NHC HURDAT2 · SPC Tornado Database
Hurricanes and Tornadoes That Hit Whitewood, 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 Whitewood, South Dakota since records began in 1851. Since 1950, 48 tornadoes have touched down within 25 miles, 3 of them rated EF3 or stronger.
- Hurricanes
- 0
- Tropical storms
- 0
- Tornadoes
- 48
- EF3 or stronger
- 3
within 75 mi, since 1851
below hurricane strength
within 25 mi, since 1950
no recorded deaths
What the records show for Whitewood
The highest rating among the 48 tornadoes within 25 miles is F3, reached 3 times; the most recent, on June 29, 1993, came within 19 miles. Of the 48, 3 had paths within 5 miles of the city centre, and 9 have come since 2000. June has had the most tornadoes, 16. The most recent tornado was on July 10, 2020. Of the 61 South Dakota cities on this site, 70% have more tornadoes within 25 miles than Whitewood. Hail has been reported within 10 miles 220 times since 1958, with stones up to 4.5 inches (grapefruit size). Whitewood has more hail reports within 10 miles than 78% of the 61 South Dakota cities.
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Tornadoes within 25 miles of Whitewood
By decade
- 2020s3
- 2010s5
- 2000s1
- 1990s15(1 EF3+)
- 1980s3
- 1970s7
- 1960s7(2 EF3+)
- 1950s7
| Date | Rating | Distance | Path | Killed / injured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 1993 | F3 | 19 mi | 3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 18, 1965 | F3 | 10 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1965 | F3 | 20 mi | 20.8 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 6, 2020 | EF2 | 20 mi | 5.05 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 6, 2020 | EF2 | 25 mi | 2.06 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 12, 1993 | F2 | 6 mi | 2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 28, 1972 | F2 | 7 mi | 0.1 mi | 0 / 1 |
| Jul 23, 1969 | F2 | 12 mi | 0.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Sep 20, 1955 | F2 | 20 mi | 1.3 mi | 0 / 0 |
| May 28, 1953 | F2 | 24 mi | 38.2 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jul 10, 2020 | EF1 | 12 mi | 14.81 mi | 0 / 0 |
| Jun 29, 2018 | EF1 | 17 mi | 7.07 mi | 0 / 0 |
The strongest 12 of 48, by rating and then by deaths. Ratings before February 2007 are on the original Fujita scale.
Hail in Whitewood
The Storm Prediction Center has 220 hail reports within 10 miles of Whitewood since 1958, made on 131 separate days. Of these, 159 were 1 inch across or larger, and 14 reached 2 inches. The largest, 4.5 inches (grapefruit size), fell on June 19, 2015. The most recent report is from September 11, 2025. June has the most reports, 66.
Source: NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather reports, data through 2025.
Weather by month in Whitewood
The nearest NOAA station with 1991–2020 climate normals is Fort Meade, SD, 9 miles southeast of Whitewood at 3,308 feet. July is the warmest, with an average high of 86°F and low of 60°F; January is the coolest, at 38°F and 15°F. May is the wettest at 4.4 inches of precipitation on average and January and December the driest at 0.5 inches; the year adds up to 21.3 inches over 47 days with at least a tenth of an inch. Highs reach 90°F on about 28 days a year, almost all from June to September. Lows fall below freezing on about 156 nights a year. Snowfall averages 47.6 inches a year, most of it in March. That 21.3 inches is more than at 16 of the 43 South Dakota stations used on this site (37%). Spearfish, 12 miles west, has its own station (Spearfish, SD): 21.4 inches a year, 0.1 more than here, and a July average high of 84°F against 86°F.
| Month | High °F | Low °F | Precip. in | Days ≥ 0.1" | Snow in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 38 | 15 | 0.5 | 2 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 39 | 17 | 0.7 | 2 | 8.3 |
| Mar | 49 | 25 | 1.3 | 3 | 8.4 |
| Apr | 58 | 34 | 2.5 | 6 | 7.9 |
| May | 67 | 44 | 4.4 | 7 | 1.4 |
| Jun | 78 | 53 | 3.3 | 7 | 0.0 |
| Jul | 86 | 60 | 2.3 | 5 | 0.0 |
| Aug | 86 | 58 | 1.7 | 4 | 0.0 |
| Sep | 77 | 49 | 1.4 | 3 | 0.0 |
| Oct | 61 | 36 | 1.9 | 4 | 2.8 |
| Nov | 48 | 25 | 0.8 | 2 | 5.3 |
| Dec | 39 | 17 | 0.5 | 2 | 8.2 |
| Year | 60 | 36 | 21.3 | 47 | 47.6 |
Averages for 1991–2020 at Fort Meade, SD (3,308 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 Whitewood
Since 1996, the National Weather Service has logged 76 flood, rain, thunderstorm wind and lightning events that began within 10 miles of Whitewood: 60 thunderstorm wind reports, 7 flash floods, 7 floods, 1 heavy rain event and 1 lightning strike. They killed 0 people and injured 6, and the NWS estimated $3.7 million in property and crop damage. The strongest thunderstorm gust on record here was 91 mph, on June 12, 2022. May has had the most flash floods, 4 of 7. Of the 59 South Dakota cities on this site with a flash flood on record, 29 have had fewer than Whitewood.
August 5, 2008: lightning strike 10 miles from the centre of Whitewood — 3 injured.
August 1, 2000: thunderstorm wind 5 miles from the centre of Whitewood — 2 injured, $500,000 damage.
August 5, 2008: thunderstorm wind 10 miles from the centre of Whitewood — 1 injured.
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
Lawrence County, which includes Whitewood, has been named in 17 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1965, 12 of them major disasters (by incident: 5 floods, 5 severe storms, 3 fires, 2 biological emergencies). The latest major disaster declaration was Covid-19 Pandemic, on April 5, 2020. FEMA's National Risk Index gives Lawrence County a Relatively Low rating for natural hazard risk overall; by hazard: Relatively Moderate for hail, strong wind and lightning; Relatively Low for tornadoes and inland flooding; Very Low for heat waves. It models the county's expected loss from all 18 hazards it covers at $16.1 million a year, the 15th highest of 66 South Dakota counties; of the hazards above, the largest share, $8.5 million (52%), 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 Whitewood
- Sturgis, SD9 mi
- Spearfish, SD12 mi
- Lead, SD15 mi
- Piedmont, SD22 mi
- Belle Fourche, SD23 mi
- Black Hawk, SD25 mi
- Rapid City, SD34 mi
- Ellsworth Afb, SD35 mi
- Box Elder, SD37 mi
- Sundance, WY39 mi
- Custer, SD47 mi
- Hermosa, SD54 mi
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