178
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
15
Direct injuries
$8.9M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Brookings County, South Dakota: 178 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 109. That places the county #1,232 nationally and #29 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Brookings County, South Dakota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Brookings County is the 2010s, when 48 of the county's 178 recorded events were logged. Comparing decades is useful for spotting active periods, but the earliest years are thin because systematic reporting for this hazard began later.
Within the Brookings County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 35.0% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,232 for this hazard and #29 within South Dakota, putting it in the 60.7 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Brookings County with 56 recorded events, while Jan is the quietest. Seasonality here is a property of the archive as much as the climate: reports cluster where population and spotter networks are densest.
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 8, 1993 | Brookings | 109 | 0 | 12 | $5.0M |
| Jul 17, 2010 | BRUCE | 61 | 0 | 3 | $40K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 14, 2025 | WHITE | 52 | $0 |
| Aug 16, 2025 | AURORA | 52 | $0 |
| Aug 16, 2025 | VOLGA | 56 | $0 |
| Aug 16, 2025 | VOLGA | 65 | $0 |
| Aug 6, 2025 | BROOKINGS | 56 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2025 | (BKX)BROOKINGS MUNI | 57 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2025 | SINAI | 56 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2025 | VOLGA | 55 | $0 |
| Jun 29, 2025 | BRUCE | 56 | $0 |
| Jun 28, 2025 | (BKX)BROOKINGS MUNI | 56 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Brookings County
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Very strong winds, likely the result of a downburst in a severe thunderstorm, destroyed an apartment building, five mobile homes, 15 garages, and 16 vehicles, and damaged many other homes and vehicles. 12 people were treated for minor injuries from the storm. The storm also caused considerable damage to some area farms and the roof of a motel.
Thunderstorm winds caused widespread structural, tree, and power line damage in and near Sinai. The roof was ripped off a mobile home, a well drilling business was destroyed, the siding from another business was ripped off, part of a grain elevator was smashed, several garages were destroyed or heavily damaged, several trees were blown down and widespread tree debris littered the area, and power lines and poles were blown down. Power outages lasted until the next day. At a farm just east of Sinai, five grain bins, a machine shed, and several small shacks were destroyed, and the farmhouse was damaged, with about 300 thousand dollars in damage estimated at this farm alone. Other small farm structures in the area were reported to be destroyed or damaged. Crops in the area were heavily damaged by the wind and accompanying hail, with one witness watching as a bean field "just disappeared." The crop damage was widespread, but the amount of crop damage could not be determined.
Thunderstorm winds caused widespread tree damage, including numerous trees blown down. Several houses and garages were damaged by tree debris, and the winds blew shingles off roofs. The winds damaged siding and roofs. Power lines and poles were blown down, resulting in a power outage. Several streets in Elkton were blocked by trees.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Brookings County, South Dakota?
178 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Brookings County between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Brookings County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Brookings County measured 109.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Brookings County come from?
All events come from the NOAA/NCEI Storm Events Database, the federal public-domain archive of severe weather reports. Dates are UTC, damage is as reported and not inflation-adjusted, and the most recent entries may still be revised.
Cite this page
“Thunderstorm Wind in Brookings County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/brookings-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.