Tornado Hits Sioux Falls Overnight

The Sioux Falls Police Department and Mayor Paul TenHaken are asking the public to stay at home as there is too much debris on city roads.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Severe weather including a tornado hit central Sioux Falls. National Weather Service Senior Forecaster Bob Oravec confirmed that a tornado touched down in the city, just before midnight Tuesday.

The twister wrecked an Advanced Auto Parts store and caused damage to other businesses and homes, including the Avera Heart Hospital, where police were letting only doctors, nurses and ambulances get in through the debris.

The Sioux Falls Police Department and Mayor Paul TenHaken are asking the public to stay at home as there is too much debris on city roads.

Xcel Energy reported hundreds of outages. There are also outages reported in Dell Rapids, Lennox, Canton, Bridgewater and near the intersection of I-90 and I-29.

The utility did not have an estimated time when power would be restored. The Red Cross opened a shelter for people displaced by the storm at the Armory..

Mayor Tenhaken also asked that people you “say a prayer for our city.” So far there have been no reports of injuries.