A severe thunderstorm late Wednesday afternoon pounded the town of Pine Bluffs with tennis and golf ball-sized hail.

"There was a big gust of wind and then it just came," said Rene Baker, Pine Bluffs Deputy Clerk. "It just kept hailing and hailing and it was pretty devastating."

Rob Stevens, an agent with Bluffs Insurance Agency, says the storm damaged just about every home in town and totaled any vehicles that were sitting outside. As of 9:30 a.m. Thursday, 170 claims had been filed with his office and they were still pouring in.

"A lot of our big pine trees are down and uprooted," said Baker. "It pummeled siding on everybody's houses and broke numerous windows. People had flood damage in their basements."

Baker says numerous volunteers, including the Red Cross, are assisting with clean up efforts.

"We have plywood here so people can get their windows covered," said Baker. "They brought in some big dump containers for debris so people can clean up their yards."

The City of Cheyenne has also sent equipment and crews from their forestry and solid waste departments to help out.

"We're going to help in every which way we can," said Mayor Rick Kaysen.

Wednesday's storm comes less than two weeks after the July 18 storm that dumped baseball and golf ball-sized hail in the Burns and Carpenter area.

Twenty-seven Wyoming National Guardsmen have been activated to assist residents.

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