PlainHazard

South Dakota high wind and dust storms

Every recorded high wind record since 1996 · 66 counties with a record

NOAA's Storm Events Database records 5,265 high wind and dust records in South Dakota from 1996 through June 30, 2026, about 171 a year since 2000. The deadliest was the May 7, 2020 strong wind in Marshall County: 1 death and 1 injury. South Dakota ranks 5th of 52 states and territories by count and 13th of 51 per square mile.

High wind and dust storms in South Dakota, 1996 to 2026

Wind records per year (NOAA Storm Events); 2026 to June 30, 2026.

  • recorded, no damage figure
  • under $1 million
  • $1 million or more
  • $10 million or more
  • $100 million or more, or 10 deaths
  • $1 billion or more, or 100 deaths
  • a year's colour: its recorded damage or deaths
  • a year with a death
Records
5,2651996 to June 30, 2026
A year since 2000
171average
Deaths
119 injuries
Damage, 2025 dollars
$12Mas filed
Busiest year
2022480 records

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; deaths and damage as filed, damage in 2025 dollars. Search the record at NCEI.

Are high wind and dust records common in South Dakota?

South Dakota averages about 171 high wind and dust records a year since 2000, 5th of 52 states and territories by count. The busiest year on record was 2022 (480). Per 10,000 square miles of land, South Dakota records 695 high wind and dust records since 1996, 13th of 51 states and territories by that measure.

  1. 1. Rhode Island 7061
  2. 2. New Jersey 4882
  3. 3. Massachusetts 4776
  4. 4. Delaware 3705
  5. 5. Maryland 1330
  6. 6. Connecticut 1301
  7. 7. Vermont 1178
  8. 8. Hawaii 1067
  9. 9. New York 1028
  10. 10. Wyoming 900
  11. 13. South Dakota 695

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records since 1996, per 10,000 square miles of land area (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer; places under 1,000 square miles not ranked). Damage colours: Storm Events damage, 2025 dollars.

Which counties in South Dakota have the most high wind and dust records?

Per square mile, Buffalo County leads South Dakota: 70 days with a high wind record since 1996, 148.5 per 1,000 square miles of land. By raw count, Meade County has the most wind records (498 since 1996); large counties collect more records simply by covering more ground, so the ranking counts days with a record per unit of area (a storm filed for several forecast zones adds several records but one day).

  1. Buffalo County 148.5 (70)
  2. Hughes County 138.9 (104)
  3. Davison County 135.4 (59)
  4. Douglas County 122.7 (53)
  5. Hanson County 119.7 (52)
  6. Clay County 111.6 (46)
  7. Lawrence County 111.2 (108)
  8. Union County 110.7 (52)
  9. Yankton County 101.7 (54)
  10. Jerauld County 98.8 (52)
  11. Walworth County 93.3 (68)
  12. Sanborn County 91.3 (52)

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, days with a record in the county since 1996 per 1,000 square miles of land (Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer); in brackets, the count of records.

When is the windy season in South Dakota?

South Dakota's high wind and dust records by month. The busiest month is April (737 records).

The values, month by month

Jan 678 · Feb 484 · Mar 550 · Apr 737 · May 312 · Jun 164 · Jul 95 · Aug 93 · Sep 127 · Oct 701 · Nov 613 · Dec 711 (records).

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records by the month they began, since 1996.

What were the deadliest high wind and dust records in South Dakota?

South Dakota: the storms with the most deaths since 1996
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2020-05-07 Strong WindMarshall County · forecast zone Marshall In the early evening hours on May 7th, strong north winds contributed to a boat capsizing in northeast South Dakota. A fishing boat carrying two men began taking on water and capsized on South Red Iron Lake , just off South Dakota Highway 10 between Sisseton and Britton. One of the men was able to swim to an island ... 30 kt wind 1 1 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: deaths direct and indirect, as filed by the National Weather Service, summed over each storm (one episode, or one named storm filed by several offices). Storm names from the titles of FEMA declarations that name the storm's counties.

The costliest high wind and dust records in South Dakota

South Dakota: the most damaging storms since 1993, 2025 dollars
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
1998-05-15 High WindBrookings County · forecast zone Brookings 0 0 $1.8M
2004-03-27 High WindHutchinson County · forecast zone Hutchinson 57 kt wind 0 0 $1.6M
2008-10-26 High WindMinnehaha County · forecast zone Minnehaha 51 kt wind 0 0 $343K
2008-05-24 Strong WindMarshall County · forecast zone Marshall 40 kt wind 0 0 $274K
2000-04-05 High WindMinnehaha County · forecast zone Minnehaha 56 kt wind 0 1 $171K
2009-05-13 Strong WindSpink County · forecast zone Spink 39 kt wind 0 2 $55K
2012-04-02 High WindPennington County · forecast zone Pennington Co Plains 56 kt wind 0 1 $6K

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database: property and crop damage as estimated by the National Weather Service, in 2025 dollars.

Are high wind and dust records becoming more frequent in South Dakota?

South Dakota's count per decade against the whole country's, and its share. NOAA recorded every event type only from 1996, so earlier decades are not comparable; the share of the national total is the fairer comparison across decades.

High wind and dust storms: South Dakota and the United States by decade (2020s to June 30, 2026)
DecadeSouth DakotaUnited StatesSouth Dakota's share
1996-9956914,0264.1%
2000s1,17637,2543.2%
2010s1,33741,7483.2%
2020-262,18336,3006.0%

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database.

The most recent high wind and dust records in South Dakota

The 12 most recent records, to June 30, 2026
DateRecordCharacterKilledInjuredDamage
2026-06-29 High WindBrown County · forecast zone Brown 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-29 High WindBrown County · forecast zone Brown 59 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-29 High WindBrown County · forecast zone Brown 76 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-17 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 56 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-17 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 54 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-17 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 52 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-17 High WindHughes County · forecast zone Hughes 51 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-15 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 51 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-15 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 51 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-15 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 57 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-15 High WindLyman County · forecast zone Lyman 51 kt wind 0 0 –
2026-06-15 High WindBuffalo County · forecast zone Buffalo 56 kt wind 0 0 –

Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, records through June 30, 2026; the newest months are revised by NCEI as reports arrive. Search the record at NCEI.

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