NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Ipswich, SD
Every tropical system within 75 miles since 1851 and every tornado within 25 miles since 1950.
Data: NOAA NHC HURDAT2 and NOAA SPC tornado and hail reports, through 2025 · Updated
No tropical storm or hurricane has passed within 75 miles of Ipswich, South Dakota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 56 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 2 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 56
- EF3 or stronger
- 2
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Ipswich
The highest rating among the 56 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 2 times; the most recent, on August 24, 2006, came within 25 miles. The deadliest, an F3 on July 31, 1966, killed 2 people. Of the 56, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 20 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 19. The most recent tornado was on August 5, 2025. Of the 61 South Dakota cities on this site, 61% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Ipswich. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 78 times since 1960, with stones up to 2.75 inches (baseball size). Of the 61 South Dakota cities, 75% have more hail reports within 10 miles than Ipswich.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Ipswich
By decade
- 2020s5
- 2010s10
- 2000s5(1 EF3+)
- 1990s14
- 1980s4
- 1970s7
- 1960s9(1 EF3+)
- 1950s2
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 31, 1966 | F3 | 20 mi | 26.4 mi | 2 / 4 |
| Aug 24, 2006 | F3 | 25 mi | 14 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 31, 1966 | F2 | 24 mi | 2.3 mi | 1 / 3 |
| Jul 4, 2020 | EF2 | 19 mi | 2.66 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 22, 2010 | EF2 | 7 mi | 18.64 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 28, 1961 | F2 | 8 mi | 49.7 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Apr 19, 1955 | F2 | 11 mi | 8.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 23, 2014 | EF1 | 4 mi | 1.46 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 27, 1999 | F1 | 17 mi | 5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 31, 1996 | F1 | 24 mi | 1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 22, 1993 | F1 | 16 mi | 0.5 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 13, 1991 | F1 | 17 mi | 9 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 56, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Ipswich
The Storm Prediction Center has 78 hail reports within 10 miles of Ipswich since 1960, made on 48 separate days. Of these, 55 were 1 inch across or larger, and 6 reached 2 inches. The largest size, 2.75 inches (baseball size), was reported on 3 days, most recently July 11, 2000. The most recent report is from July 21, 2022. August has the most reports, 22.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Ipswich
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Ipswich, SD, 1 mile northwest of Ipswich at 1,547 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 84°F and low of 59°F; January is the coolest, at 24°F and 3°F. June is the wettest at 3.5 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.4 inches; the year adds up to 20.2 inches over 43 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 13 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 180 nights a year. Snowfall averages 33.7 inches a year, most of it in February. That 20.2 inches is more than at 9 of the 43 South Dakota stations used on this site (21%). Aberdeen, 26 miles east, has its own station (Aberdeen, SD): 21.8 inches a year, 1.6 more than here, and a July average high of 85°F against 84°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 24 | 3 | 0.4 | 1 | 6.0 |
| Feb | 28 | 7 | 0.5 | 2 | 6.8 |
| Mar | 41 | 19 | 0.9 | 3 | 5.4 |
| Apr | 57 | 31 | 1.8 | 4 | 4.0 |
| May | 69 | 44 | 3.0 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Jun | 79 | 55 | 3.5 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 84 | 59 | 3.1 | 6 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 82 | 57 | 2.4 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 74 | 47 | 1.9 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 58 | 34 | 1.7 | 4 | 1.1 |
| Nov | 42 | 20 | 0.5 | 2 | 4.7 |
| Dec | 28 | 9 | 0.5 | 1 | 5.7 |
| Year | 55 | 32 | 20.2 | 43 | 33.7 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Ipswich, SD (1,547 ft), from NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals. Normals describe the station; the farther a place is from it, and the bigger the difference in height, the more its weather can differ.
Floods, thunderstorm wind and lightning near Ipswich
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 51 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Ipswich: 46 thunderstorm wind reports, 4 flash floods and 1 flood. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on May 24, 2010.
Source: NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, events whose starting point is on record, 1996 to June 30, 2026. Damage is the NWS estimate in the dollars of the year, not insured losses, and NWS notes that some reports are unverified.
Flood insurance claims, disaster declarations and FEMA risk ratings
Edmunds County, which includes Ipswich, has been named in 20 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 17 of them major disasters (by incident: 8 floods, 7 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 5, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Edmunds County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for hail and strong wind; Very Low for tornadoes, inland flooding, lightning and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $5.3 million a year, the 45th highest of 66 South Dakota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $1.6 million (29%), is from inland flooding.
Claims: FEMA, OpenFEMA Dataset FIMA NFIP Redacted Claims – v3, summed over ZIP codes; payments in the dollars of each year, not adjusted for inflation. Declarations: Disaster Declarations Summaries – v2, by county. Retrieved October 25, 2026. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's OpenFEMA API, but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
Risk ratings: FEMA, National Risk Index county table, December 2025 (v1.20), retrieved October 26, 2026; ratings compare counties nationwide, are meant for planning and are no substitute for a local risk assessment. This product uses the Federal Emergency Management Agency's National Risk Index dataset API or downloadable datasets but is not endorsed by FEMA. The Federal Government or FEMA cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from the Agency's website(s).
What counts as a pass, the distances and the sources: how this storm history is built.
Cities near Ipswich
- Aberdeen, SD26 mi
- Groton, SD43 mi
- Redfield, SD46 mi
- Oakes, ND63 mi
- Mobridge, SD70 mi
- Webster, SD72 mi
- Huron, SD83 mi
- Fort Yates, ND93 mi
- Pierre, SD93 mi
- Lisbon, ND94 mi
- Sisseton, SD97 mi
- Watertown, SD100 mi
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