Deuel County, South Dakota

What hazards hit Deuel County most?

The most frequent records are winter storm records: 137 since 1996. 44% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in December and January. The rank column places the county among South Dakota's counties by days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land over each hazard's complete period.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (county and forecast-zone records attributed to the county; a zone record shows its own totals on each county it covers). Days: dates with at least one record of the hazard in the county. Ranks: days with a record per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer), since 1950 for tornadoes, 1955 for hail and thunderstorm wind, 1996 for the rest.

How many tornadoes has Deuel County had?

NOAA records 36 tornadoes in Deuel County from 1970 to 2025, the strongest rated EF3, with 0 deaths and 3 injuries recorded in the county. That is 16th of 66 South Dakota counties by days with tornadoes per 1,000 square miles since 1950. A tornado that crossed a county line is counted in each county it touched, with the length of its path inside the county.

Counted as whole tornadoes rather than county records, the Storm Prediction Center's database holds 37 tornadoes whose track touched Deuel County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 36: they file a crossing tornado once per county segment, and the two databases differ on some tracks); along their whole tracks they killed 0 people.

Map of the strongest tornado tracks in South Dakota.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, tornado records by county (path length in the county, maximum width); ratings as published: F scale before February 1, 2007, EF scale after. Whole-track figures: NOAA Storm Prediction Center tornado database (1950-2025). SPC severe weather database.

When was the last damaging storm in Deuel County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the November 29, 2025 winter weather (1 injury).

The South Dakota Highway Patrol reported that Interstate 29 southbound was closed after a semi rolled over and blocked traffic at the Clear Lake/Castlewood exit. Another vehicle lost control at the Interstate 29 Estelline exit, crashing into a bridge. The driver was pinned and required extrication from the vehicle.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 1298048)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database; every record of 2025-2026 is listed, earlier ones when they caused deaths, injuries or $250,000 of damage (2025 dollars), and every tornado.

The deadliest and costliest records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths and injuries direct and indirect; damage is property plus crops as estimated by the National Weather Service, converted to 2025 dollars.

Is it getting more frequent?

Records per decade for Deuel County's most frequent hazards. Counts rose everywhere after 1996, when NOAA began recording every event type, so compare decades within a hazard's complete period only (the shaded cells come before it).

High wind and dust storms in the 2020-26: 25 records against 7 in the decade before, 25 of them forecast-zone records. Extreme cold in the 2010s: 22 records against 7 in the decade before, 22 of them forecast-zone records. Cells marked z rose mostly through zone records. The local National Weather Service office files these once per forecast zone, so a change in how it draws its zones or splits a storm into records moves this count as much as the weather does; read it beside the Deuel County days with a record above.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records per calendar decade; zone records from the CZ_TYPE field (Z).

What time of year?

44% of its winter storm records since 1996 fell in December and January. The two busiest months are in violet.

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began.

Federal disaster declarations for Deuel County

FEMA's register lists 24 declarations that include Deuel County: 21 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (9) and flood (9).

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2), declarations through October 2, 2026; one declaration is counted once however many areas it names. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Deuel County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Deuel County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $5.5 million. These are FEMA's model estimates of future loss from 18 hazards, not a count of what happened; they can differ from the record above.

Source: FEMA National Risk Index, county table, December 2025 release. FEMA's National Risk Index map.

Counties that share a border with Deuel County

1. Brookings County 844
2. Codington County 782
3. Hamlin County 634
4. Lincoln County, MN 590
5. Grant County 566
6. Deuel County 534
7. Lac qui Parle County, MN 505
8. Yellow Medicine County, MN 446

Source: U.S. Census Bureau county adjacency file; NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1950. The Census Bureau's adjacency file.

Next

• Tornadoes in South DakotaEvery South Dakota tornado since 1950 and the counties with the most per square mile
• Winter storms in South DakotaThe state's winter storm records, by county, year and month
• The South Dakota recordEvery hazard in the state, its deadliest events and its federal declarations
• FEMA's risk rating for each hazard in Deuel CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Deuel County's FEMA declarations (CSV)24 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis