Butte County, South Dakota severe weather history spans 678 recorded events between 1955 and 2025. The dominant hazard is thunderstorm wind, accounting for 46.9% of all recorded events. It ranks #434 nationally and #11 in South Dakota.
678
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
14
Direct injuries
$8.7M
Property damage
The record
What the Butte County, South Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Butte County, South Dakota severe weather history averages 9.7 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 252 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 53 events fall before 1990 and 625 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Butte County, South Dakota record is flash flood, responsible for 1 direct deaths. The costliest is hail, with $4.2M in reported property damage. In total, 8 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Butte County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thunderstorm Wind | 318 | 0 | $907K | 94 | 1979–2025 |
| Hail | 310 | 0 | $4.2M | 6 | 1957–2025 |
| Flood | 18 | 0 | $3.1M | 0 | 1998–2019 |
| Tornado | 17 | 0 | $313K | F3 | 1955–2024 |
| Funnel Cloud | 6 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1996–2020 |
| Flash Flood | 6 | 1 | $195K | 0 | 2011–2020 |
| Heavy Rain | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2012–2012 |
| Wildfire | 1 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Butte 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
19 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 18 touched down inside it and 1 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963-07-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 2.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1955-09-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-09-24 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 3.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1977-07-26 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1961-05-10 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1957-07-14 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-05-06 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 3.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2024-05-06 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 10.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2020-07-23 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2011-07-01 | EF0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Butte County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 17, 2014 | Flash Flood | CASTLE ROCK | 1 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 24, 2001 | Thunderstorm Wind | BELLE FOURCHE | 0 | 5 | $213K |
| Jul 6, 1998 | Hail | BELLE FOURCHE | 0 | 3 | $3.0M |
| Jul 24, 2001 | Hail | BELLE FOURCHE | 0 | 2 | $0 |
| Jul 17, 2016 | Thunderstorm Wind | NEWELL | 0 | 1 | $0 |
| Jul 19, 2010 | Hail | CASTLE ROCK | 0 | 1 | $3K |
| Jul 15, 1957 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $3K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Levels along the Belle Fourche River were among the highest levels ever recorded. Redwater Creek, Willow Creek, Hay Creek, Indian Creek, and their tributaries flooded. Several stock dams failed and the embankment next to the spillway at Newell Lake nearly eroded.
Runoff from heavy rain caused overland flooding and flooding along Belle Fourche River tributaries. Water flooded Kinghorn Road near US Highway 85 in several locations, Old Highway 85, Camp Crook Road, Valley Road 1, Arpan Road, Brooker Road, Crow Creek Road, Capp Road, Taylor Road, Beet Road, Mail Road, Baker Road, Stone Lake Road, Dillinger Road, Hope Road, Youngberg Road, 188th Street, and old US Highway 212 east of Newell.
Three to five inches of rain fell in a few hours and caused flash flooding in southeastern Butte County. Willow Creek, Horse Creek, Indian Creek, and Whitewood Creek quickly rose over their banks. At least two private stock dams failed southeast of Nisland. Numerous roads, culverts, and fences were damaged.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Very Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
10,676
Population (ACS)
$245K
Median home value
23
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Oct 7, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Belle Fourche 178
- Hoover 129
- Castle Rock 106
- Newell 102
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Butte County, South Dakota?
678 events are on record between 1955 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths and $8.7M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Butte County?
Thunderstorm Wind, with 318 recorded events — 46.9% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Butte County?
19 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 18 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Butte County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Butte County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Butte County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Butte County as very low risk, placing it in the 23 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Butte 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
- Buffalo County 179
- Campbell County 276
- Brule County 385
- Charles Mix County 590
- Brown County 1,102
- Clark County 426
Cite this page
“Butte County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/butte-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.