High Wind in South Dakota

Events

4,975

Deaths

0

Injuries

14

Damage

$6.6 million

• High Wind and Winter Weather in South Dakota, January 15 to 16, 20262 deaths · 62 kt wind · 22 eventsA clipper system and arctic blast brought strong winds and pockets of light to moderate snow showers.
• Tornadoes and Flash Flooding in South Dakota, June 5, 2008$1.2 million · EF2 · 40 eventsThunderstorms produced numerous events of tornadoes, large hail and damaging winds over southeast South Dakota from late morning through the evening of June 5th. The thunderstorms also produced heavy rain which resulted in flash flooding at several locations.
• Blizzard and High Wind in South Dakota, January 14 to 15, 20211 death · 2 injured · 70 kt wind · 24 eventsA strong northwesterly jet streak digging through the central Rockies produced intense and deep cyclogenesis across Iowa on January 14 and 15.
• Tornadoes and Hail in South Dakota, May 30, 2022$279,000 · EF1 · 49 eventsThere was barely a break between the exit of the earlier morning severe convection, and development of the next round during the later morning and early afternoon on May 30th across southeast South Dakota.
• Tornadoes and Hail in South Dakota, May 29 to 30, 2022$324,000 · EF1 · 43 eventsAn amplified and vigorous upper level pattern pushed several weak disturbances northeast across the region during the overnight and early morning of May 30th.
• Tornadoes and Hail in South Dakota, June 12 to 13, 2022EF2 · 32 eventsAn area of low pressure and associated cold front initiated a vigorous complex of severe thunderstorms across western South Dakota during the evening of June 12th, and these storms tracked east-southeast to affect south central SD after sunset and into the early morning of the…
• Damaging Winds and High Wind in South Dakota, June 22, 2015$1.5 million · 87 kt wind · 15 eventsThunderstorms caused damaging winds at numerous locations in southeast South Dakota before sunrise on the morning of June 22nd. Some of the winds spread away from the storms, still at damaging levels despite no longer being directly connected with the storms.
• High Wind in South Dakota, February 10, 1996$635,000 · 58 kt wind · 28 eventsStrong gradient winds with gusts to 67 mph spread across eastern South Dakota on the morning of February 10th and continued into the early evening hours.
• High Wind in South Dakota, April 5, 20001 injured · $510,000 · 56 kt wind · 24 eventsHigh winds with sustained speeds of 40 to 50 mph and gusts above 60 mph persisted from around noon into early evening. Numerous shingles were blown off of roofs. Some power lines were blown down with resulting outages, most notable in Beadle County including Huron.
• High Wind in South Dakota, March 10, 2005$530,000 · 55 kt wind · 24 eventsSustained winds of 40 to 45 mph with gusts above 60 mph persisted from mid morning until late afternoon. The winds caused widespread tree damage with branches and smaller tree debris broken off. Several power lines were knocked down by the wind or by wind blown debris.
• High Wind in South Dakota, October 29 to 30, 1996$440,000 · 57 kt wind · 24 eventsVery strong winds behind a cold front caused widespread damage to trees, shingles, and power lines. Other damage included a ball park fence blown down, roofs of several buildings damaged, some small farm buildings destroyed, windows broken, and a large church spire blown down.
• High Wind in South Dakota, May 15, 1998$1.0 million · 1 eventHigh winds destroyed a building under construction.
• High Wind in South Dakota, March 27, 2004$1.0 million · 57 kt wind · 1 eventBrief high winds associated with the passage of a cold front uprooted a large tree, tore off shingles, and blew down a large metal television antenna about 6 miles north of Kaylor.
• Flash Flooding and Damaging Winds in South Dakota, August 9 to 10, 2019$645,000 · 56 kt wind · 7 eventsScattered thunderstorms developed across central South Dakota during the late afternoon hours and moved southeast into an environment of deep mixed-layer instability and effective shear of around 50 knots in the evening.
• High Wind in South Dakota, October 26, 2008$280,000 · 51 kt wind · 24 eventsStrong northwest winds reached sustained speeds of 40 mph or more with gusts to around 60 mph over all of southeast South Dakota during the morning and afternoon of October 26th.
• High Wind in South Dakota, April 6, 1997$240,000 · 63 kt wind · 24 eventsWidespread high winds, gusting as high as 72 mph, blew down trees and signs, tore off shingles, and caused additional scattered damage to structures. The winds aggravated ongoing flooding in some areas.
• High Wind in South Dakota, April 25, 1996$230,000 · 62 kt wind · 24 eventsStrong gradient winds with frequent gusts of 50 to 70 mph occurred for most of the day. Widespread minor tree damage was reported and a few large trees were blown down. Some power lines and poles were blown down.
• High Wind in South Dakota, April 24 to 25, 1996$225,000 · 80 kt wind · 18 eventsHigh winds slammed across western South Dakota, causing damage throughout the area. Around 4 pm MDT on the 24th, winds over 80 mph ripped through Belle Fourche.
• High Wind in South Dakota, November 2, 1997$98,000 · 53 kt wind · 24 eventsHigh winds persisting throughout the day caused tree damage over the area, including large trees blown down. Other damage also occurred, including a body shop under construction destroyed in Brookings, and the roof blown from a mobile home in Yankton.
• Wildfire and High Wind in South Dakota, April 23, 2022$79,000 · 63 kt wind · 23 eventsStrong low pressure developed across central South Dakota on Saturday, which moved slowly toward northern Minnesota by Sunday morning.
• High Wind in South Dakota, July 2, 1997$107,000 · 16 eventsProlonged sustained winds around 40 mph with gusts around 50 mph caused widespread minor tree damage and spotty power line damage. A few trees were blown over, including one in Volga which destroyed a mobile home when it fell.
• High Wind in South Dakota, December 17 to 18, 202588 kt wind · 64 eventsA historic, record-breaking wind storm wreaked havoc across northeastern Wyoming and western South Dakota on December 17-18, 2025. Wind gusts reached 101 MPH, resulting in significant damage to trees, power lines, and some structures.
• High Wind in South Dakota, January 16, 20145 injured · 56 kt wind · 21 eventsVery strong northwest winds, sustained above 40 mph at times with gusts above 60 mph, developed in the late morning of January 16th, and persisted into the afternoon.
• High Wind in South Dakota, January 27 to 28, 2008$110,000 · 88 kt wind · 8 eventsStrong southwesterly winds developed across the Black Hills during the afternoon and persisted through much of the night. Wind gusts of 60 to 70 mph were common across the higher terrain of the Black Hills and the northern and eastern foothills.
• Tornado and Wildfire in South Dakota, April 22 to 23, 2022$47,000 · 2.5 in hail · 25 eventsA cluster of thunderstorms developed across south-central South Dakota in the late afternoon and evening of April 22, 2022 and moved northward with an advancing surface warm front.

High Wind everywhereEvery kind of event in South Dakota

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.