Tornadoes · United States · South Dakota
Tornadoes in Lincoln County, South Dakota
62 tornadoes have crossed Lincoln County since 1950, 2 of them surveyed so far this year and still preliminary, 2nd of the 66 counties in South Dakota with a tornado on record, an average of one every 1.2 years. They have killed 2 people and injured 16. None was rated F4 or above.
The rating scale
Tracks are drawn in the color of the rating. The United States rated tornadoes on Ted Fujita’s F scale until 31 January 2007 and on the Enhanced Fujita scale after it. Both run from 0 to 5, and both rate the damage rather than measure the wind: the speeds are what that damage is taken to imply.
F0 / EF040 to 72 mph on the F scale, 65 to 85 mph on the EF scale
Light damage. Surface peeled off some roofs, gutters and siding damaged, branches broken, shallow-rooted trees pushed over.
F1 / EF173 to 112 mph on the F scale, 86 to 110 mph on the EF scale
Moderate damage. Roofs badly stripped, mobile homes overturned or badly damaged, exterior doors lost, windows broken.
F2 / EF2113 to 157 mph on the F scale, 111 to 135 mph on the EF scale
Considerable damage. Roofs torn off well-built houses, frame homes shifted on their foundations, mobile homes destroyed, large trees snapped or uprooted, cars lifted off the ground.
F3 / EF3158 to 206 mph on the F scale, 136 to 165 mph on the EF scale
Severe damage. Whole stories of well-built houses destroyed, large buildings badly damaged, trains overturned, trees debarked, heavy cars lifted and thrown.
F4 / EF4207 to 260 mph on the F scale, 166 to 200 mph on the EF scale
Devastating damage. Well-built houses leveled, structures with weak foundations moved some distance, cars thrown and large missiles generated.
F5 / EF5261 to 318 mph on the F scale, over 200 mph on the EF scale
Incredible damage. Strong frame houses swept off their foundations, car-sized missiles thrown more than 100 meters, steel-reinforced concrete badly damaged, high-rise buildings deformed.
Unrated
The survey recorded a tornado but could not put a number on it, most often because it crossed open country and damaged nothing a rating can be read from.
Now
- Tornadoes
- 62
- Deaths
- 2
- Injuries
- 16
- F4 and above
- 0
- Worst on record
- F3, June 19, 1954
The deadliest in Lincoln County
The strongest
- F3, Lincoln County, South DakotaJune 19, 1954
- F2, Lincoln County, South DakotaJune 21, 1968
- F2, Lincoln County, South DakotaJune 22, 1964
- F2, Lincoln County, South DakotaMay 7, 1993
- F2, Lincoln County, South DakotaMay 7, 1993
- F2, Lincoln and Turner counties, South DakotaApril 26, 1986
- F2, Minnehaha and Lincoln counties, South DakotaJune 22, 1964
- F2, Clay, Turner and Lincoln counties, South DakotaJune 7, 1965
- F2, Lincoln and Turner counties, South DakotaJune 24, 2003
- F2, Lincoln County, South DakotaApril 26, 1986
Every year with a tornado
The 27 years of the 76 in the record with a tornado in Lincoln County. Each year links to every tornado in South Dakota that year.
Every tornado that crossed Lincoln County
62 tornadoes, newest first. The 2 at the top are this year's, from the surveying office rather than SPC's published database, and their ratings are marked as preliminary.
