Wild winds plunge thousands into darkness across Adelaide

Wild winds have caused havoc across South Australia, whipping up blankets of dust that were captured on camera.

The gusts brought down trees and plunged thousands into darkness.

The SES was kept busy, responding to more than 80 calls, most to remove fallen tree limbs.

A large gum tree at Forrestville was ripped from the ground by the wind. It came crashing down, destroying a porch and damaging a roof.

In Henley, the wind sent branches toppling onto powerlines, leaving homes blacked out.

“There was a big blast came through, it took the power lines down just on the corner here, and ripped a fairly big chunk of the Norfolk pines up, down the road,” Henley resident Steve Sampson said.

“There was a big gust of wind, brought the powerlines down, they were snaking all over the road, I guess it was a bit dangerous,” Henley resident Amanda Best said.

Police were called in to direct traffic around downed lines.

It was lights out at Henley Square with the shopping strip plunged into darkness.

Crews worked through the morning to restore power to hundreds of properties.