Thunderstorms produced damaging winds and flash flooding as they moved east across southeast South Dakota during the evening of July 5th into the post midnight hours of July 6th. There was also one tornado that caused crop damage.
Every event with a place to put it. 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 FSD wrote it up.
Thunderstorms produced damaging winds and flash flooding as they moved east across southeast South Dakota during the evening of July 5th into the post midnight hours of July 6th. There was also one tornado that caused crop damage. The storms affected an area near and south of Interstate 90, with the flash flooding occurring along and east of the James River.
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 Sioux Falls, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jul 5, 5:50 PM CST, 2 hours 31 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD 650 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 .SHORT TERM...(THIS EVENING THROUGH MONDAY) ISSUED AT 252 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THERE IS STILL AN EASY TO RECOGNIZE FAIRLY STRONG SEVERE STORM POTENTIAL TONIGHT WITH SPC DEPICTION OF POTENTIAL AND GENERAL TIMING LOOKING GOOD. THE PROBLEM LIES IN THE SPECIFICS...ESPECIALLY THE INITIAL DEVELOPMENT OF STORMS. SOME OF THE SHORT RANGE HIGH RESOLUTION MODELS ARE DEPICTING FAIRLY EARLY DEVELOPMENT AHEAD OF THE COLD FRONT. IN THE CASE OF THE OPERATIONAL HRRR THIS LOOKS TO BE DONE TOO EARLY AND TOO FAR SOUTHEAST. HOWEVER OTHER MODELS ARE MORE MODERATE YET STILL INDICATE SOME DEVELOPMENT FAIRLY EARLY AHEAD OF THE FRONT...WHICH BY THE WAY FOR THE TIME BEING HAS PROGRESSED SOMEWHAT FASTER TOWARD THE AREA THAN MODELS HAVE BEEN DEPICTING. I WOULD EXPECT A SLOWDOWN DUE TO WAVE ACTION WHICH PROBABLY ALSO SHOWS UP IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE LOW LEVEL JET DEPICTED STRONGLY ON THE MODELS. IN SHORT...STILL EXPECT THE BULK OF THE STORMS AND THE SEVERE THREAT FROM LATE EVENING ON...AFTER MIDNIGHT SOUTHEAST...BUT WE WILL WATCH FOR POSSIBLE SCATTERED DEVELOPMENT AS EARLY AS THE END OF THE AFTERNOON. AS MENTIONED...THE SEVERE POTENTIAL IS STILL THERE FOR SCATTERED WINDS AND HAIL EARLY AND ESPECIALLY WINDS LATE TONIGHT. WILL CONTINUE TO INCLUDE THE HAIL/WIND/HEAVY RAIN MENTION IN THE GRIDS ALONG WITH THE HIGH POPS. AS FOR THE HEAVY RAIN...CURRENTLY ANTICIPATED QPF AND CURRENT FFG DO NOT SHOW A NEED FOR A FLASH FLOOD WATCH. THE NORTHEAST APPEARS TO HAVE THE BEST POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY RAIN BUT THAT COULD CHANGE DEPENDING ON HOW THE CONVECTION BEHAVES. THE FRONT WILL BEGIN TO MOVE THROUGH THE AREA THIS EVENING AND REACH THE SOUTHEAST CORNER MONDAY MORNING. COOLER AIR WITH THE NORTHERLY WINDS WILL LOWER TEMPERATURES TO THE LOWER 60S NORTHWEST...WITH 70 OR SO LOWS SOUTHEAST. LINGERING SHOWERS AND STORMS WILL END FROM THE NORTHWEST MONDAY AND CLOUDS WILL DECREASE. BY LATE AFTERNOON THE COOL AND DRY REGIME WILL HAVE TAKEN OVER AND THE LAST OF THE SHOWERS IN NORTHWEST IOWA SHOULD HAVE ENDED. THE NORTHERLY WINDS WILL TAKE HOLD AND GET MARGINALLY BREEZY...WHILE TEMPERATURES HANG IN THE 70S AND SKIES BRIGHTEN FROM THE NORTHWEST. .LONG TERM...(MONDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY) ISSUED AT 252 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THE FIRST HALF OF THE MEDIUM RANGE FORECAST WILL REMAIN COOL AND DRY THROUGH WEDNESDAY AS HIGH PRESSURE SETTLES IN ACROSS THE GREAT LAKES. COOL EASTERLY FLOW WILL KEEP TEMPERATURES IN THE 70S IN MOST LOCATIONS...ALMOST 10 DEGREES BELOW NORMAL FOR THIS TIME OF THE YEAR. HAVE LOWERED LOW TEMPERATURES A FEW DEGREES. BY WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY...MODELS SUGGEST A WEAK WAVE PASSING THROUGH THE MID-LVL FLOW. THE STRONG INFLUENCE OF DRY SFC HIGH PRESSURE SHOULD KEEP POPS AT A MINIMUM. BY THE END OF THE WEEK AND INTO NEXT WEEKEND...FLOW ALOFT SHOULD BEGIN TO TURN MORE SOUTHWESTERLY...TYPICALLY INDICATIVE OF WARMING TEMPERATURES...INCREASING HUMIDITY AND THE POTENTIAL RETURN OF LOW- END PRECIPITATION CHANCES BY NEXT WEEKEND. SEVERAL WAVES OF ENERGY WILL MOVE THROUGH THE FLOW...BUT THE EXACT TRACK OF THESE WAVES IN DOUBT. AS FAR AS TEMPERATURES ARE CONCERNED...FORECAST HOLDS READINGS ABOVE NORMAL BY THE WEEKEND...AND WE MAY BE PUSHING 90S IN MANY AREAS BY EARLY NEXT WEEK. && .AVIATION...(FOR THE 00Z TAFS THROUGH 00Z MONDAY EVENING) ISSUED AT 650 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THREAT OF CONVECTION WILL EXPAND SOUTH AND EAST ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA THROUGH THE FIRST HALF OF THE FORECAST PERIOD. PERIODS MVFR TO LOCALLY IFR CONDITIONS ALONG WITH GUSTY WINDS WILL ACCOMPANY SOME OF THE STORMS. STRONGEST CLUSTER OF STORMS EXPECTED TO REMAIN SOUTH OF KHON...BUT COULD IMPACT KFSD AND/OR KSUX WITH STRONG WINDS AFTER 06Z. TAMER CONDITIONS WILL PREVAIL AFTER 06/12Z...THOUGH PERIOD OF MVFR CEILINGS AND AREAS OF LIGHT RAIN WILL LIKELY LINGER THROUGH THE MORNING. VFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED TO BECOME MORE PREVALENT AFTER 06/18Z. && .FSD WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... SD...NONE. MN...NONE. IA...NONE. NE...NONE. && SHORT TERM... LONG TERM...DUX AVIATION...JH
