Thunderstorms roared through western and central North Dakota last night.
In the Bismarck-Mandan area, heavy rains caused urban flooding, and high winds downed power lines and damaged roofs.
"We had an 82 mile per hour wind gust here at the airport," said National Weather Service forecaster Michael Mathews. "Lots of tree damage around town, some siding and some roof damage. That was some of the worst wind damage we had in the state."
At the height of the storm, 10,000 customers were without power in Bismarck-Mandan.
"We had a lot of primary lines downed, so we haven't even gotten to looking at individual services yet that are likely damaged," said Mark Hanson, a spokesman for MDU. "There's still a lot of work ahead."
Hanson says crews worked through the night.
"In talking to some of the long-time folks who have been doing this, it probably ranks as one of the worst storms for Bismarck-Mandan as far as damage, not only to trees and branches, but for our infrastructure," Hanson said.
Hanson says because of the scope of the damage, some customers may not see power restored until Sunday. He asks people to be patient.
