158
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$5.3M
Property damage
Hail in Union County, South Dakota: 158 recorded events between 1959 and 2025. The strongest on record measured 3. That places the county #874 nationally and #49 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Hail in Union County, South Dakota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for hail in Union County is the 2000s, when 83 of the county's 158 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 Union County archive, hail makes up 32.2% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #874 for this hazard and #49 within South Dakota, putting it in the 71.9 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
May is the peak month for hail in Union 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.
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 15, 2025 | BIG SPGS | 0.75 | $0 |
| Jun 14, 2025 | MIDWAY | 1.25 | $0 |
| Jun 2, 2025 | ELK PT | 1.5 | $0 |
| Jun 2, 2025 | ELK PT | 1.75 | $0 |
| Jun 2, 2025 | JUNCTION CITY | 0.75 | $0 |
| Apr 18, 2025 | JUNCTION CITY | 1 | $0 |
| Jun 26, 2024 | JEFFERSON | 0.75 | $0 |
| May 21, 2024 | ELK PT | 1.75 | $0 |
| Apr 16, 2024 | ELK PT | 1.25 | $0 |
| Jul 3, 2023 | BIG SPGS | 1 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Union County
- Thunderstorm Wind 151
- Flood 135
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Large wind driven hail broke windows, dented vehicles, and caused extensive damage to thousands of acres of corn and soybean crops. In the hardest hit areas, corn was stripped of leaves, leaving only stalks, and soybean crops were destroyed. The amount of crop damage was not known, as it was expected that some of the damaged crops would recover or be replanted.
Ping pong to golf ball size hail occurred between mile markers 19 and 22 on Interstate 29. A semi truck ran into another semi truck in the adjoining lane and forced it off the road due to poor visibility during hail, wind, and heavy rain.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many hail events are on record in Union County, South Dakota?
158 hail events are recorded in Union County between 1959 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths.
What is the strongest hail recorded in Union County?
The strongest hail on record in Union County measured 3.
Where does the hail data for Union 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
“Hail in Union County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/union-county/hail/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.