While North Dakota sees an average of about 23 tornadoes a year, fatalities are rare, National Weather Service data indicates. The last tornado to claim three or more lives in the state was a July 4, 1978, storm that killed five people in Elgin. It was recorded as an F4.

The severe storms caused significant damage to homes and infrastructure in several parts of eastern North Dakota.

Three people are dead and a regional airport has been heavily damaged after powerful winds including a tornado swept across the upper U.S. Midwest.