180
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
17
Direct injuries
$9.1M
Property damage
Thunderstorm Wind in Davison County, South Dakota: 180 recorded events between 1956 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 104. That places the county #1,211 nationally and #28 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Thunderstorm Wind in Davison County, South Dakota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for thunderstorm wind in Davison County is the 2000s, when 51 of the county's 180 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 Davison County archive, thunderstorm wind makes up 38.5% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #1,211 for this hazard and #28 within South Dakota, putting it in the 61.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jul is the peak month for thunderstorm wind in Davison County with 66 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 5, 2000 | MITCHELL | 104 | 0 | 10 | $8.0M |
| Jun 20, 1997 | MITCHELL | 78 | 0 | 5 | $500K |
| May 28, 1989 | 0 | 0 | 2 | $0 |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 16, 2025 | (MHE)MITCHELL ARPT | 51 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2025 | METZGERVILLE | 54 | $0 |
| Jul 29, 2025 | (MHE)MITCHELL ARPT | 55 | $0 |
| Jul 20, 2025 | (MHE)MITCHELL ARPT | 52 | $0 |
| Jul 16, 2025 | BETTS | 55 | $0 |
| Jul 26, 2023 | ETHAN | 70 | $0 |
| Jul 26, 2023 | ETHAN | 65 | $0 |
| Jul 26, 2023 | ETHAN | 55 | $0 |
| Jul 26, 2023 | MT VERNON | 70 | $0 |
| Jul 26, 2023 | LOOMIS | 70 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Davison County
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A wet microburst with winds estimated at 120 mph caused heavy damage in and around Mitchell. Apartments and several mobile homes were destroyed, vehicles were overturned, and other damage occurred to buildings and vehicles. Widespread tree and power line damage also occurred. Ten people were injured, although the majority of the injuries were minor. The damage path was approximately a mile and a half long and a mile wide, extending over the southwest part of Mitchell.
Thunderstorm winds blew down several trees and many limbs and branches, and also blew down a statue at a cemetery. Heavy rain of two to three inches falling in two storms flooded roads, a golf course, parks, and agricultural land.
Thunderstorm winds caused widespread tree damage, including large trees and branches down. The winds also destroyed or damaged several large signs. The winds caused minor power line damage, causing localized power outages.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many thunderstorm wind events are on record in Davison County, South Dakota?
180 thunderstorm wind events are recorded in Davison County between 1956 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest thunderstorm wind recorded in Davison County?
The strongest thunderstorm wind on record in Davison County measured 104.
Where does the thunderstorm wind data for Davison 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 Davison County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/davison-county/thunderstorm-wind/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.