Blizzard and Winter Storm in South Dakota, December 13 to 16, 2022

Name: Blizzard and Winter Storm in South Dakota, December 13 to 16, 2022
Start: 2022-12-13T23:00
End: 2022-12-16T17:30
Location: South Dakota

December 13 to 16, 2022 · NWS FSD · 24 events in 24 counties and zones

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 24 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: 24

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 FSD wrote it up.

After a wintry mix of precipitation on December 12 and a warmup to allow mainly rainfall on December 13, temperatures fell with a change to snow. Snow and stronger winds began earlier in the day December 14 west of the James River, with the transition to snow mainly later into the early morning hours of December 15 toward Interstate 29. With northwest winds gusting at times from 40 to 55 mph, several areas exhibited periods of blizzard conditions on the 15th and early on the 16th. The heaviest snowfall occurred from the James River Valley westward, where up to 10 to 17 inches was common. Amounts decreased toward the south and east, with less than 3 inches in far southeast South Dakota, northeast Nebraska, and northwest Iowa. Travel was severely impacted with Interstate 90 closed west of Mitchell, with no travel advised for most other roads from the James River Valley westward.

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 Sioux Falls, SD wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 13, 10:30 PM CST, 30 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Dec 13, 10:30 PM CST, 30 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Dec 13, 5:35 PM CST, 5 hours 25 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Sioux Falls SD
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

MNZ071-072-097-098-NEZ013-014-SDZ039-040-054>056-061-062-066-067-
069>071-142345-
Lincoln-Lyon-Pipestone-Rock-Dixon-Dakota-Kingsbury-Brookings-Miner-
Lake-Moody-McCook-Minnehaha-Turner-Yankton-Clay-Union-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for southwest Minnesota,
northeast Nebraska, east central South Dakota and southeast South
Dakota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Patchy drizzle will continue into Wednesday morning. Should
temperatures fall below freezing, icing may develop on area roads.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Drizzle may turn back to snow by late Wednesday with snow continuing
through Thursday. At this time, snow accumulations between 1 and 4
inches may be possible by time the snow ends mid-day Thursday.

Winds will begin to increase by Thursday morning, with 30 to 40 mph
winds reducing visibilities and leading to hazardous travel through
the first half of Thursday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

IAZ001>003-012>014-020>022-031-032-MNZ080-081-089-090-142345-
Lyon-Osceola-Dickinson-Sioux-O'Brien-Clay-Plymouth-Cherokee-
Buena Vista-Woodbury-Ida-Murray-Cottonwood-Nobles-Jackson-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for northwest Iowa, west central
Iowa and southwest Minnesota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Patchy drizzle may be possible through the overnight hours. As
temperatures cool early Wednesday, icing may develop on area roads
from melted snow and rain.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Snow is expected to return to the area late Wednesday and continue
through Thursday. Snow accumulations of 1 to 3 inches may be
possible by time the snow ends mid-day Thursday.

Winds increase to 30 to 40 mph on Thursday and may lead to blowing
and drifting of fallen snow, along with poor visibility.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

SDZ058-063-064-142345-
Aurora-Charles Mix-Douglas-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for south central South Dakota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Scattered wintry precipitation may continue through the night with
minor accumulations of snow and ice.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Light to moderate snow is expected Wednesday into Thursday. Total
snow accumulations from Tuesday night through Thursday could range
from 4 to 8 inches, with higher amounts possible toward the higher
elevations in south central South Dakota. In addition, increasing
northwest winds will result in areas of blowing snow at times,
especially Wednesday night into Thursday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

SDZ053-059-060-065-068-142345-
Sanborn-Davison-Hanson-Hutchinson-Bon Homme-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for east central South Dakota and
southeast South Dakota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Patchy drizzle, freezing drizzle or snow will be possible through the
overnight hours. Accumulations of wintry precipitation are expected
to remain light.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Light to moderate snow is expected Wednesday into Thursday. Total
snow accumulations through Thursday could range from 3 to 6 inches.

In addition, increasing northwest winds will result in areas of
blowing snow at times, especially Wednesday night into Thursday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

SDZ050-057-142345-
Gregory-Brule-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for south central South Dakota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Patchy drizzle, freezing drizzle or snow will be possible through the
overnight hours. Accumulations of wintry precipitation are expected
to remain light.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Light to moderate snow is expected Wednesday into Thursday. Total
snow accumulations from Tuesday night through Thursday could range
from 4 to 8 inches, with higher amounts possible toward the higher
elevations in south central South Dakota. In addition, increasing
northwest winds will result in areas of blowing snow at times,
especially Wednesday night into Thursday.
.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

SDZ038-052-142345-
Beadle-Jerauld-
535 PM CST Tue Dec 13 2022

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for central South Dakota and east
central South Dakota.

.DAY ONE...Tonight.

Patchy drizzle, freezing drizzle or snow will be possible through the
overnight hours. Accumulations of wintry precipitation are expected
to remain light.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Wednesday through Monday.

