43
Recorded events
1
Direct deaths
0
Direct injuries
$178K
Property damage
Tornado in Spink County, South Dakota: 43 recorded events between 1953 and 2025. The strongest on record measured F2. That places the county #537 nationally and #11 statewide for this hazard.
Decade by decade
Tornado in Spink County, South Dakota: events per decade
Reporting practice changed over time — early decades are undercounted, not calmer.
The busiest decade for tornado in Spink County is the 1980s, when 8 of the county's 43 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 Spink County archive, tornado makes up 7.2% of all recorded severe weather across 7 hazard types. Nationally the county sits at #537 for this hazard and #11 within South Dakota, putting it in the 81.4 percentile of all U.S. counties.
Seasonality
Events by month
Jun is the peak month for tornado in Spink County with 18 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.
Tornado tracks
Paths crossing this county
| Date | Scale | Path length | Max width | Origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-06-07 | EF3 | 5.0 mi | 400 yd | Touched down here |
| 1957-06-20 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-07 | EF2 | 10.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-07 | EF2 | 10.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1993-06-07 | EF2 | 10.0 mi | 100 yd | Touched down here |
| 1964-07-23 | EF2 | 6.8 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1959-07-07 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 1956-06-21 | EF2 | 0.1 mi | 10 yd | Touched down here |
| 2020-08-27 | EF1 | 2.8 mi | 40 yd | Touched down here |
| 2017-09-19 | EF1 | 2.8 mi | 155 yd | Touched down here |
Significant events
Deadliest on record
| Date | Location | Scale | Deaths | Injuries | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 21, 1957 | F2 | 1 | 0 | $25K |
Most recent
Latest recorded events
| Date | Location | Magnitude | Damage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 20, 2025 | BLOOMFIELD | EF0 | $0 |
| Oct 9, 2021 | BRENTFORD | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 28, 2020 | REDFIELD | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 28, 2020 | REDFIELD | EF1 | $0 |
| Jun 21, 2020 | TURTON | EF0 | $0 |
| Sep 20, 2017 | TULARE | EF1 | $0 |
| Aug 3, 2012 | CONDE | EF0 | $0 |
| Aug 3, 2012 | REDFIELD ARPT | EF0 | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2010 | TULARE | EF0 | $0 |
| Sep 2, 2010 | TULARE | EF0 | $0 |
Other hazards here
More from Spink County
- Hail 261
- Thunderstorm Wind 187
- Flood 92
From the record
What the reports say
Written by National Weather Service staff at the time of the event · public domain
A tornado touched down 5.5 miles south southwest of Tulare, uprooting a large cottonwood tree in a field. The tornado then passed over pasture and cropland before reaching a residence about 3 miles southwest of Tulare. Large tree branches were broke around the farm yard. On the north side of the farm an outbuilding had significant structural and roof damage with tin from the roof lofted over a half mile to the north. Additionally, two trees were uprooted along the north edge of the property. The tornado continued to track through a soybean field with slight crop damage and debris evident along the path. About 2.8 miles southwest of Tulare an irrigation unit was toppled and the corn crop was leveled before the tornado lifted.
The tornado briefly touched down in an open field, rolling 12 large hay bales, some of them over a fence. The tornado also was visibile as a tornadic debris signature on radar due to the lofting of corn stubble into the air. The track of the tornado was also visible on high resolution satellite data several days after the event.
The tornado track started 2 miles east of Redfield near South Dakota Highway 212. The track was evident through multiple corn fields with the corn completely leveled in some spots. The tornado crossed 172nd street and traveled through a bean field before dissipating.
Quick answers
Frequently asked
How many tornado events are on record in Spink County, South Dakota?
43 tornado events are recorded in Spink County between 1953 and 2025, causing 1 direct deaths.
What is the strongest tornado recorded in Spink County?
The strongest tornado on record in Spink County measured F2.
Where does the tornado data for Spink 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
“Tornado in Spink County, South Dakota.” Severe Weather History. severeweatherhistory.com/county/south-dakota/spink-county/tornado/ · Data: NOAA/NCEI, FEMA, U.S. Census — public domain.