Thunderstorm winds shear Kootenai power poles

Outflow winds from a line of thunderstorms sheared off power poles in Kootenai County on Sunday evening. About 20 poles over a distance of more than a mile on Setters Road were broken off in the powerful winds ahead of the thunderstorms around 9 p.m. on Sunday. The road is east of Rockford. National Weather Service forecasters had warned of the incoming winds about an hour prior to their arrival, but the winds apparently were most severe in southwest Kootenai County. The damage occurred near Setter’s substation and put out power to about 600 customers of Kootenai Electric Cooperative. Crews in the area went to work quickly repairing the damage.