Hand County, South Dakota severe weather history spans 579 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 55.4% of all recorded events. It ranks #638 nationally and #20 in South Dakota.
579
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
14
Direct injuries
$5.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Hand County, South Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Hand County, South Dakota severe weather history averages 8.4 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 199 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 53 events fall before 1990 and 526 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Hand County, South Dakota record is tornado, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is tornado, with $2.9M in reported property damage. In total, 6 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Hand County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 321 | 0 | $1.0M | 4 | 1965–2024 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 171 | 0 | $500 | 87 | 1956–2025 |
| Tornado | 40 | 1 | $2.9M | F3 | 1959–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 23 | 0 | $361K | 0 | 2005–2024 |
| Flood | 15 | 0 | $980K | 0 | 2007–2023 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2008–2018 |
Decade by decade
Hand County, South Dakota severe weather history by decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
46 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 45 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006-08-24 | EF3 | 0 | 2 | 24.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-07-03 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-08-30 | EF2 | 1 | 0 | 1.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-08-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 5.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1983-09-02 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-07-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 20.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1971-07-03 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1959-05-25 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1959-06-23 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2017-06-13 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Hand County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30, 2020 | Tornado | POLO | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jun 18, 1964 | Tornado | 0 | 10 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 30, 2010 | Flash Flood | DANFORTH | 0 | 2 | $150K |
| Jun 12, 1994 | Hail | Miller | 0 | 1 | $500K |
| Jun 17, 1992 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 1 | $0 |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
The tornado initially touched down in the pasture land east of South Dakota Highway 45, roughly 0.8 miles south of 184th Street. It continued to track north for roughly 0.6 miles, damaging a tree grove and fence line. The track then turned west northwest and crossed South Dakota Highway 45, roughly 0.2 miles south of 184th street. A southbound RV pulling an enclosed trailer was struck. The trailer detached from the RV and the RV was lofted and rolled roughly 200 yards into a corn field on the west side of of South Dakota Highway 45. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene. The tornado track continued west northwest through the corn field for an estimated 0.4 miles. The tornado was at its peak width and intensity at this point. Corn was completely flattened in some areas with a distinct convergent pattern. As the tornado weakened and roped out the path took a southwest turn and persisted for roughly another 0.6 miles before coming to an end in the corn field.
The storm caused an estimated $3 million in crop damage. The damage path was estimated to be about 22 miles long and 4.5 miles wide. Hail was reported in drifts of three to four feet and large trees were blown down. About 70 thousand acres of cropland and pastures were completely destroyed. The hail killed pheasants and ducks and injured cattle. Many windows were broken in homes, holes were punched in mobile homes, damaged occured to contents of homes from hail which entered through windows, and many vehicles were extensively damaged. A man trying to hold a broken window together suffered a cut hand when hail shattered the glass.
Hand county emergency management and sheriffs office has posted numerous photos of water in basements, water over roads and significant ponding in agricultural areas. Water was widespread across the southern half of the county.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
3,140
Population (ACS)
$159K
Median home value
25
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 15, 2024 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jul 6, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Polo 143
- Danforth 126
- Miller 122
- Ree Hgts 102
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Hand County, South Dakota?
579 events are on record between 1956 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths and $5.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Hand County?
Hail, with 321 recorded events — 55.4% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Hand County?
46 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 45 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Hand County?
25 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Hand County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Hand County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Hand County as very low risk, placing it in the 6 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Hand County, South Dakota severe weather history data come from?
Every figure is drawn from United States federal public-domain records: NOAA/NCEI Storm Events for the event archive, NOAA SPC SVRGIS for mapped tornado paths, FEMA for disaster declarations and risk ratings, and the U.S. Census for population context. Dates are shown in UTC and recent entries may still be revised by NOAA.
Nearby
Neighbouring counties
- Hamlin County 375
- Hanson County 244
- Haakon County 570
- Harding County 749
- Gregory County 400
- Hughes County 512
Cite this page
“Hand County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/hand-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.