Light to moderate snow is expected Wednesday into Thursday. Total
snow accumulations from Tuesday night through Thursday could range
from 4 to 8 inches, with higher amounts possible toward the higher
elevations in south central South Dakota. In addition, increasing
northwest winds will result in areas of blowing snow at times,
especially Wednesday night into Thursday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation is not expected at this time.

The radar

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

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

10 winter storm, 9 blizzard, 5 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Blizzard, Gregory

When: December 13, 11:00 PM CST to December 16, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Gregory forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.192, -99.186 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed very early on December 14, but winds did not increase until late on December 14. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 50 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System sites SD602 near Dallas and SD589 near Dixon. Snowfall totaled 16.5 inches at Gregory (COOP site GRGS2), 13.0 inches near Burke, and 9.5 inches 4 miles south-southwest of Pickstown (COOP site PCKS2).

Blizzard, Charles Mix

When: December 14, 2:00 AM CST to December 16, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Charles Mix forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.208, -98.588 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed very early on December 14, but winds did not increase until late on December 14. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 56 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD554 13 miles west of Platte and 51 mph at the RAWS site RLAS2 near Geddes. Snowfall totaled 14.0 inches at Platte (COOP site PLTS2) and 10.0 inches 2 miles northeast of Academy (COOP site ACYS2).

Blizzard, Brule

When: December 14, 3:30 AM CST to December 16, 2:00 PM CST
Where: Brule forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS
Coordinates: 43.718, -99.081 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed early on December 14, but winds did not increase until early on December 15. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 40 mph at the Automated Weather Observing System site K9V9 in Chamberlain, and 50 mph at the South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD537 near Kimball. Snowfall totaled 15.0 inches at Chamberlain, 14.0 inches near Pukwana, and 12.3 inches 7 miles south-southwest of Chamberlain.

Blizzard, Beadle

When: December 14, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 12:00 PM CST
Where: Beadle forecast zone
Reported by: ASOS
Coordinates: 44.415, -98.278 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed early on December 14, but winds did not increase until early on December 15. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile or less occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 55 mph at the Automated Surface Observing System site KHON in Huron, and 53 mph at the South Dakota Road Weather Information System site near Wolsey. Snowfall totaled 17.0 inches near Wessington (COOP site WESS2) and 13.4 inches at Huron.

Blizzard, Jerauld

When: December 14, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 11:00 AM CST
Where: Jerauld forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways
Coordinates: 44.066, -98.630 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed early on December 14, but winds did not increase until early on December 15. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile or less occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 53 mph at the South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD603 near Lane. Snowfall totaled 9.2 inches at Wessington Springs (COOP site WSPS2).

Blizzard, Aurora

When: December 14, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Aurora forecast zone
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 43.718, -98.561 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed early on December 14, but winds did not increase until early on December 15. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile or less occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 49 mph at the South Dakota State University Mesonet site WTES2 near White Lake. Snowfall totaled 6.5 inches near Stickney.

Blizzard, Douglas

When: December 14, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 3:00 PM CST
Where: Douglas forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways
Coordinates: 43.387, -98.366 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow developed early on December 14, but winds did not increase until early on December 15. Consistent visibility of one-quarter mile or less occurred for more than a day, with a peak wind gust reaching 49 mph at the South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD601 near Corsica. Snowfall totaled 10.2 inches 10 miles west of Dimock.

Winter Storm, Davison

When: December 14, 8:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Davison forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.675, -98.146 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by later on December 14 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 49 mph at Automated Surface Observing System site KMHE near Mitchell. Snow accumulated to 6.6 inches at Mitchell.

Winter Storm, Sanborn

When: December 14, 2:00 PM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Sanborn forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.023, -98.091 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by later on December 14 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 50 mph at a South Dakota Road Weather Information System site 3 miles east-southeast of Forestburg. Snow accumulated to 12.5 inches at Woonsocket and 11.0 inches near Forestburg (COOP site FTBS2).

Winter Storm, Kingsbury

When: December 14, 7:00 PM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Kingsbury forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.370, -97.491 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by later on December 14 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 45 mph at a South Dakota Road Weather Information System site 5 miles south of Arlington. Snow accumulated to 10.2 inches at Iroquois.

Winter Storm, Miner

When: December 15, 12:00 AM CST to December 16, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Miner forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.022, -97.610 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early on December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 48 mph at a South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD597 near Howard. Snow accumulated to 7.9 inches at Howard.

Winter Storm, Hanson

When: December 15, 2:00 AM CST to December 16, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Hanson forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.675, -97.787 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early on December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 48 mph at a South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD502 near Alexandria. Snow accumulated to 3.5 inches at Alexandria.