| Date | Time | Rating | Where | Path (mi) | Width (yd) | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 2026 | 8:50 PM CDT | EF0 | Lincoln | 2.0 | 75 | |||
| May 31, 2026 | 8:58 PM CDT | EF1 | Lincoln | 0.3 | 0 | |||
| July 28, 2025 | 8:59 PM CDT | EF0 | Lincoln | 3.3 | 30 | |||
| August 28, 2021 | 4:35 PM CDT | Unrated | Lincoln | 1.1 | 30 | |||
| August 28, 2021 | 4:30 PM CDT | Unrated | Lincoln | 1.6 | 20 | |||
| August 28, 2021 | 4:25 PM CDT | Unrated | Lincoln | 0.9 | 20 | |||
| August 28, 2021 | 4:22 PM CDT | EF1 | Lincoln | 2.3 | 150 | $200,000 | ||
| September 10, 2019 | 11:24 PM CDT | EF2 | Lincoln | 0.6 | 50 | 8 | $6.8 million | |
| September 10, 2019 | 11:24 PM CDT | EF2 | Lincoln | 0.9 | 50 | $1.2 million | ||
| May 28, 2016 | 2:24 PM CDT | EF0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 25 | |||
| June 5, 2014 | 3:40 PM CDT | EF0 | Lincoln | 0.4 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 8:46 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 8:44 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 8:41 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 8:28 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 8:14 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.2 | 50 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 7:37 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.2 | 100 | |||
| May 28, 2004 | 7:20 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.4 | 100 | $1,000 | ||
| June 24, 2003 | 10:47 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.9 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 9:12 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.8 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 9:09 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 1.2 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 9:07 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 1.5 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 9:05 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 2.3 | 100 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 9:00 PM CDT | F1 | Lincoln | 1.3 | 100 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 8:55 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.8 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 8:52 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.6 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 8:30 PM CDT | F1 | Lincoln | 3.5 | 100 | $200,000 | ||
| June 24, 2003 | 8:20 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 7.7 | 300 | $500,000 | ||
| June 24, 2003 | 8:10 PM CDT | F1 | Lincoln | 2.8 | 100 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 7:38 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.5 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 6:30 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| June 24, 2003 | 6:17 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 1.0 | 50 | |||
| July 27, 2001 | 8:12 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| July 27, 2001 | 7:54 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.4 | 50 | |||
| July 27, 2001 | 7:43 PM CDT | F0 | Minnehaha | 1.0 | 50 | $10,000 | ||
| July 27, 2001 | 7:05 PM CDT | F1 | Lincoln | 1.0 | 85 | $400,000 | ||
| May 15, 2000 | 11:37 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| July 9, 1998 | 4:30 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| July 7, 1997 | 5:17 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| July 7, 1997 | 5:00 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| July 7, 1997 | 4:53 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 50 | |||
| April 25, 1994 | 5:38 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | $500 to $5,000 | ||
| May 7, 1993 | 3:06 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 15.0 | 100 | 1 | $50,000 to $500,000 | |
| May 7, 1993 | 3:06 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 15.0 | 100 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| April 26, 1986 | 5:50 PM CST | F2 | Lincoln | 5.0 | 40 | $50,000 to $500,000 | ||
| April 26, 1986 | 5:37 PM CST | F2 | Lincoln | 12.0 | 50 | $500,000 to $5 million | ||
| July 17, 1980 | 9:55 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| June 15, 1973 | 7:20 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| June 28, 1972 | 7:40 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | 1 | $500 to $5,000 | |
| June 3, 1971 | 8:11 PM CDT | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| July 14, 1970 | 3:30 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 3.8 | 10 | 1 | 1 | $5 million to $50 million |
| July 1, 1970 | 6:30 PM CDT | F2 | Lincoln | 2.3 | 1,320 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| June 28, 1969 | 8:33 PM GMT-5 | F1 | Lincoln | 2.0 | 10 | 4 | $50,000 to $500,000 | |
| June 21, 1968 | 1:30 AM GMT-5 | F2 | Lincoln | 16.4 | 30 | 1 | ||
| June 7, 1965 | 6:30 PM GMT-5 | F2 | Clay | 8.6 | 210 | |||
| June 7, 1965 | 5:45 PM GMT-5 | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | 1 | ||
| May 24, 1965 | 9:45 PM GMT-5 | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| June 22, 1964 | 2:45 AM GMT-5 | F2 | Minnehaha | 10.0 | 10 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| June 22, 1964 | 2:00 AM GMT-5 | F2 | Lincoln | 16.1 | 10 | |||
| May 21, 1962 | 9:45 PM GMT-5 | F1 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | $5,000 to $50,000 | ||
| June 11, 1959 | 1:40 AM GMT-5 | F0 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 10 | |||
| June 19, 1954 | 8:00 PM GMT-5 | F3 | Lincoln | 0.1 | 43 | $500 to $5,000 |
Nearby
Warnings in force in Lincoln CountyThe forecast for Lincoln CountyThe live radar over Lincoln CountyEvery county in South Dakota
What this means
Ratings are the survey's, read off the damage rather than measured; the rating scale is above. Tornado counts rise through the record as reporting improved, so a year in the 1950s is not comparable with one today except for the strongest tornadoes, which were always noticed.
Sources
NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database, 1950-2025, the official record kept by NOAA's Storm Prediction Center.