Thunderstorm Wind, Codington
- When
- May 17, 4:37 PM CST
- Where
- Codington County, Watertown
- Measured
- 70 kt (81 mph)
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Coordinates
- 44.900, -97.100
Damaging Wind in South Dakota, May 17, 1996
An 80 mph wind gust brought some power lines down in Watertown, brought a large tree down onto a house, and also broke some windows out of some buisnesses. Also, on the Watertown Coop Elevator Annex the high winds bent the grain leg over and punctured the roof of the structure.
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
The toll
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- $50,000
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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 ABR wrote it up.
An 80 mph wind gust brought some power lines down in Watertown, brought a large tree down onto a house, and also broke some windows out of some buisnesses. Also, on the Watertown Coop Elevator Annex the high winds bent the grain leg over and punctured the roof of the structure.
The radar
The Aberdeen radar (KABR), 120 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 22:37 UTC.
Event by event
1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.
What these are
- 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
- Tornado in Minnesota, May 17, 1996
- Flash Flood in Indiana, May 17, 1996
- Heat in Missouri, May 17 to 20, 1996
- Flash Flood in Ohio, May 17, 1996
- Flood in Ohio, May 17, 1996
- Hail in Iowa, May 17, 1996
- Tornado in North Dakota, May 17, 1996
- Hail in Nebraska, May 17, 1996
- Tornado in Minnesota, May 17, 1996
- Tornado in Idaho, May 17, 1996
- Tornado in Idaho, May 17, 1996
- Flash Flood in North Dakota, May 17, 1996
More
Every storm in South Dakota in 1996Every state in 1996This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, May 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: 5553863.