Hail and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, July 13, 2009

Name: Hail and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, July 13, 2009
Start: 2009-07-13T17:50
End: 2009-07-13T20:15
Location: South Dakota

July 13, 2009 · NWS UNR · 10 events in 3 counties and zones

Large hail and strong wind gusts accompanied a severe thunderstorm that tracked from the northern Black Hills eastward across the plains near Sturgis and 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: 10

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.

Large hail and strong wind gusts accompanied a severe thunderstorm that tracked from the northern Black Hills eastward across the plains near Sturgis and 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 Jul 13, 2:00 PM MST, 3 hours 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 13, 2:00 PM MST, 3 hours 50 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION FOR WESTERN SD AND NORTHEASTERN WY
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
300 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

.DISCUSSION...SHORT WAVE CROSSING WRN SD THIS AFTERNOON TRIGGERING
THUNDERSTORMS. SURFACE LOW OVER SOUTHEASTERN MT WITH WARM FRONT
ACROSS NRN SD AND BOUNDARY/DRY LINE DRAPED ALONG WRN-SRN EDGE OF
BLACK HILLS WITH DEWPTS IN THE 50S BEHIND IT AND 60S AHEAD OF IT.
ANOTHER WAVE ROTATING THROUGH UPPER TROF INTO SRN MT WILL SWING
ACROSS NWRN SD OVERNIGHT AS TROF PROGRESSES EWD ACROSS MT. HEAVY
RAIN IS POSSIBLE OVERNIGHT...ESPECIALLY OVER NWRN SD. COLD FRONT
WILL SWEEP ACROSS WRN SD TUES MORNING..WITH GUSTY NW WINDS AND DRIER
AIR MOVING INTO THE AREA BEHIND IT...THOUGH NWRN SD MAY STILL SEE
SOME SHOWERS AS TROF MOVES ACROS ND...AND FORECAST AREA REMAINS
UNDER CYCLONIC NW FLOW FOR THE SHORT TERM. TEMPERATURES WILL BE
COOLER TUESDAY INTO WED MORNING AS SURFACE HIGH BUILDS ACROSS WRN
SD. THUNDERSTORMS MAY DEVELOP WED AFTERNOON AS INSTABILITY INCREASES
ACROSS NERN WY AND FAR WRN SD...WITH STRONGER INSTABILITY OVER THE
BLACK HILLS. TEMPS WILL WARM A FEW DEGREES WED...BUT WILL STILL BE
BELOW NORMAL. AS SURFACE HIGH PUSHES SEWD...LOW LEVEL JET DEVELOPS
OVER FAR SRN SD WED NIGHT...WITH A CHANCE OF THUNDERSTORMS.

EXTENDED...UPPER LEVEL RIDGE WILL BUILD INTO THE WESTERN CONUS LATER
THIS WEEK BRINING WARMER TEMPERATURES TO THE REGION. NORTHWEST FLOW
ALOFT WITH EMBEDDED SHORTWAVES WILL BRING SLIGHT CHANCES FOR
THUNDERSTORMS ACROSS MUCH OF THE CWA THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD.

&&

.AVIATION...SCATTERED STORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH TONIGHT AS A COLD
FRONT CROSSES THE REGION. SOME OF THE THUNDERSTORMS MAY BE SEVERE
WITH LARGE HAIL AND GUSTY WINDS. MVFR/IFR CONDITIONS CAN BE EXPECTED
NEAR THUNDERSTORMS. OTHERWISE...VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED.

&&

.UNR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
SD...NONE.
WY...NONE.
&&

Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 13, 9:45 AM MST, 8 hours 5 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
1045 AM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

SDZ001-002-012>014-024>032-041>044-046-047-049-072>074-WYZ054>058-
071-141300-
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-
1045 AM MDT (1145 AM CDT) MON JUL 13 2009

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

THERE IS A SLIGHT RISK OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY LARGE
HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS OVER ALL OF NORTHEASTERN WYOMING AND WESTERN
SOUTH DAKOTA THIS AFTERNOON AND EVENING. ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE
ALSO POSSIBLE FROM NORTHWESTERN INTO SOUTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA...
OR NORTH AND EAST OF THE BLACK HILLS. LOCALLY HEAVY RAIN ALSO IS
POSSIBLE WITH SOME STORMS.

THUNDERSTORMS HAVE DEVELOPED OVER NORTHEASTERN WYOMING...AND
WILL SPREAD EASTWARD ACROSS WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA THIS AFTERNOON
INTO THIS EVENING...AND REACHING CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA BY MIDNIGHT.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY

ISOLATED TO SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON
AND EVENING. ALTHOUGH WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT ANTICIPATED...
A FEW SEVERE STORMS WITH LARGE HAIL WILL BE POSSIBLE FROM THE BLACK
HILLS THROUGH SOUTHWESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE NEEDED TODAY.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 13, 4:54 PM MST, 56 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
554 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0545 PM     FUNNEL CLOUD     HULETT                  44.68N 104.60W
07/13/2009                   CROOK              WY   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

MERICKSO

Local storm report, Jul 13, 4:57 PM MST, 53 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
557 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0540 PM     HAIL             5 NNE UPTON             44.17N 104.59W
07/13/2009  E0.75 INCH       WESTON             WY   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

MERICKSO

Special weather statement, Jul 13, 5:06 PM MST, 44 minutes before

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
606 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

SDZ032-043-046-140100-
HAAKON-JACKSON-MELLETTE-
606 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

...STRONG THUNDERSTORM APPROACHING THE AREA...

