Pennington County, South Dakota severe weather history spans 2,406 recorded events between 1953 and 2026. The dominant hazard is hail, accounting for 67.1% of all recorded events. It ranks #7 nationally and #1 in South Dakota.
2,406
Recorded events
2
Direct deaths
42
Direct injuries
$80.9M
Property damage
The record
What the Pennington County, South Dakota severe weather history record shows
Across the archive, Pennington County, South Dakota severe weather history averages 33.0 recorded events a year. The busiest stretch on record is the 2010s, with 884 events logged in that decade alone. Roughly 225 events fall before 1990 and 2,181 from 1990 onward — a gap that reflects the expansion of NOAA reporting practice as much as the weather itself.
The deadliest hazard in the Pennington County, South Dakota record is lightning, responsible for 2 direct deaths. The costliest is hail, with $67.6M in reported property damage. In total, 9 distinct hazard types appear in this county archive, each listed with its own dated record below.
By hazard type
Every hazard type recorded in Pennington County
| Hazard | Events | Deaths | Damage | Max | Span |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hail | 1,614 | 0 | $67.6M | 4.5 | 1955–2025 |
| Thunderstorm Wind | 631 | 0 | $1.7M | 150 | 1958–2026 |
| Tornado | 49 | 0 | $3.0M | F2 | 1953–2019 |
| Flood | 44 | 0 | $3.9M | 300 | 1996–2023 |
| Flash Flood | 32 | 0 | $4.6M | 300 | 1996–2022 |
| Lightning | 13 | 2 | $128K | 0 | 1998–2016 |
| Heavy Rain | 12 | 0 | $10K | 0 | 1996–2018 |
| Funnel Cloud | 9 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 1997–2025 |
| Wildfire | 2 | 0 | $0 | 0 | 2000–2000 |
Decade by decade
Pennington 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
50 mapped tornado paths intersect this county: 47 touched down inside it and 3 crossed in from a neighbouring county. This comes from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
| Date | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Path length | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-06-13 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 7.4 mi | Touched down here |
| 1994-06-07 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1968-06-20 | EF2 | 0 | 0 | 13.1 mi | Crossed in |
| 1967-06-18 | EF2 | 0 | 3 | 1.0 mi | Touched down here |
| 1966-07-23 | EF2 | 0 | 5 | 3.8 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-07-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-07-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.7 mi | Touched down here |
| 2019-07-04 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 mi | Touched down here |
| 2014-05-27 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 2.2 mi | Touched down here |
| 2013-08-11 | EF1 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 mi | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest events on record in Pennington County
| Date | Type | Location | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 24, 2001 | Lightning | SHERIDAN LAKE | 1 | 2 | $0 |
| Aug 3, 2011 | Lightning | WASTA | 1 | 0 | $0 |
| Jul 21, 1996 | Hail | MOUNT RUSHMORE | 0 | 15 | $150K |
| Jun 13, 1996 | Hail | PLACERVILLE | 0 | 5 | $1K |
| Jul 23, 1966 | Tornado | 0 | 5 | $25K | |
| Jun 18, 1967 | Tornado | 0 | 3 | $2.5M | |
| Jul 11, 1991 | Thunderstorm Wind | 0 | 2 | $0 | |
| Jun 15, 1962 | Tornado | 0 | 2 | $3K |
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
Runoff from heavy rain caused overland flooding and flooding along Rapid Creek, Box Elder Creek, Spring Creek, and tributaries of the Cheyenne River. A culvert washed out on Nike Road east of the Cobalt Drive intersection, water covered South Ellsworth Road south of Highway 14-16, 154th Avenue near 233rd Street, Creston Road south of SD Highway 44, Base Line Road south of Wasta, Bear Creek Road from SD Highway 44 to Sage Creek Road, and Paulson Road near Quinn. Several roads were inundated between Box Elder and New Underwood; including 155th avenue, 156th Avenue, 159th Avenue, and Sharpe Road. Street flooding was also reported in Rapid City and Rapid Valley along South Valley Drive, Green Valley Road, and Reservoir Road.
Over three inches of rain fell in an hour over Ellsworth Air Force Base and parts of Box Elder. Runoff from the heavy rain flooded streets, homes, and businesses. Several streets were flooded on Ellsworth Air Force Base and throughout northern and eastern portions of Box Elder. At least 50 mobile homes were surrounded by water and ten to 15 homes were flooded with water up to six feet deep, mostly along the east side of North Ellsworth Road. Several businesses reported that their parking lots were flooded.
Runoff from heavy rain flooded creeks and inundated roads. Water covered part of Winter Street/US Highway 16A in Keystone. Water was reported over Old Hill City Road near Keystone, Grizzly Gulch Road, Mountain Park Road, Spring Creek Road, Lower Spring Creek Road, Rockwood Road, South Valley Drive, Orchard Lane, Reservoir Road, Green Valley Drive, Lamb Road, Anderson Road, Antelope Creek Road three miles south of SD Highway 44, Neva Way, 143rd Avenue, 156th Street south of highway 14-16, and 159th Street.
Context
Risk, population and federal disasters
Relatively Low
FEMA NRI risk rating
113,512
Population (ACS)
$302K
Median home value
21
Federal declarations
| Declared | Incident | Title | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 7, 2026 | Straight-Line Winds | STRAIGHT-LINE WINDS | DR |
| Oct 4, 2021 | Fire | AUBURN FIRE | FM |
| Mar 29, 2021 | Fire | SCHROEDER FIRE | FM |
| Apr 5, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 PANDEMIC | DR |
| Mar 13, 2020 | Biological | COVID-19 | EM |
| Sep 23, 2019 | Flood | SEVERE STORMS AND FLOODING | DR |
Within the county
Most affected places
- Rapid City 701
- Creighton 141
- Rockerville 141
- Hill City 120
- Scenic 114
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many severe weather events have been recorded in Pennington County, South Dakota?
2,406 events are on record between 1953 and 2026, causing 2 direct deaths and $80.9M in property damage.
What is the most common severe weather hazard in Pennington County?
Hail, with 1,614 recorded events — 67.1% of everything in the archive for this county.
How many tornadoes have crossed Pennington County?
50 mapped tornado paths intersect the county boundary; 47 of them touched down inside it. This is derived from path geometry, not county-tagged reports.
How many federal disaster declarations cover Pennington County?
21 federal disaster declarations from FEMA include Pennington County, each tied to a specific incident period.
How risky is Pennington County compared with the rest of the country?
FEMA's National Risk Index rates Pennington County as relatively low risk, placing it in the 79 percentile of its state for expected annual loss.
Where does the Pennington 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
- Oglala Lakota County 676
- Moody County 323
- Perkins County 727
- Minnehaha County 1,164
- Potter County 309
- Miner County 232
Cite this page
“Pennington County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/pennington-county/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.