Storm darkens Bonner County

SANDPOINT — A second massive thunderstorm walloped the region Saturday, knocking out power and downing trees and power lines.

In the Sandpoint area, Avista Utilities reported almost 15,000 people without power just after 10 p.m. Northern Lights, Inc. Northern Lights reported at 9:30 p.m. that 11,555 of its members were without power.

The storm, which hit about 6 p.m., knocked out a Bonneville Power Administration transmission line from Albeni Falls to Libby. Crews are preparing to begin assessing the damage, NLI said on its website.

The utility warned that members should prepare for an extended outage. In a recorded message, Avista told customers that power could remain out overnight.