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SIOUX FALLS SD 201 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 MNZ071-072-SDZ038>040-052>059-061915- LINCOLN MN-LYON MN-BEADLE-KINGSBURY-BROOKINGS-JERAULD-SANBORN- MINER-LAKE-MOODY-BRULE-AURORA-DAVISON- 201 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...EAST CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA...SOUTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP FROM NORTHEAST INTO CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA LATE THIS AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING...THEN PUSH SOUTH AND EAST INTO THE AREA THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL TO THE SIZE OF GOLF BALLS AND WINDS OF 70 MPH...ALONG WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY AFTER 5 PM THIS EVENING AND CONTINUE INTO THE LATE NIGHT HOURS. IAZ001-002-012-MNZ080-081-089-090-097-098-SDZ050-060>071-061915- LYON IA-OSCEOLA-SIOUX-MURRAY-COTTONWOOD-NOBLES-JACKSON-PIPESTONE- ROCK-GREGORY-HANSON-MCCOOK-MINNEHAHA-CHARLES MIX-DOUGLAS- HUTCHINSON-TURNER-LINCOLN SD-BON HOMME-YANKTON-CLAY SD-UNION- 201 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST IOWA...SOUTHWEST MINNESOTA...SOUTH CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA AND SOUTHEAST SOUTH DAKOTA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS WILL DEVELOP FROM NORTHEAST INTO CENTRAL SOUTH DAKOTA LATE THIS AFTERNOON INTO THIS EVENING. THESE STORMS WILL THEN PUSH SOUTH AND EAST INTO THE AREA DURING THE LATE EVENING AND OVERNIGHT HOURS. SOME OF THESE STORMS WILL BE CAPABLE OF PRODUCING HAIL TO THE SIZE OF GOLF BALLS AND WINDS OF 70 MPH...ALONG WITH VERY HEAVY RAINFALL. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY AFTER 8 PM THIS EVENING AND CONTINUE INTO THE LATE NIGHT HOURS. IAZ003-013-014-020>022-031-032-NEZ013-014-061915- DICKINSON-O'BRIEN-CLAY IA-PLYMOUTH-CHEROKEE-BUENA VISTA-WOODBURY- IDA-DIXON-DAKOTA- 201 PM CDT SUN JUL 5 2015 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTHWEST IOWA AND NORTHEAST NEBRASKA. .DAY ONE...THIS AFTERNOON AND TONIGHT THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE INTO THE AREA AFTER 2 AM TONIGHT. WHILE HAIL TO THE SIZE OF QUARTERS WILL BE A POSSIBILITY WITH THESE STORMS...THE BIGGER THREAT WILL BE WINDS TO 70 MPH. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE POSSIBLE AFTER 2 AM TONIGHT.
The North Platte radar (KLNX), 184 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 02:18 UTC.
11 thunderstorm wind, 2 heavy rain, 2 flash flood, 1 tornado. Local standard time, as filed.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including branches blown down.
Rainfall totaled 1.58 inch in 1.5 hours.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including up to 4 inch diameter branches blown down. The winds also flattened an oat crop.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage.
Thunderstorm winds blew down branches.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage.
A tornado caused an unknown amount of crop damage.
Thunderstorm winds toppled several gravestones.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including up to 3 inch diameter branches blown down.
Heavy rainfall of 4 inches caused minimal flooding in Salem.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including up to 6 inch diameter limbs blown down.
Thunderstorm winds caused tree damage, including a large tree uprooted. The winds also damaged siding on a house.
Heavy rain caused flash flooding of numerous streets in Mitchell.
Heavy rainfall of about 5 inches caused significant flooding of streets and some basements in and near Colton, and also caused flooding of farmland.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in South Dakota in 2015Every state in 2015This day in weather historyThe tornado archive for South Dakota, 2015Warnings in South Dakota, July 2015
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: 584831, 584833, 584847, 584835, 584836, 584837, 584845, 584852, 594231, 594232, 584854, 587457, 584856, 584857, 584860, 587454.