Turner County

Every recorded tornado

1. Injuries and deaths are for the tornado’s whole path, which may extend beyond the county. Deaths recorded within Turner County: 1.
2. Weak tornadoes were under-recorded before Doppler radar coverage became national in the early 1990s, so earlier decades read low. Ratings use the Fujita scale before February 2007 and the Enhanced Fujita scale after.

Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, 1950 to 2025.

Smoke overhead

1. A smoke day is a date on which a smoke plume traced by NOAA Hazard Mapping System analysts from satellite imagery covered this place's point (the county's population centre or the city centre). Counts here are of medium or heavy smoke. Since 2018 analysts have often drawn light smoke as one area over most of the continent, so light-smoke counts are not comparable from year to year. The plumes show smoke anywhere in the air above, not air quality at the ground, and smoke hidden by cloud is missed.

NOAA Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, 2011 to 2026, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Claims by ZIP code

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).

OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026. NOAA Storm Events through 2026.

River crests

River gauges

1. Crests are the highest and the recent crests the National Weather Service lists for each river gauge in the county that has a flood stage, not every flood. Flood categories use each gauge's current flood stages; crests from before levees, dams or channel changes may not be comparable. Crests measured on an old datum are left out of the rankings.

NOAA National Water Prediction Service gauge records, retrieved October 30, 2026.

1. The Palmer Drought Severity Index is computed by NOAA each month from the county's average temperature and precipitation, relative to the county's own climate. Zero is normal; -3 or lower is severe drought and -4 or lower extreme drought. It describes the long-term balance of moisture, not water supply or crop losses.

NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1895 to September 2026, issued October 6, 2026.

Every earthquake of magnitude 4 or more within 50 miles

1. Earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more in the USGS Comprehensive Catalog since 1900. Within 50 miles means the epicentre lies within 50 miles of the county boundary (or inside the county).
2. Small earthquakes were under-recorded before the modern seismic networks of the 1970s and are still missed in remote areas, so early decades read low. Magnitudes are as the catalogue reports them and mix scales (moment, local and body-wave).

USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog, 1900 to present, retrieved October 30, 2026.

Costliest events since 1996

1. Apr 9, 2013Winter Storm, Turner$15.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   An extended period of precipitation began with freezing rain quickly producing heavy ice accumulations, with a quarter to a half inch in the northern part of the county. The precipitation then changed to sleet and then snow, with sleet and snow accumulations reaching 9 inches in Marion. Many branches, limbs, whole trees, and power lines were downed by the weight of ice and accompanying wind. Both urban areas and rural electric cooperatives suffered major power line damage. Trees and tree debris blocked many roads, and damaged several vehicles and homes. Major power outages were reported, affecting thousands of people. The winter precipitation made travel impossible in many areas,…

2. Jun 20, 2024Flood$5.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Rainfall amounts across Turner County from June 20-22 ranged from 5 to 10 inches. Widespread overland flooding ensued with additional major to record flooding along Turkey Ridge Creek, East Fork Vermillion River, West Fork Vermillion River, and the Vermillion River.||Several homes and businesses experienced minor to major flood damage with at least two residences destroyed. In addition, rural customers between Chancellor and South Dakota Highway 19 were without water for a day to almost a week at some locations. ||Emergency services conducted at least 4 water rescues and there were two flood related injuries across the county. At peak flooding, U.S. Highway 18 along with South…

3. Mar 13, 2019Flood$3.1 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   Flooding resulted in extensive damage to public infrastructure including numerous county and township roads, culverts, and some bridges.

4. Jun 24, 2003Tornado$3.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado heavily damaged or destroyed numerous structures at the county fairgrounds, uprooted numerous trees, and blew down power lines, resulting in power outages which lasted up to a day. The tornado damaged other structures in Parker including homes and the county courthouse. One home was shifted off its foundation and received broken windows and damaged siding. Some of the damage resulted from falling trees or wind blown debris.

