Forest Service Officials assess tornado damage and plan next steps

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) - Forest Service officials continue to evaluate the impacts of a tornado that touched down on the Forest in the Northern Black Hills of Wyoming and South Dakota.

Until hazards are cleared and salvage operations are completed, Forest Service officials ask the public to refrain from cutting firewood within the impacted tornado area.

Hazards still remain in the area from snags and twisted tree trunks, commercial timber sales are active in the area and additional salvage operations are being planned. Opportunities for firewood gathering will be made available later this summer or early fall.

The Stateline tornado occurred in the Northern Black Hills on July 6, 2020. A reconnaissance flight measured a 17-mile perimeter around the tornado with a path that covered 3,445 acres.

Crews continue to open roads and trails that have downed trees across them due to the tornado.

For more information on the Black Hills National Forest, visit http://www.fs.usda.gov/blackhills.

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