RURAL ENDERLIN, ND – Three people are dead from a tornado that tore through a part of rural Cass County North Dakota overnight, leaving a path of destruction that stretched for miles.
“Obviously this is a very tragic situation,” Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner said during a press conference near the scene of some of the damage at County Road 38 and Highway 46.
The tight-knit community of 856 that sits in both Ransom and Cass Counties is now dotted with debris from the storm that hit in the late-night Friday.
“We have a loss of life during this event,” Jahner said. “And as everyone is aware, a number of the people that respond to this are rural first responders and are familiar with the individuals that are involved in the situation.”
Listen below: Cass County Sheriff Jesse Jahner and Enderlin Fire Chief John Anderson hold a press conference on the latest storm damage
Cass County deputies were stationed in the western part of Cass County Friday night when, at around 11:40 p.m., deputies were dispatched to a residence where a roof had been removed from wind gusts associated with the storm.
“Our deputies were dispatched to that location to check on those individuals,” Jahner said. “And when they arrived on the scene there and speaking with those residents, they shortly learned that another residence just to the east of them had sustained major damage and that the individuals there were deceased.”
Shortly thereafter, deputies went to a second home, where they found another individual was deceased. The second home was discovered by storm chasers, Jahner said.
No other reports of people being trapped overnight were received.
