Damaging Wind in Wyoming, April 13, 2026

Name: Damaging Wind in Wyoming, April 13, 2026
Start: 2026-04-13T13:40
End: 2026-04-13T13:40
Location: Wyoming

April 13, 2026 · NWS UNR · 1 event in 1 county or zone

One severe thunderstorm developed and produced damaging wind gusts in Crook County.

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: 1

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.

One severe thunderstorm developed and produced damaging wind gusts in Crook County.

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 Apr 13, 10:30 AM MST, 3 hours 10 minutes earlier. Its key messages:

-Mild through Thursday -Dry most places outside of NW SD today through Wed -Critical fire weather conditions, mainly along and south of I90 today, and again possibly Wednesday and especially Thursday -Much colder and unsettled for the end of the week with rain and snow possible by Friday for parts of the area

Area forecast discussion, Apr 13, 10:30 AM MST, 3 hours 10 minutes before

Area Forecast Discussion For Western SD and Northeastern WY
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
1130 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

.KEY MESSAGES...

-Mild through Thursday

-Dry most places outside of NW SD today through Wed

-Critical fire weather conditions, mainly along and south of I90
 today, and again possibly Wednesday and especially Thursday

-Much colder and unsettled for the end of the week with rain and
 snow possible by Friday for parts of the area

&&

.DISCUSSION...(This Afternoon Through Sunday)
Issued at 1055 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

Central Rockies upper trough will continue to shift east with
another stronger trough dropping into the Pac NW. This will
support warm and mainly dry weather through most of Thur. Dry SW
flow is ongoing across the southern half of the FA. Rockies trough
will semi-split with the northern portion supporting a few
showers and isolated TS across the far NW this afternoon/evening.
However, the rest of the FA will remain dry. Compact jetlet,
associated enhanced bulk shear and marginal CAPE may support an
isolated strong storm on the southern flank of expected convection
today, with small hail and gusty winds. Cool front starts to
progress east into the area tonight. The southern portion of the
trough will shift east Tues, barely skirting the southeast third
of the FA, with maybe a shower or two in southwest to scentral SD.
Enough instability may be present over the BH to also support a
few showers there with diurnal heating. Shower chances will linger
into Wed across scentral SD, as the trough moves fairly slow
across the Central Plains. Mild weather will continue through Thur
as WAA ensues ahead of the next upper trough Wed, which will
advect SE in westerly flow out of the Pac NW. This system will
force a strong cold front into the region Thur, with strong CAA
and wind expected. However, this trough will split, with limited
precip amounts outside of perhaps northeast WY and maybe far SW
SD, effectively leaving much of western SD with little to no
precip. After a couple days below normal, things quickly then warm
back up next week as the next trough drops into the western CONUS
and WAA spreads to its east.

&&

.AVIATION...(For the 18Z TAFS Through 18Z Tuesday)
Issued At 1128 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

Mainly VFR conditions are expected through the TAF period. This
afternoon, thunderstorms will be possible across northeast WY into
northwest SD, moving east of the area by 02Z. Hail and strong
winds are possible with the thunderstorms, and brief MVFR
conditions may be possible in heavier precipitation.

&&

.FIRE WEATHER...
Issued At 1055 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

Gusty southwest winds, extremely dry air, and lack of appreciable
green up will support critical fire weather conditions this
afternoon mainly along and south of I90. A red flag warning
remains in effect into this evening. The most critical areas will
be in SW SD where RH will drop to 10 percent with winds gusting to
around 45 mph in the afternoon. A cool front will drop into the
area tonight with winds diminishing and RH's recovering. Mild on
Tue and Wed as an upper level trough skirts south of the area.
However, low RH and breezy winds may support critical fire weather
conditions once again on Wed and especially Thur in the same
locations. A strong cold front will move into the region Thur,
with chances for rain and snow Friday, mainly across northeast WY.

&&

.UNR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
SD...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM MDT /10 PM CDT/ this evening for
     SDZ320>322-324>326-329-331>335.
WY...Red Flag Warning until 9 PM MDT this evening for WYZ315-317.
&&

DISCUSSION/KEY MESSAGES...JC
AVIATION...Dye
FIRE WEATHER...JC

Hazardous weather outlook, Apr 13, 2:21 AM MST, 11 hours 19 minutes before

Hazardous Weather Outlook
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
321 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

SDZ026>032-041>044-046-047-049-072>077-WYZ055-058-059-141300-
Rapid City-Southern Foothills-Central Black Hills-
Southern Black Hills-Custer Co Plains-Pennington Co Plains-Haakon-
Western Fall River-Northern Oglala Lakota-Northern Jackson-
Bennett-Mellette-Todd-Tripp-Sturgis/Piedmont Foothills-
Southern Meade Co Plains-Hermosa Foothills-Eastern Fall River-
Southern Oglala Lakota-Southern Jackson-Southern Campbell-
Weston County Plains-Newcastle-
321 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026 /421 AM CDT Mon Apr 13 2026/

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of western South
Dakota and northeastern Wyoming.

