South Dakota, 2014

Blizzard in South Dakota, January 23 to 24, 2014

January 23 to 24, 2014 · NWS ABR · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Strong west to southwest winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts exceeding 45 mph combined with recent snowfall to create blizzard conditions on the lee side of the Sisseton Hills during the evening hours on the 23rd. Conditions improved during the early morning hours of the 24th.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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.

Strong west to southwest winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts exceeding 45 mph combined with recent snowfall to create blizzard conditions on the lee side of the Sisseton Hills during the evening hours on the 23rd. Conditions improved during the early morning hours of the 24th. Travel, especially along Interstate-29, was significantly disrupted.

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 Aberdeen, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 23, 6:47 PM CST, 1 hour 13 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 23, 6:47 PM CST, 1 hour 13 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 23, 4:10 AM CST, 15 hours 50 minutes before
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE ABERDEEN SD
410 AM CST THU JAN 23 2014

MNZ039-046-SDZ003>011-016>023-036-037-051-241030-
TRAVERSE-BIG STONE-CORSON-CAMPBELL-MCPHERSON-BROWN-MARSHALL-
ROBERTS-WALWORTH-EDMUNDS-DAY-POTTER-FAULK-SPINK-CLARK-CODINGTON-
GRANT-HAMLIN-DEUEL-HYDE-HAND-BUFFALO-
410 AM CST THU JAN 23 2014 /310 AM MST THU JAN 23 2014/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF WEST CENTRAL
MINNESOTA...CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA...NORTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA AND
NORTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

WIND CHILL VALUES BETWEEN 25 BELOW TO 35 DEGREES BELOW ZERO WILL
CONTINUE THROUGH THIS MORNING.

STRONG SOUTHWESTERLY WINDS ARE EXPECTED TONIGHT ALONG THE SISSETON
HILLS WHICH WILL RESULT IN AREAS OF BLOWING SNOW AND REDUCED
VISIBILITY. BLIZZARD CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

A COUPLE OF CLIPPER SYSTEMS AND ANOTHER ARCTIC FRONT WILL MOVE
THROUGH THE REGION THIS WEEKEND BRINGING MORE CHANCES FOR BLOWING
SNOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY OR TONIGHT.

SDZ015-033>035-045-048-241030-
DEWEY-STANLEY-SULLY-HUGHES-JONES-LYMAN-
410 AM CST THU JAN 23 2014 /310 AM MST THU JAN 23 2014/

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF CENTRAL SOUTH
DAKOTA AND NORTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...FRIDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY

A COUPLE OF CLIPPER SYSTEMS AND ANOTHER ARCTIC FRONT WILL MOVE
THROUGH THE REGION THIS WEEKEND BRINGING CHANCES FOR SNOW AND BLOWING
SNOW.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION IS NOT ANTICIPATED TODAY OR TONIGHT.

SD

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

3 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, Marshall

When
January 23, 8:00 PM CST to January 24, 3:00 AM CST
Where
Marshall forecast zone
Reported by
Trained Spotter
Coordinates
45.759, -97.598 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Roberts

When
January 23, 8:00 PM CST to January 24, 4:00 AM CST
Where
Roberts forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
45.630, -96.946 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Blizzard, Grant

When
January 23, 9:00 PM CST to January 24, 4:00 AM CST
Where
Grant forecast zone
Reported by
Public
Coordinates
45.172, -96.768 (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

More

Every storm in South Dakota in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in South Dakota, January 2014

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: 493429, 493431, 493433.