South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem Declares State of Emergency

Less than 24 hours after a massive storm ripped through Eastern South Dakota, Governor Kristi Noem has declared a State of Emergency for the areas impacted.

The storms killed two people in the state and left behind a significant amount of damage in several cities.

Thursday's (May 12) weather event has been classified by the National Weather Service as a 'derecho' (pronounced 'deh-REY-cho'), which is defined as 'a widespread, long-lived wind storm that is associated with a band of rapidly moving showers or thunderstorms'.

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Dakota News Now

As of Friday (May 13) afternoon, Xcel Energy was reporting

416 power outages in Southeast South Dakota impacting 9,208 households

and Emery...

Governor Noem's State of Emergency will send state personnel and resources to communities impacted by the damaging storms.

The State Department of Public Safety’s Office of Emergency Management has opened an Emergency Operations Center to coordinate the response with local government authorities.

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