Deadly derecho leaves trail of damage as tornadoes, 100+ mph winds sweep across northern Plains

A powerful derecho tore across North Dakota at the end of last week spawning destructive winds and intense tornadoes that left at least three people dead. FOX Weather Correspondent Robert Ray was in Enderlin, North Dakota, on Sunday with the latest on recovery efforts as storms rumbled off in the distance.

ENDERLIN, N.D. – A powerful derecho brought tornadoes and 100-plus-mph wind gusts across North Dakota and western Minnesota from Friday night into Saturday morning, leaving several dead and a trail of damage and power outages. 

Three people were killed when a tornado swept through the rural town of Enderlin, North Dakota, according to the Cass County Sheriff’s Office.

Deputies received word that a home suffered significant damage from a tornado strike around 11:40 p.m. Friday. As emergency responders arrived at the scene, storm chasers notified them that they had found two people dead inside the home. Enderlin firefighters found the tornado had left a third person dead at another location. 

WHAT IS A DERECHO?

A video shared by FOX Weather Correspondent Robert Ray shows extensive damage left behind after a deadly tornado tore through Enderlin, North Dakota, as the region was ravaged by a derecho.

Another tornado was observed near Eckelson and Urbana. The supercell thunderstorm stayed north of Interstate 94, but some damage was reported by storm chasers.

The damage was significant enough for the governor of North Dakota to issue a statewide disaster and activate the state emergency operation center.

In addition, the squall line brought wind gusts well over hurricane-force strength. The National Weather Service says a private weather station near Luverne, North Dakota, clocked a gust of 111 mph around 12:45 a.m. Saturday, and gusts reached 80-90 mph for more than an hour in Jamestown.

The NWS office in Grand Forks, North Dakota, sent out storm survey teams to investigate damage left behind after the tornadoes and released preliminary findings.

This graphic shows the preliminary tornado ratings in North Dakota as of Sunday, June 22.

(FOX Weather)

So far, the tornado west of Valley City was rated an EF-3 or higher. South of Valley City, a tornado with a preliminary rating of EF-2 or higher was reported.

The Enderlin area was rated an EF-3 or higher, and the tornado near Bemidji, Minnesota, doesn’t have a rating as of Sunday morning.

‘Thousands of trees’ felled in Minnesota as 106-mph gust slams Bemidji

Farther east as the storm crossed into Minnesota, the airport in Bemidji recorded a gust of 106 mph. An emergency manager there reported extensive damage from falling and uprooted trees on roofs and cars with people trapped.

Damage in Grand County, N.D. on June 20,2025.

(Grand County Sheriff’s Office)

“There is extensive damage around the Bemidji area and much of southern Beltrami County,” emergency managers wrote on Facebook. “Please do not travel unless it is an emergency. Many roads are blocked and there are a ton of power lines down. Unfortunately, there is significant structure damage as well. We are responding to many gas leaks.”

Torrential rain resulted in flash flooding in downtown Bemidji with vehicles becoming stalled, said Beltrami County emergency management spokesperson Christopher Muller. “Additional damage was reported in southeastern Beltrami County with thousands of trees blocking roadways.”

However, no injuries have been reported, Muller said. 

Severe weather alert map from 6/20-6/21.

(FOX Weather)

“Residents should plan for long-term power outages as significant infrastructure damage has occurred,” Muller said.

Overall, data from FindEnergy.com indicated that over 57,000 customers were without electricity in Minnesota at the peak of the outages, with more than 100,000 outages reported across the northern Plains and Midwest.

Officials in Bemidji said damage assessments were underway but pleaded with residents to stay away from the damage.

“We do know that a significant portion of the city is without power and there are people who are working on that as well. There has been an emergency command center that has been established by city staff to assess and to work out of,” Bemidji Mayor Jorge Prince said on Saturday.