Hail in South Dakota, July 3, 2016

Name: Hail in South Dakota, July 3, 2016
Start: 2016-07-03T13:30
End: 2016-07-03T16:10
Location: South Dakota

July 3, 2016 · NWS UNR · 5 events in 2 counties and zones

A severe thunderstorm developed over Rapid City and tracked south-southeastward to Hermosa and onto the plains. The storm produced hail to ping pong ball size.

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: 5

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 developed over Rapid City and tracked south-southeastward to Hermosa and onto the plains. The storm produced hail to ping pong ball size.

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 3, 12:39 PM MST, 51 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jul 3, 12:39 PM MST, 51 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Jul 3, 3:17 AM MST, 10 hours 13 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RAPID CITY SD
417 AM MDT SUN JUL 3 2016

SDZ001-002-012>014-024>032-041>044-072>074-WYZ054>058-071-041400-
HARDING-PERKINS-BUTTE-NORTHERN MEADE CO PLAINS-ZIEBACH-
NORTHERN BLACK HILLS-NORTHERN FOOT HILLS-RAPID CITY-
SOUTHERN FOOT HILLS-CENTRAL BLACK HILLS-SOUTHERN BLACK HILLS-
CUSTER CO PLAINS-PENNINGTON CO PLAINS-HAAKON-FALL RIVER-
OGLALA LAKOTA-JACKSON-BENNETT-STURGIS/PIEDMONT FOOT HILLS-
SOUTHERN MEADE CO PLAINS-HERMOSA FOOT HILLS-NORTHERN CAMPBELL-
SOUTHERN CAMPBELL-WESTERN CROOK-WYOMING BLACK HILLS-WESTON-
NORTHEASTERN CROOK-
417 AM MDT SUN JUL 3 2016

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR PORTIONS OF THE BLACK HILLS
OF SOUTH DAKOTA...WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA...NORTHEAST WYOMING...AND
THE BLACK HILLS OF WYOMING.

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

SCATTERED TO ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ARE EXPECTED THIS AFTERNOON
AND TONIGHT. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE...ESPECIALLY
OVER FAR WESTERN SOUTH DAKOTA THIS AFTERNOON.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

AN ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN WILL BRING NEAR DAILY CHANCES OF SHOWERS
AND THUNDERSTORMS. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE POSSIBLE...BUT
WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...
OR CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/RAPIDCITY

SDZ046-047-049-041400-
MELLETTE-TODD-TRIPP-
517 AM CDT SUN JUL 3 2016

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

.DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT

NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY

AN ACTIVE WEATHER PATTERN WILL BRING NEAR DAILY CHANCES OF
SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS. ISOLATED SEVERE STORMS ARE
POSSIBLE...BUT WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED AT THIS
TIME.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL NOT BE NEEDED TODAY.

&&

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR UPDATES...
OR CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/RAPIDCITY

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jul 3, 12:02 PM MST, 1 hour 28 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 3, 12:04 PM MST, 1 hour 26 minutes before

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Local storm report, Jul 3, 12:17 PM MST, 1 hour 13 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jul 3, 12:45 PM MST, 45 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jul 3, 1:24 PM MST, 6 minutes before

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Special weather statement, Jul 3, 1:26 PM MST, 4 minutes before

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The radar

The Rapid City radar (KUDX), 31 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:27 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

5 hail. Local standard time, as filed.

Hail, Pennington

When: July 3, 1:30 PM MST to 1:40 PM MST
Where: Pennington County, 0.67 mi SE of Rapid City
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: Official NWS Observations
Coordinates: 44.073, -103.211

Hail, Pennington

When: July 3, 1:54 PM MST to 2:00 PM MST
Where: Pennington County, 4.69 mi NE of Rockerville
Measured: 0.88 in hail
Reported by: CoCoRaHS
Coordinates: 44.013, -103.301

Hail, Custer

When: July 3, 3:15 PM MST
Where: Custer County, 2.68 mi ESE of Hermosa
Measured: 1 in hail
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 43.827, -103.139

Hail, Custer

When: July 3, 3:35 PM MST
Where: Custer County, Hermosa
Measured: 1.5 in hail
Reported by: Social Media
Coordinates: 43.840, -103.190

Hail, Custer

When: July 3, 4:00 PM MST to 4:10 PM MST
Where: Custer County, 9.11 mi S of Folsom
Measured: 0.75 in hail
Reported by: Trained Spotter
Coordinates: 43.690, -102.840

Hail completely covered the ground about an inch deep.

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

Every storm in South Dakota in 2016 Every state in 2016 This day in weather history Warnings in South Dakota, July 2016

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: 641292, 641293, 641295, 641296, 641299.