NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Vermillion, 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 Vermillion, South Dakota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 122 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 9 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 122
- EF3 or stronger
- 9
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
3 deaths in all
What the records show for Vermillion
The highest rating among the 122 tornadoes within 25 miles is F4, reached 2 times; the most recent, on June 23, 2003, came within 21 miles. Of the 122, 7 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 49 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 55. The most recent tornado was on May 30, 2022. Vermillion has more tornadoes within 25 miles than 83% of the 61 South Dakota cities on this site. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 146 times since 1957, with stones up to 3 inches (tea cup size). Vermillion has more hail reports within 10 miles than 67% of the 61 South Dakota cities.
Compare Vermillion's storm record with another city →
Tornadoes within 25 miles of Vermillion
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s8(1 EF3+)
- 2000s38(1 EF3+)
- 1990s15
- 1980s23(2 EF3+)
- 1970s10
- 1960s19(3 EF3+)
- 1950s6(2 EF3+)
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 23, 2003 | F4 | 21 mi | 13 mi | 1 / 0 |
| Jul 28, 1986 | F4 | 9 mi | 52.5 mi | 0 / 2 |
| Jun 17, 2014 | EF3 | 23 mi | 3.96 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Aug 3, 1981 | F3 | 21 mi | 12.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 14, 1967 | F3 | 19 mi | 6.2 mi | 0 / 3 |
| Jun 7, 1965 | F3 | 11 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 21, 1962 | F3 | 8 mi | 71.7 mi | 0 / 7 |
| May 30, 1959 | F3 | 18 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 18, 1954 | F3 | 23 mi | 12.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 14, 1970 | F2 | 24 mi | 3.8 mi | 1 / 1 |
| May 30, 1959 | F2 | 9 mi | 26.8 mi | 1 / 2 |
| Jun 17, 2014 | EF2 | 22 mi | 5.31 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 122, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Vermillion
The Storm Prediction Center has 146 hail reports within 10 miles of Vermillion since 1957, made on 79 separate days. Of these, 91 were 1 inch across or larger, and 4 reached 2 inches. The largest, 3 inches (tea cup size), fell on September 22, 2010. The most recent report is from June 14, 2025. June has the most reports, 44.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Vermillion
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Vermillion 2 SE, SD, 4 miles south of Vermillion at 1,137 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 63°F; January is the coolest, at 31°F and 10°F. June is the wettest at 4.3 inches of precipitation on average and January the driest at 0.5 inches; the year adds up to 28.1 inches over 54 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 29 days a year, almost all from May to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 152 nights a year. That 28.1 inches is more than at 37 of the 43 South Dakota stations used on this site (86%). Beresford, 19 miles northeast, has its own station (Centerville 6 SE, SD): 26.9 inches a year, 1.2 less than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 31 | 10 | 0.5 | 2 |
| Feb | 36 | 14 | 0.7 | 2 |
| Mar | 48 | 25 | 1.4 | 4 |
| Apr | 62 | 36 | 3.1 | 6 |
| May | 73 | 48 | 4.0 | 8 |
| Jun | 82 | 59 | 4.3 | 7 |
| Jul | 86 | 63 | 3.6 | 6 |
| Aug | 83 | 61 | 2.9 | 5 |
| Sep | 78 | 52 | 3.1 | 5 |
| Oct | 65 | 39 | 2.4 | 5 |
| Nov | 48 | 25 | 1.3 | 3 |
| Dec | 34 | 15 | 0.8 | 2 |
| Year | 60 | 37 | 28.1 | 54 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Vermillion 2 SE, SD (1,137 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 Vermillion
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 100 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Vermillion: 63 thunderstorm wind reports, 24 floods and 13 flash floods. They killed 0 people and injured 2, and the NWS estimated $33.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 90 mph, on June 11, 2010. July has had the most flash floods, 6 of 13. Of the 59 South Dakota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 46 have had fewer than Vermillion.
July 21, 1998: thunderstorm wind 3 miles from the centre of Vermillion — 2 injured.
June 1, 2019: flood 9 miles from the centre of Vermillion — $26.4 million damage.
June 21, 2024: flood 9 miles from the centre of Vermillion — $6.5 million damage.
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
Clay County, which includes Vermillion, has been named in 19 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1969, 16 of them major disasters (by incident: 9 floods, 6 severe storms, 2 biological emergencies, 1 coastal storm). The latest major disaster declaration was Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding, on August 15, 2024. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Clay County a Very Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Low for tornadoes, hail, strong wind and lightning; Very Low for inland flooding and heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $11.6 million a year, the 19th highest of 66 South Dakota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $5.3 million (46%), 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 Vermillion
- Elk Point, SD14 mi
- Beresford, SD19 mi
- Hartington, NE20 mi
- Akron, IA23 mi
- Yankton, SD24 mi
- Hawarden, IA28 mi
- Crofton, NE29 mi
- Dakota Dunes, SD30 mi
- Sioux City, IA36 mi
- South Sioux City, NE36 mi
- Dakota City, NE37 mi
- Lennox, SD37 mi
All South Dakota cities →All hurricanes since 1851 →Compare Vermillion with another place →