A strong late spring storm developed across the Central Rockies and moved across the Northern Plains. The storm brought abundant amounts of precipitation to the area.
Every event with a place to put it; 12 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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.
The episode as NWS UNR wrote it up.
A strong late spring storm developed across the Central Rockies and moved across the Northern Plains. The storm brought abundant amounts of precipitation to the area. Rain changed to sleet and then eventually to snow across far western South Dakota during the afternoon and early evening hours as colder air moved in. Snowfall amounts were highest across the higher elevations of northwest South Dakota, the Black Hills, and northern and eastern Foothills, where 6 to 12 inches accumulated. The heavy wet snow downed many tree limbs across the area and caused some power outages.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Rapid City, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 11, 10:10 AM MST, 2 hours 50 minutes earlier.
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</html>HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD 536 AM MDT WED MAY 11 2005 SDZ001-002-012>014-024>032-041>044-046-047-049-072>074-WYZ054>058- 071-121300- BENNETT-BUTTE-CENTRAL BLACK HILLS-CUSTER CO PLAINS-FALL RIVER-HAAKON- HARDING-HERMOSA FOOT HILLS-JACKSON-MELLETTE-NORTHEASTERN CROOK- NORTHERN BLACK HILLS-NORTHERN CAMPBELL-NORTHERN FOOT HILLS- NORTHERN MEADE CO PLAINS-PENNINGTON CO PLAINS-PERKINS-RAPID CITY- SHANNON-SOUTHERN BLACK HILLS-SOUTHERN CAMPBELL-SOUTHERN FOOT HILLS- SOUTHERN MEADE CO PLAINS-STURGIS/PIEDMONT FOOT HILLS-TODD-TRIPP- WESTERN CROOK-WESTON-WYOMING BLACK HILLS-ZIEBACH- 536 AM MDT (636 AM CDT) WED MAY 11 2005 ...WINTER STORM WARNING TODAY AND TONIGHT FOR EXTREME NORTHEASTERN WYOMING...THE NORTHERN AND CENTRAL BLACK HILLS AND FAR NORTHWESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA... ...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY TODAY AND TONIGHT FOR A PORTION OF NORTHEASTERN WYOMING AND THE SOUTHERN BLACK HILLS THROUGH PORTIONS OF NORTHWESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA... THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND NORTHEASTERN WYOMING. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT A POWERFUL LATE SPRING STORM WILL MOVE FROM UTAH INTO SOUTHEASTERN MONTANA OVERNIGHT. LARGE AMOUNTS OF MOISTURE WILL BE TRANSPORTED INTO THE REGION. COLDER AIR FROM SOUTH CENTRAL CANADA AND NORTH DAKOTA WILL WRAP INTO THE SYSTEM TODAY...CHANGING THE RAIN TO SNOW OVER PORTIONS OF THE REGION. EXACTLY WHEN THE RAIN CHANGES TO SNOW WILL PLAY A CRITICAL ROLE IN HOW MUCH SNOW YOU RECEIVE. THE SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AND WET WITH GUSTY NORTHEAST WINDS OVER 30 MPH. SNOW ACCUMULATIONS OF 3 TO 6 INCHES ARE EXPECTED IN THE ADVISORY AREA AND 5 TO 14 INCHES IN THE WARNING AREA. 1 TO 3 INCHES OF LIQUID PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED...WHICH WILL CAUSE SIGNIFICANT RISES ON SOME STREAMS AND CREEKS. RESIDENTS IN FAR SOUTHWESTERN THROUGH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA WILL ALSO SEE SOME SNOW...BUT HEAVY ACCUMULATIONS ARE NOT EXPECTED. A FEW MORNING THUNDERSTORMS WILL OCCUR SOUTH OF INTERSTATE 90...BUT SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE NOT ANTICIPATED. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH TUESDAY OUR LATE SPRING STORM WILL EXIT THE REGION THURSDAY AND FRIDAY LEAVING LINGERING RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS...BUT LITTLE ACCUMULATION IS EXPECTED. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
12 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in South Dakota in 2005Every state in 2005This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, May 2005
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: 5449747, 5449746, 5449745, 5449748, 5449818, 5449819, 5449822, 5449823, 5449820, 5449821, 5449824, 5449825.