Recent Deadly Storm Carves Path Of Devastation Across Northwestern Wisconsin

So very sad.  Thoughts are with the family of the girl who lost her life and everyone impacted as a result of this nasty storm.  The video, which you can watch after the jump, shows the type of damage that occurred in the area.

An 11-year-old Hinckley, Minn., girl was killed Friday night at a Burnett County, Wis., campground during a storm with winds up to 100 mph that cast a path of destruction across Northwestern Wisconsin.

The girl was trying to escape the storm when lightning struck a tree and it fell on her, said Dawn Sargent, public information officer for the Burnett County Sheriff’s Office. Burnett County is located south and southwest of Douglas County.

The death of a Burnett County man of an apparent heart attack also might have been storm related, said Brian Satula, administrator of the Wisconsin Emergency Operations Center. Sargent said the man was between 50 and 60, but she didn’t have any more information on him Saturday night.

Sargent said 39 people were injured in the storm, three critically. The critically injured victims were taken to hospitals in Eau Claire, Wis. Most of the others were treated and released, Satula reported in a news release.

Crews were going door-to-door to check on residents, and neighbors were asked to check on each other.

“It’s a mess,” Sargent said. “We have some pretty widespread damage throughout the county. We’ve got numerous roads that are blocked due to the falling trees and debris.”

Sargent said the entire county was hard-hit in the storm, particularly the northern three-quarters of the county. The Grantsburg, Webster, Yellow Lake and Danbury areas sustained the heaviest damage.

As of 7 p.m. Saturday, more than 5,000 Burnett County residents still were without power, said Robert Sichta, Burnett County Emergency Management director, in a news release. Earlier Saturday, at least 12,000 homes in Washburn and Burnett counties were without power. Sichta said the Danbury area probably would not have electricity for at least three days.

In a statement released Saturday evening, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker offered his condolences.

Read this complete story via Deadly storm carves path of devastation across Northwestern Wisconsin | Duluth News Tribune | Duluth, Minnesota.