Ice Storm in South Dakota

Events

204

Deaths

9

Injuries

67

Damage

$26 million

• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 14 to 18, 19963 deaths · 50 injured · $2.0 million · 24 eventsAn ice storm consisting of several periods of freezing rain caused widespread damage and paralyzed travel. Widespread damage occurred to electrical poles and lines, leaving thousands without power for up to four days.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, January 10, 19963 deaths · 16 injured · $400,000 · 11 eventsA narrow band of freezing rain caused major disruption to traffic just after the beginning of rush hour, especially in the cities of Sioux Falls and Watertown. Over one hundred accidents occurred, including a collision near Watertown which caused 3 fatalities.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, March 6, 20022 deaths · 1 injured · $250,000 · 1 eventFreezing drizzle produced a thin coating of ice over Interstate I-90 19 miles west of Kadoka in Jackson County. A Semitrailer pulling a car hauler lost control on the westbound side of the interstate.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, December 25, 20161 death · $7.6 million · 21 eventsAn intense surface low pressure area moved from northeast Colorado to South Dakota from the 24th through the 26th. This storm was unusually warm for the region for late December and produced record breaking heavy rain along with flooding in some cases.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 27 to 28, 2005$15 million · 15 eventsHeavy freezing rain coated roads, trees, power lines, and most other objects with ice up to 3 inches thick. Travel quickly became difficult to impossible. Many roads including Interstate Highways 90 and 29 were closed for extended periods of time.
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in South Dakota, January 20, 20101 death · 6 eventsFreezing rain produced ice accumulations around a quarter inch or a little more in Union County in extreme southeast South Dakota. Travel and walking were made extremely hazardous, and power lines and trees were damaged.
• Blizzard and Ice Storm in South Dakota, April 10 to 12, 2019$5.0 million · 24 eventsA historic late-season, multi-day winter storm developed rapidly across the central Plains on Wednesday, April 10. This system spiraled several periods of wintry precipitation through the region.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 13 to 14, 1996$324,000 · 6 eventsFreezing drizzle coated power lines and roads throughout western South Dakota. In Perkins county, up to 3 inches of ice was reported on power lines. Over 300 distribution poles were downed at a cost of over $300,000.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, January 1, 2006$100,000 · 6 eventsA strong upper level system moved across the Central Plains, bringing widespread precipitation to western South Dakota. Rain fell across southwest South Dakota, while a mix of precipitation developed across northwest South Dakota.
• Ice Storm and Winter Storm in South Dakota, February 20 to 21, 201124 eventsWidespread moderate to heavy precipitation fell as heavy snow over the northern and western part of the area, and as freezing rain and sleet in far southeast South Dakota.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 9 to 10, 202216 eventsA low pressure system tracked from Colorado through southeast South Dakota. Initially, a period of freezing drizzle resulted in hazardous travel conditions and at least one request for No Travel Advised early on the morning of the 9th between the Missouri and James River…
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in South Dakota, April 4, 202316 eventsLow pressure deepened as it moved from eastern Colorado on April 4 to central Minnesota on April 5.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, December 25 to 27, 202315 eventsA strong low pressure system developing close to the Gulf of Mexico lifted north and then west into southeast South Dakota, resulting in heavy precipitation and strong winds.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, April 16, 200013 eventsFreezing rain caused significant ice accumulation on trees, power lines, and other exposed surfaces, although ice accumulation on roads was slight due to warm surfaces.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 27 to 29, 200512 eventsWidespread freezing rain began in the late morning and early afternoon of the 27th creating significant ice accumulations of 1 to over 2 inches. The freezing rain changed to snow on the 28th and northwest winds increased to 30 to 40 mph gusting to 60 mph.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, January 10, 19969 eventsWidespread freezing rain moved across northeast South Dakota from the early morning into the early afternoon, laying down a thin layer of ice. Travel was significantly slowed with a few vehicle accidents along with some vehicles ditched.
• Ice Storm and Winter Weather in South Dakota, December 12 to 13, 20229 eventsThe first phase of a large and long-duration winter storm brought strong warming aloft atop a deep cold layer. With areas of freezing rain and drizzle, significant ice accumulations spread across portions of southeast South Dakota.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, December 12 to 13, 20228 eventsFreezing drizzle began across much of central and northeastern South Dakota during the day on Monday, December 12th, in response to an incoming area of strong low pressure. By the evening, a glaze of ice had formed on surfaces leading to hazardous travel conditions.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, March 8 to 9, 20137 eventsA surface low pressure area moving across the region brought warm moist air overtop low level cold air which resulted in widespread freezing rain across much of northeast South Dakota during the evening and into the early morning hours of the 8th and 9th.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, April 14, 20137 eventsA large upper level low pressure trough combined with warm air aloft and cold air at the surface to bring freezing rain to parts of northeast South Dakota. Ice accumulations of a quarter to a half inch occurred on power lines and trees.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, April 22 to 23, 20015 eventsWidespread freezing rain resulted in 1/2 to 1 1/2 inch ice accumulations across a large part of northeast South Dakota.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, January 3 to 4, 19974 eventsFreezing rain caused ice accumulations on surfaces including trees, power lines, and roads. The ice caused snapped power lines and broken trees, although the amount of damage could not be determined.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, March 31, 20234 eventsA strong low pressure system developed east of the Rockies in Colorado and then moved through the Great Plains and into the Upper Mississippi Valley from the evening of March 30th through the evening of March 31st.
• Ice Storm and Winter Storm in South Dakota, March 29 to 30, 20254 eventsA weak system looping up across Iowa connected with some colder air coming down out of Canada to generate a mix of rain, snow and ice.
• Ice Storm in South Dakota, November 10, 19961 eventFreezing drizzle deposited a half an inch of ice on a 20 mile section of Interstate 90 near Kadoka. Five car accidents resulted.

Ice Storm 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.