NWS: 70-75 mph straight-line winds to blame for Fond du Lac County storm damage

BRANDON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- The National Weather Service surveyed storm damage in Fond du Lac County on Friday, July 30. 

The National Weather Service told CBS 58 strong straight-line winds during storms earlier this week caused the damage in Brandon and Ripon.

NWS estimates the winds were between 70 and 75 miles per hour for several minutes straight.

Storms wreaked havoc on Bowen Street in Brandon. The Davies Family is left to clean up the mess strong winds left behind.

"It was pretty wicked out here, and we hid in the basement until about 1:30 in the morning," Jake Davies said.

The storms left their shed smashed and one of their cars totaled.

The couple next door heard a loud thump as their garage took a hit.

"That's when I told my husband, 'OK, well we're not ignoring the sirens. We're getting downstairs,'" Nicole Casey said. "He went outside to check it out and came back in and said, 'You don't even want to know what happened.'"

The Wisconsin State Patrol said the storms contributed to one man's death. Quinn Boehning, 29, died after crashing into a fallen tree and power line near the Town of Ripon.

Alliant Energy crews were in Brandon Friday fixing power lines that went down during the storms.

Families in Brandon feel grateful the trees missed their homes.

"We started getting to work, cleaning up all the trees and our community just came together and helped a lot," Davies said.

Many homeowners are working with their insurance companies as they start to rebuild.

"Yeah, it sounds like we're getting a new garage," Casey said.