130
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
1
Direct injuries
$12K
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Clark County, South Dakota: 130 recorded events between 1959 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 87. That places the county #1,789 nationally and #41 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Clark County, South Dakota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Clark County is the 2020s, when 37 of the county's 130 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 Clark County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 30.5% of all recorded severe weather across 8 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,789 for this hazard and #41 within South Dakota, putting it in the 43.0 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Clark County with 46 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 30, 2010 | CLARK | 61 | 0 | 1 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 16, 2025 | WILLOW LAKE | 51 | $0 |
| Aug 6, 2025 | WILLOW LAKE | 51 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | ELROD | 50 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | CARPENTER | 61 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | CARPENTER | 61 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | WILLOW LAKE | 70 | $0 |
| Jul 23, 2025 | WILLOW LAKE | 61 | $0 |
| Jun 20, 2025 | VIENNA | 61 | $0 |
| Jun 20, 2025 | VIENNA | 59 | $0 |
| Jun 20, 2025 | CLARK | 61 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Clark County
- Hail 233
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Damaging winds embedded within a line of thunderstorms downed several large trees and power poles, displaced a 40 pound iron gate 40 yards, and caused minor structural damage. 500 people were without electricity after a tree took out an electric substation.
At the Prairie Retreat located 5 miles south of Willow Lake, winds gusting to over 80 mph uprooted many trees, destroyed a large yard glider, broke out some windows, blew off a barn door, with damage sustained to several other buildings.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Clark County, South Dakota?
130 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Clark County between 1959 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Clark County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Clark County measured 87.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Clark 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 Clark County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/clark-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.