Kingsbury County, South Dakota severe weather history spans 383 recorded events between 1958 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 48.6% of all recorded events. It ranks #1,322 nationally and #44 in South Dakota.
383
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$12.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Kingsbury County, South Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Kingsbury County, South Dakota severe weather history averages 5.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2000s, with 138 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 63 events fall before 1990 and 320 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $6.6M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Kingsbury County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 186 | 0 | $3.6M | 4.5 | 1958–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 125 | 0 | $901K | 87 | 1960–2025 |
| Tornado | 47 | 0 | $6.6M | F4 | 1959–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 10 | 0 | $55K | 0 | 2002–2023 |
| Flood | 6 | 0 | $1.4M | 0 | 2009–2019 |
| Lightning | 5 | 0 | $216K | 0 | 1996–2005 |
| Heavy Rain | 4 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2001–2018 |
Decade by decade
Kingsbury 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
50 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 47 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003-06-24 | EF4 | 0 | 4 | 10.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1992-06-16 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-06-24 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.4 mi | Crossed in |
| 2022-06-20 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.7 mi | Crossed in |
| 2020-08-28 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 mi | Touched down here |
| 2007-05-05 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2006-05-02 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-06-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2003-06-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.5 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Kingsbury County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 25, 2003 | Tornado | ESMOND | 0 | 4 | $3.0M |
| Jul 28, 2002 | Hail | LAKE PRESTON | 0 | 2 | $500K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Large hail caused extenseive broken windows to both buildings and vehicles, dented many vehicles, and damaged roofs and sidings of homes. Crop damage was also reported, but the amount of the damage could not be determined.
Flooding of lakes and lowlands, including farmland, continued in the county through April. While flooding of small streams abated, lake flooding, particularly of Lakes Thompson and Henry, worsened. Numerous roads remained flooded and several were closed. Several homes were flooded, especially along Lake Thompson. High water and groundwater levels resulting from record precipitation in the previous year was the main reason that the flooding either grew worse or improved so slowly.
Large hail broke windows, and heavily damaged vehicles and boats. Holes were punched by the hail in some of the boats. Two boaters on Lake Thompson were injured by the hail. One was taken to the hospital with a head injury, and the other suffered several welts on the back from hailstone hits. Crop damage also occurred, but the amount of crop damage was not known.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
5,244
Population (ACS)
$170K
Median home value
24
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 27, 2023 | Winter Storm | SEVERE WINTER STORMS AND SNOWSTORM | DR |
| Jun 29, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Nov 18, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Oct 7, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 7, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, AND FLOODING | DR |
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Kingsbury County, South Dakota?
383 events are on record between 1958 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $12.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Kingsbury County?
Hail, with 186 recorded events — 48.6% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Kingsbury County?
50 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 47 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Kingsbury County?
24 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Kingsbury County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Kingsbury County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Kingsbury County as very low risk, placing it in the 8 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Kingsbury 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
- Jones County 290
- Lake County 334
- Jerauld County 219
- Lawrence County 703
- Jackson County 701
- Lincoln County 591
Cite this page
“Kingsbury County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/kingsbury-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.