonsocket. The damage to power poles and lines was so extensive that repairs done in the following days and weeks required assistance from crews which came from other states such as North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, Montana, Missouri, and Kansas. The power loss resulted in numerous additional problems, including loss of refrigeration, freezing, and cooking capacity, lack of heating, loss of telephone service, and the loss of water service. Indirect damage also occurred, such as damage to computers caused by generator power fluctuations. The loss of heat and utilities and food problems forced many people to take emergency shelter during and after the storm in such varied places as schools, nursing homes, community centers, churches, fire stations, and courthouses where commercial or generator power was available. Medical care was made unavailable or seriously hampered by the lack of power and the difficulties or impossibility of transportation. Even mail delivery was temporarily halted in many areas. Tree damage was extensive, with some vehicles and buildings suffering damage from falling trees. Livestock losses were suspected because of difficulties in making food and water available, although emergency assistance in the days following the storm helped. Aside from law enforcement and other emergency personnel, the National Guard was activated for emergency operations including rescue work.

Northwest winds averaged near 40 mph for several hours, and gusted to over 55 mph, including officially recorded gusts of 64 mph at Huron airport and 58 mph at Mitchell airport.Several power poles and lines were blown down, and roofs and signs were damaged. Some windows were blown out, including large storefront glass windows in downtown Huron.