Blizzard, Harding
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Harding forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 45.580, -103.496 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard in South Dakota, March 23 to 24, 1996
A blizzard brought snow, wind, and freezing rain to western South Dakota. Freezing rain Saturday evening caused a series of accidents on interstate 90.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 21 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. 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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 21
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.
What happened
The episode as NWS UNR wrote it up.
A blizzard brought snow, wind, and freezing rain to western South Dakota. Freezing rain Saturday evening caused a series of accidents on interstate 90. By early Sunday morning six to nine inches of snow and winds 20 to 40 mph caused whiteout conditions, closing Interstat 90.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
21 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.
Blizzard, Perkins
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Perkins forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 45.491, -102.476 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Butte
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Butte forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.906, -103.508 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Northern Meade Co Plains
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Northern Meade Co Plains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.567, -102.717 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Ziebach
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Ziebach forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.980, -101.666 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Northern Black Hills
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Northern Black Hills forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.310, -103.111 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Northern Foot Hills
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Northern Foot Hills forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.359, -103.792 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Rapid City
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Rapid City forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.004, -102.824 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Southern Foot Hills
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Southern Foot Hills forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.239, -103.528 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Central Black Hills
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Central Black Hills forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.841, -103.137 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Southern Black Hills
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Southern Black Hills forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.678, -103.451 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Custer Co Plains
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Custer Co Plains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.678, -103.451 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Pennington Co Plains
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Pennington Co Plains forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.004, -102.824 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Haakon
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Haakon forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 44.294, -101.540 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Fall River
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Fall River forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.239, -103.528 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Oglala Lakota
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Oglala Lakota forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.336, -102.552 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Jackson
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Jackson forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.694, -101.628 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Bennett
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Bennett forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.195, -101.664 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Mellette
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Mellette forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.581, -100.760 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Todd
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Todd forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.193, -100.718 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Blizzard, Tripp
- When
- March 23, 6:00 PM MST to March 24, 11:59 PM MST
- Where
- Tripp forecast zone
- Coordinates
- 43.346, -99.884 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
What these are
- Blizzard
- Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
- High Wind in New Mexico, March 23, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Minnesota, March 23 to 25, 1996
- Winter Storm in North Dakota, March 23 to 25, 1996
- High Wind in Kansas, March 23, 1996
- Blizzard in North Dakota, March 23 to 24, 1996
- Blizzard in North Dakota, March 23 to 24, 1996
- Blizzard in Minnesota, March 23 to 24, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wyoming, March 23, 1996
- Blizzard in Wyoming, March 23 to 24, 1996
- Winter Storm in Wisconsin, March 23 to 25, 1996
- Heavy Snow in Wisconsin, March 23 to 25, 1996
- Blizzard in Nebraska, March 23 to 24, 1996
More
Every storm in South Dakota in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, March 1996
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: 5548082, 5548083, 5548084, 5548085, 5548257, 5548258, 5548259, 5548260, 5548261, 5548262, 5548263, 5548264, 5548265, 5548266, 5548267, 5548268, 5548269, 5548270, 5548271, 5548272, 5548273.