AT 602 PM MDT...DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A THUNDERSTORM WITH NICKEL
SIZED HAIL AND FREQUENT CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. THIS STORM WAS
LOCATED OVER NORTHEASTERN JACKSON COUNTY...OR 19 MILES WEST OF
MURDO...AND WAS MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 20 MPH.

LOCATIONS IMPACTED INCLUDE...
  EXTREME NORTHEAST JACKSON COUNTY...

THIS INCLUDES INTERSTATE 90 BETWEEN SOUTH DAKOTA MILE MARKERS 168 AND
174...

A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THE AREA UNTIL 900 PM MDT.

WETENKAMP

Local storm report, Jul 13, 5:09 PM MST, 41 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
609 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0600 PM     HAIL             HULETT                  44.68N 104.60W
07/13/2009  E2.75 INCH       CROOK              WY   TRAINED SPOTTER

&&

MERICKSO

Local storm report, Jul 13, 5:23 PM MST, 27 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
623 PM MDT MON JUL 13 2009

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0610 PM     TSTM WND DMG     1 S LAKEVIEW            43.10N 100.75W
07/13/2009                   TODD               SD   TRAINED SPOTTER

            8-10 INCH TREE TOPS BLOWN DOWN BY WINDS ESTIMATED OVER 50
            MPH.

&&

WFO UNR

Local storm report, Jul 13, 5:38 PM MST, 12 minutes before

<!doctype html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1">
  <title>Service Notice</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="index.css">
</head>
<body>
  <main class="wrap">
    <section class="card" role="status" aria-live="polite">
      <div class="status" id="status">Temporary Notice</div>
      <h1 id="headline">This service is currently unavailable.</h1>
      <p id="message1">
        The site you requested is temporarily down for maintenance or an unexpected outage.
      </p>
      <p id="message2">
        Please try again in a few minutes.
      </p>
      <p class="small" id="detail">
        If you are an administrator, restore upstream service and remove the redirect/fallback rule when normal operations resume.
      </p>
    </section>
  </main>
  <script src="index.js"></script>
</body>
</html>

The radar

The Rapid City radar (KUDX), 56 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 00:49 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

7 thunderstorm wind, 3 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Meade

When: July 13, 5:50 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 4 mi SE of Sturgis
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 44.379, -103.443

Hail, Meade

When: July 13, 6:25 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 6 mi ESE of Sturgis
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 44.387, -103.388

Hail covered the ground.

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When: July 13, 7:10 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 11 mi E of Sturgis
Measured: 65 kt (75 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 44.420, -103.277

Limbs six inches in diameter were torn from trees; dead trees eight to nine inches in diameter were blown down.

Hail, Lawrence

When: July 13, 7:15 PM MST
Where: Lawrence County, 7 mi SSE of Deadwood
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 44.286, -103.646

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When: July 13, 7:25 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 12 mi SW of Hereford
Measured: 70 kt (81 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.257, -103.052

Wind gusts broke tree branches.

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When: July 13, 7:30 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 7.01 mi NNE of Ellsworth Afb
Measured: 57 kt (66 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: NWS Employee
Coordinates: 44.244, -103.048

Wind gusts were estimated around 65 mph.

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When: July 13, 7:43 PM MST to 8:05 PM MST
Where: Meade County, (Rca)ellsworth Afb
Measured: 60 kt (69 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Other Federal Agency
Coordinates: 44.150, -103.120

Thunderstorm Wind, Pennington

When: July 13, 7:47 PM MST
Where: Pennington County, 0.7 mi SE of Rapid City
Measured: 51 kt (59 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 44.072, -103.211

Thunderstorm Wind, Meade

When: July 13, 7:58 PM MST
Where: Meade County, 1 mi N of Hereford
Measured: 61 kt (70 mph) estimated gust
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 44.395, -102.880

Wind gusts were estimated at 70 mph.

Thunderstorm Wind, Pennington

When: July 13, 8:08 PM MST to 8:15 PM MST
Where: Pennington County, (Rap)rapid City Arpt
Measured: 53 kt (61 mph) measured gust
Reported by: ASOS
Coordinates: 44.050, -103.050

What these are

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

Every storm in South Dakota in 2009 Every state in 2009 This day in weather history Warnings in South Dakota, July 2009

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 177581, 177584, 177594, 177591, 177590, 177600, 177597, 177602, 177613, 177604.