Winter Weather, Bon Homme

When: December 15, 2:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Bon Homme forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.988, -97.885 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind resulted in brief visibility as low as around 1 mile near Tyndall. Wind gusted as high as 52 mph 5 miles east-southeast of Tyndall at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD571, with snowfall of 4.5 inches at Tyndall (COOP site TYNS2).

Winter Storm, Brookings

When: December 15, 5:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:30 PM CST
Where: Brookings forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.370, -96.790 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was briefly as low as one quarter to one-half mile, with a peak wind gust of 43 mph at Automated Weather Observing System site KBKX at Brookings. Snow accumulated to 8.0 inches at White, 6.5 inches near Astoria, and 6.2 inches at Brookings.

Winter Storm, McCook

When: December 15, 5:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: McCook forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.674, -97.368 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early on December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 51 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD547 near Montrose. Snow accumulated to 7.5 inches at Bridgewater (COOP site BRGS2) and 5.6 inches at Montrose (COOP site MTRS2).

Winter Storm, Hutchinson

When: December 15, 5:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Hutchinson forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.335, -97.754 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early on December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 45 mph at South Dakota State University Mesonet site PSTS2 at Parkston. Snow accumulated to 10.2 inches near Clayton and 5.5 inches at Menno (COOP site MNOS2).

Winter Weather, Yankton

When: December 15, 5:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Yankton forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.009, -97.395 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind resulted in brief visibility as low as around 1 mile at Yankton. Wind gusted as high as 46 mph at Automated Weather Observing System site KYKN, with snowfall of 3.0 inches at Yankton (COOP site YTNS2).

Winter Storm, Turner

When: December 15, 5:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Turner forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.311, -97.149 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early on December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was as low as one-half mile at times, with a peak wind gust of 50 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD605 near Parker. Snow accumulated to 7.6 inches at Marion (COOP site MARS2).

Blizzard, Minnehaha

When: December 15, 6:00 AM CST to December 16, 12:00 AM CST
Where: Minnehaha forecast zone
Reported by: ASOS
Coordinates: 43.674, -96.791 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind gusts developed early on December 15 and resulted in development of blizzard conditions with visibility of one-quarter mile or less during the afternoon and evening hours. A peak wind gust of 52 mph was reached at the Automated Surface Observing System site KFSD in Sioux Falls, where snowfall totaled 5.2 inches.

Winter Storm, Moody

When: December 15, 6:00 AM CST to December 16, 4:00 PM CST
Where: Moody forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 44.022, -96.671 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind by early December 15 resulted in areas of blowing snow and heavy accumulation. Visibility was briefly as low as one quarter to one-half mile, with a peak wind gust of 51 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD577 13 miles west of Ward. Snow accumulated to 4.0 inches 11 miles north of Colman and 3.9 inches at Flandreau (COOP site FLAS2).

Blizzard, Lake

When: December 15, 7:00 AM CST to 11:30 PM CST
Where: Lake forecast zone
Reported by: AWOS
Coordinates: 44.022, -97.129 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind gusts developed early on December 15 and resulted in development of brief blizzard conditions with visibility of one-quarter mile or less through the afternoon and evening hours. A peak wind gust of 47 mph was reached at the Automated Weather Observing System site KMDS in Madison, where snowfall totaled 6.5 inches.

Winter Weather, Lincoln

When: December 15, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Lincoln forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 43.279, -96.722 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind resulted in brief visibility as low as around 1 mile at Canton. Wind gusted as high as 53 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD519 10 miles east of Davis, with snowfall of 2.5 inches in southern Sioux Falls and 2.3 inches at Canton (COOP site CNNS2).

Winter Weather, Clay

When: December 15, 7:00 AM CST to December 16, 5:00 PM CST
Where: Clay forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.915, -96.976 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind resulted in brief visibility as low as around 1 mile near Vermillion. Wind gusted as high as 43 mph at South Dakota State University site BFMS2 7 miles west-southwest of Beresford. Snowfall totaled 2.5 inches in Vermillion (COOP site VRMS2).

Winter Weather, Union

When: December 15, 8:00 AM CST to December 16, 7:00 AM CST
Where: Union forecast zone
Reported by: COOP Observer
Coordinates: 42.833, -96.656 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Snow and increased wind resulted in brief visibility as low as around 1 mile near Beresford. Wind gusted as high as 47 mph at South Dakota Road Weather Information System site SD508 3 miles south-southwest of Beresford. Snowfall totaled 0.5 inch 5 miles north-northeast of Elk 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.
Winter Storm: A storm that brought snow, sleet or freezing rain at warning levels, usually over several hours or days.
Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in South Dakota in 2022 Every state in 2022 This day in weather history Warnings in South Dakota, December 2022

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: 1072810, 1072821, 1072799, 1072773, 1072803, 1072814, 1072817, 1072844, 1072842, 1072837, 1072846, 1072850, 1072855, 1072839, 1072852, 1072853, 1072856, 1072859, 1072830, 1072849, 1072826, 1072860, 1072861, 1072862.