5. Jun 24, 2003Tornado$1.0 million
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado destroyed small farm buildings, tore the roof off a barn, blew down trees, severely damaged at least two houses in Viborg, destroyed two garages, and damaged other structures including homes and a large propane tank.

6. Jun 24, 2003Tornado$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   A tornado, after crossing into Turner County from Lincoln County, heavily damaged farm buildings, including one farm home demolished, and roof and window damage to at least two other farm homes. The tornado also caused an unknown amount of crop damage.

7. Apr 18, 2004Hail$500,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Large hail dented vehicles, broke windshields, damaged roofs and siding, and broke windows in numerous homes and businesses.

8. May 29, 2008Thunderstorm Wind$250,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm winds blew down power lines and poles, and caused widespread tree damage. Two cars were crushed, and the roofs of at least two houses were damaged by falling trees.

9. Jun 24, 2003Thunderstorm Wind$200,000
   National Weather Service narrative

   Thunderstorm winds caused widespread tree damage, including large trees blown down. Several vehicles were damaged by falling trees or wind blown tree debris, at least two being destroyed.

10. Jul 29, 2005Hail$150,000
    National Weather Service narrative

    Large hail fell over an area roughly 7 miles long and 3 miles wide. The hail covered the ground and roads over much of the area, with some of the hail accumulation still visible 10 hours after the hail ended. The hail caused widespread and severe crop damage, affecting over 13 thousand acres of corn, soybean, and alfalfa crops. Crops in several areas were totally wiped out, while other crops were partially damaged. The hail also caused damage to numerous buildings and vehicles, many of them in Centerville. Some of the larger hailstones caused holes in roofs. In addition, siding was damaged, and there were many broken windows.

1. Storm Events records before 1996 cover only tornadoes, thunderstorm wind and hail. Damage figures are as reported by the National Weather Service at the time, not adjusted for inflation.

NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, 1950 to 2026, issued October 26, 2026.

All-time high

110°F2 times, most recently Jun 21, 1988

All-time low

−36°FJan 19, 1970

Warmest night

81°F3 times, most recently Aug 22, 2023

Coldest day

−17°FFeb 8, 1933

Wettest day

5.44 inAug 7, 2022

Snowiest day

18.1 inMar 10, 1956

Hottest year

2012mean 50.6°F

Coldest year

1950mean 42.3°F

Wettest year

201939.54 in

Driest year

197611.42 in

Snowiest season

94.7 in1968-69

Station Sioux Falls (USW00014944), 1,495 ft elevation, 27.4 miles from the population centre. Daily records from 1932 to October 26, 2026; 100.0% of days in the last 30 years are complete. Records at a single station can differ from a city’s official threaded record, which may combine several stations.

NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily.

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).

OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries, retrieved October 30, 2026. Statewide declarations are not listed.

Neighbouring counties

• Tornadoes NOAA Storm Prediction Center severe weather database, through 2025.
• Tropical cyclones NOAA National Hurricane Center HURDAT2 (Atlantic; Northeast and Central Pacific), through 2025.
• Wildfire USGS/USFS Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity, through 2026.
• Storm events NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database, through 2026.
• Flood insurance OpenFEMA NFIP Redacted Claims v3, refreshed August 4, 2026.
• Declarations OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations Summaries v2, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Weather records NOAA NCEI Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, station USW00014944.
• River crests NOAA National Weather Service, National Water Prediction Service river gauges, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Drought NOAA NCEI nClimDiv county Palmer Drought Severity Index, through September 2026.
• Smoke NOAA NESDIS Hazard Mapping System smoke analysis, retrieved October 30, 2026.
• Earthquakes USGS ANSS Comprehensive Earthquake Catalog (ComCat), retrieved October 30, 2026.

Joins, thresholds and known limits are set out in the methodology. Found an error? Report it. Page built October 30, 2026.