South Dakota, 2008

Hail in South Dakota, August 12, 2008

August 12, 2008 · NWS UNR · 7 events in 1 county or zone

A severe thunderstorm produced hail to golf ball size across western and southern Rapid City.

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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
7

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 severe thunderstorm produced hail to golf ball size across western and southern Rapid City.

What forecasters said that day

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 Aug 12, 1:00 AM MST, 10 hours 12 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Aug 12, 1:00 AM MST, 10 hours 12 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Aug 12, 3:55 AM MST, 7 hours 17 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
455 AM MDT TUE AUG 12 2008

SDZ001-002-012>014-024>032-041>044-046-047-049-072>074-WYZ054>058-
071-131300-
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-
455 AM MDT (555 AM CDT) TUE AUG 12 2008

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA AND
NORTHEASTERN WYOMING.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THERE IS A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS THE BLACK HILLS
AND SOUTHWEST SOUTH DAKOTA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THERE IS ALSO
A SLIGHT CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS AFTER MIDNIGHT ACROSS SOUTH CENTRAL
SOUTH DAKOTA. WHILE A COUPLE STORMS MAY BECOME SEVERE...WIDESPREAD
SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY

AN UPPER LEVEL DISTURBANCE WILL BRING A SLIGHT CHANCE FOR
THUNDERSTORMS WEDNESDAY ACROSS THE AREA. THESE STORMS ARE NOT
EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE AT THIS TIME.

AN APPROACHING STORM SYSTEM WILL BRING A CHANCE FOR THUNDERSTORMS
THURSDAY. THESE STORMS ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE SEVERE AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY.

The radar

The Rapid City radar (KUDX), 37 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 17:59 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:12 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 3.27 mi WSW of Rapid City
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
NWS Employee
Coordinates
44.070, -103.284

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:13 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 3.46 mi W of Rapid City
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
44.075, -103.289

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:15 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 1.18 mi SW of Rapid City
Measured
1 in hail
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
44.068, -103.236

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:20 AM MST to 11:30 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 5 mi SW of Rapid City
Measured
1.25 in hail
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
44.029, -103.291

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:25 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 2.24 mi S of Rapid City
Measured
1.25 in hail
Reported by
NWS Employee
Coordinates
44.048, -103.217

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:35 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 4.72 mi SSW of Rapid City
Measured
1.75 in hail
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
44.015, -103.251

Hail, Pennington

When
August 12, 11:35 AM MST
Where
Pennington County, 4.28 mi SSW of Rapid City
Measured
0.75 in hail
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
44.020, -103.240

What these are

Hail
Hail three-quarters of an inch or larger, or smaller hail that caused damage, filed with the largest stone measured.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in South Dakota in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, August 2008

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 123795, 134050, 123796, 123797, 134051, 123798, 123799.