Codington County, South Dakota severe weather history spans 523 recorded events between 1951 and 2025. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 42.8% of all recorded events. It ranks #798 nationally and #25 in South Dakota.
523
Recorded events
0
Direct deaths
6
Direct injuries
$9.2M
Property damage
The record
What the Codington County, South Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Codington County, South Dakota severe weather history averages 7.1 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2020s, with 133 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 93 events fall before 1990 and 430 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The costliest is tornado, with $7.8M in reported property damage. In total, 7 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Codington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 224 | 0 | $0 | 3.75 | 1956–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 170 | 0 | $675K | 95 | 1956–2025 |
| Flood | 71 | 0 | $622K | 0 | 2007–2025 |
| Tornado | 34 | 0 | $7.8M | F3 | 1951–2025 |
| Flash Flood | 12 | 0 | $25K | 0 | 2002–2025 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2012–2025 |
| Lightning | 3 | 0 | $100K | 0 | 1998–2025 |
Decade by decade
Codington 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
31 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 29 touched down inside it and 2 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961-06-21 | EF3 | 1 | 7 | 156.3 mi | Crossed in |
| 1984-05-12 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 27.0 mi | Crossed in |
| 1983-07-18 | EF3 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 mi | Touched down here |
| 2025-07-27 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 4.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1979-06-19 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1962-08-06 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 2022-05-12 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 1986-07-29 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 5.9 mi | Touched down here |
| 1969-06-25 | EF1 | 0 | 1 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
| 1965-05-14 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.1 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Codington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 21, 1951 | Tornado | 0 | 4 | $0 | |
| Jul 2, 1973 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K | |
| Jun 25, 1969 | Tornado | 0 | 1 | $25K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Heavy rainfall on saturated soils resulted in flooding in and around Watertown, with street flooding reported across the city. Northeast of Watertown, a vehicle left the Interstate after encountering some 10 inches of water on the roadway that flooded both lanes near mile marker 182. When emergency crews arrived, the car was barely visible, with only the rear bumper above water. The occupant of the car swam to safety, was checked out on the scene by paramedics, but did not require any further medical attention.|Due to flooding, Interstate 29 was shut down between Exit 181 and Exit 185.
The Big Sioux River at Watertown Broadway Avenue stream gauge would report flooding during the late morning of August 22nd, peaking on the evening of the 22nd at 10.90 or 0.90 feet above flood stage. The river would remain in flood at this section through the early morning of August 24th.
The Big Sioux River below Watertown river gauge would exceed flood stage starting in the morning of August 22nd, peaking at 11.68 or 0.68 feet above flood stage. The river crested in the evening and was back below flood stage by the late morning of August 23rd.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
28,767
Population (ACS)
$238K
Median home value
23
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 6, 2023 | Flood | FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 29, 2022 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORM, STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Nov 18, 2019 | Severe Storm | SEVERE STORMS, TORNADOES, AND FLOODING | DR |
| Jun 7, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE WINTER STORM, SNOWSTORM, AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Watertown 133
- Rauville 110
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Codington County, South Dakota?
523 events are on record between 1951 and 2025, causing 0 direct deaths and $9.2M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Codington County?
Hail, with 224 recorded events — 42.8% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Codington County?
31 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 29 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Codington County?
23 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Codington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Codington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Codington County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 62 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Codington 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
- Clay County 383
- Corson County 626
- Clark County 426
- Custer County 974
- Charles Mix County 590
- Davison County 467
Cite this page
“Codington County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/codington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.