South Dakota, 1973

Tornadoes and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, April 19, 1973

April 19, 1973 · 11 events in 10 counties and zones

6 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado, as filed by the National Weather Service.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

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The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
2
Property damage
$103,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
11

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

Event by event

6 thunderstorm wind, 5 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.

Tornado, Sanborn

When
April 19, 2:15 PM CST
Where
Sanborn County
Rating
F2
Path length
20.1 mi
Path width
200 yd
Injuries
2 direct, 0 indirect
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
44.000, -97.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Yankton

When
April 19, 4:00 PM CST
Where
Yankton County
Measured
61 kt (70 mph)
Coordinates
42.920, -97.380

Tornado, Turner

When
April 19, 5:07 PM CST
Where
Turner County
Rating
F1
Path length
1 mi
Path width
33 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
43.000, -97.230

Thunderstorm Wind, Beadle

When
April 19, 5:15 PM CST
Where
Beadle County
Measured
70 kt (81 mph)
Coordinates
44.380, -98.220

Tornado, McCook

When
April 19, 5:30 PM CST
Where
McCook County
Rating
F1
Path length
2 mi
Path width
27 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
43.780, -97.500

Tornado, Faulk

When
April 19, 5:30 PM CST
Where
Faulk County
Rating
F2
Path length
4.9 mi
Path width
27 yd
Property damage
$3,000
Coordinates
44.920, -98.900

Tornado, Edmunds

When
April 19, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Edmunds County
Rating
F1
Path length
6.4 mi
Path width
20 yd
Property damage
$25,000
Coordinates
45.000, -98.930

Thunderstorm Wind, Minnehaha

When
April 19, 6:00 PM CST
Where
Minnehaha County
Measured
50 kt (58 mph)
Coordinates
43.570, -96.730

Thunderstorm Wind, Davison

When
April 19, 6:38 PM CST
Where
Davison County
Coordinates
43.680, -98.020

Thunderstorm Wind, Sanborn

When
April 19, 6:38 PM CST
Where
Sanborn County
Coordinates
44.000, -97.900

Thunderstorm Wind, Codington

When
April 19, 7:09 PM CST
Where
Codington County
Measured
55 kt (63 mph)
Coordinates
44.920, -97.150

What these are

Tornado
A violently rotating column of air in contact with the ground and extending from a thunderstorm, filed with its path, width and Fujita or Enhanced Fujita rating from the damage survey.
Thunderstorm Wind
Winds from a thunderstorm of 50 knots (58 mph) or more, or lower winds that caused damage or casualties. Measured gusts are marked MG, estimated EG.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in South Dakota in 1973Every state in 1973This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for South Dakota, 1973

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 10111268, 10111269, 10111270, 10111271, 10111272, 10111273, 10111274, 10111275, 10111276, 10111277, 10111278.