.DAY ONE...Today and Tonight

Critical fire weather conditions are expected again today due to
very gusty winds and low relative humidity, across parts of
northeast Wyoming and western South Dakota.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday

Cooler air and less breezy conditions move into the area on
Tuesday.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation will not be needed today.

&&

Stay tuned to NOAA weather radio for further updates...or check
our web site at weather.gov/rapidcity

SDZ001-002-012>014-024-025-078-WYZ054-056-057-060-141300-
Harding-Northern Perkins-Butte-Northern Meade Co Plains-Ziebach-
Northern Black Hills-Northern Foothills-Southern Perkins-
Northern Campbell-Western Crook-Wyoming Black Hills-
Northeastern Crook-
321 AM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

This Hazardous Weather Outlook is for portions of western South
Dakota and northeastern Wyoming.

.DAY ONE...Today and Tonight

There is a marginal risk (level 1 of 5) of severe thunderstorms
today, meaning that isolated severe storms are possible. Primary
hazards include large hail and damaging wind gusts.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...Tuesday through Sunday

No hazardous weather is expected at this time.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

Spotter activation may be needed today.

&&

Stay tuned to NOAA weather radio for further updates...or check
our web site at weather.gov/rapidcity

In the hours before

Local storm report, Apr 13, 11:58 AM MST, 1 hour 42 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
1258 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

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

1115 AM     Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 11 SSW Oelrichs         43.04N 103.35W
04/13/2026  M50 mph          Fall River         SD   Mesonet

&&

JC

Special weather statement, Apr 13, 11:58 AM MST, 1 hour 42 minutes before

Special Weather Statement
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
1258 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

WYZ054-131930-
Northern Campbell WY-
1258 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

...A STRONG THUNDERSTORM WILL IMPACT NORTHEASTERN CAMPBELL COUNTY
THROUGH 130 PM MDT...

At 1258 PM MDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm 6
miles northeast of Recluse, or 36 miles north of Gillette, moving
northeast at 45 mph.

HAZARD...Wind gusts up to 50 mph and nickel size hail.

SOURCE...Radar indicated.

IMPACT...Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around
         unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is
         possible.

Locations impacted include...
Rockypoint.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

If outdoors, consider seeking shelter inside a building.

&&

LAT...LON 4483 10575 4500 10535 4500 10509 4487 10507
      4481 10508 4470 10565
TIME...MOT...LOC 1858Z 241DEG 39KT 4479 10560

MAX HAIL SIZE...0.88 IN
MAX WIND GUST...50 MPH

JC

Local storm report, Apr 13, 12:03 PM MST, 1 hour 37 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
103 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

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

1229 PM     Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 2 ENE Osage             43.99N 104.38W
04/13/2026  M50 mph          Weston             WY   Mesonet

1238 PM     Tstm Wnd Gst     5 NNW Dwtn Gillette     44.34N 105.54W
04/13/2026  M51 mph          Campbell           WY   ASOS

1251 PM     Tstm Wnd Gst     1 NE Echeta             44.47N 105.84W
04/13/2026  M50 mph          Campbell           WY   Mesonet

&&

JC

Local storm report, Apr 13, 1:02 PM MST, 38 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
202 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

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

0137 PM     Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 2 SSW Custer            43.73N 103.62W
04/13/2026  M53 mph          Custer             SD   ASOS

&&

DYE

Local storm report, Apr 13, 1:28 PM MST, 12 minutes before

Preliminary Local Storm Report
National Weather Service Rapid City SD
228 PM MDT Mon Apr 13 2026

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

0218 PM     Non-Tstm Wnd Gst 10 W Edgemont           43.30N 104.02W
04/13/2026  M51 mph          Fall River         SD   Dept of Highways

&&

JC

The radar

The Rapid City radar (KUDX), 146 km away, was scanning. The volume nearest the first event began at 20:38 UTC.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 thunderstorm wind. Local standard time, as filed.

Thunderstorm Wind, Crook

When: April 13, 1:40 PM MST
Where: Crook County, 3.69 mi NW of Colony
Measured: 55 kt (63 mph) measured gust
Reported by: Mesonet
Coordinates: 44.960, -104.250

Wyoming mesonet recorded wind gust.

What these are

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 Wyoming in 2026 Every state in 2026 This day in weather history Warnings in Wyoming, April 2026

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 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1336131.