Ziebach County, South Dakota

What hazards hit Ziebach County most?

The most frequent records are severe thunderstorm wind events: 224 since 1972. 70% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1972 fell in June and July. 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 Ziebach County had?

NOAA records 24 tornadoes in Ziebach County from 1962 to 2015, the strongest rated F3, with 0 deaths and 2 injuries recorded in the county. 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 24 tornadoes whose track touched Ziebach County since 1950 (NOAA's county records number 24, the same count); 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 Ziebach County?

The most recent record with damage, injuries or deaths is the May 26, 2019 flash flood ($866,000 in damage in 2025 dollars).

Three to five inches of rain fell in about two hours over portions of southern Ziebach County, causing rapid rises on small creeks and overland flooding of rural areas. Several county and BIA roads were washed out, including Dupree Road and BIA 9. US Highway 212 near mile marker 121 was also inundated.
National Weather Service event narrative, NOAA Storm Events Database (search the full record, event 831820)

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 Ziebach 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).

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

What time of year?

70% of its severe thunderstorm wind events since 1972 fell in June and July. The two busiest months are in violet.

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

Federal disaster declarations for Ziebach County

FEMA's register lists 21 declarations that include Ziebach County: 18 major disasters, 3 emergencies and 0 fire management assistance declarations. Most were for severe storm (10) and flood (4).

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.

How many floods has Ziebach County had?

NOAA's Storm Events Database holds 41 flood or flash flood records for Ziebach County from 1996 to 2023, on 33 days, with 0 deaths. By flood insurance claims since 1978 (OpenFEMA, as of September 8, 2026), Ziebach County ranks 2685th of 2,942 U.S. counties.

The National Flood Insurance Program has paid $3,427 on 3 claims filed in Ziebach County; the most in one year was 3 in 1997. Claims count insured losses only: uninsured flood damage is not in this file.

Source: FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims, as of September 8, 2026; claims by year of loss, payments in the dollars of the year paid. OpenFEMA dataset page.

FEMA's modeled risk for Ziebach County

FEMA's National Risk Index rates Ziebach County Very Low overall, with an expected annual loss of $4.5 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 Ziebach County

1. Meade County 2,685
2. Perkins County 1,026
3. Corson County 939
4. Haakon County 843
5. Dewey County 814
6. Ziebach County 738
7. Stanley County 703

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
• Severe thunderstorm wind in South DakotaThe state's severe thunderstorm wind events, 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 Ziebach CountyThe hazard risk calculator: 18 hazards beside the county's record
• Download Ziebach County's FEMA declarations (CSV)21 rows: every declaration that named the county, for your own analysis