Buffalo County Hail Map & Storm Reports
Hail, wind, and tornado reports from official NOAA sources (NWS & SPC) · Last 12 months · Updated Nov 1, 2026
Buffalo County, South Dakota has recorded tornado activity: official National Weather Service (NWS) and Storm Prediction Center (SPC) records list 2 tornado reports among 51 severe weather events here in the last 12 months, alongside 11 hail reports with hail up to 3" and 38 high-wind reports with gusts up to 81 mph. The most recent recorded storm activity was on Sep 7, 2026. This page updates daily: every event comes straight from official NOAA data — no estimates, no modeling, just the record.
Buffalo County hail map
Where hail and high-wind reports clustered across Buffalo County over the last 12 months. Heat shows report density and significance, not radar.
What the radar showed
Storm exposure for an address in Buffalo County
Get a free report in your folder. A city is enough if you do not have a street.
Storm log — the official record, day by day
Events older than 30 days, as recorded by the National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center. Excerpts are quoted directly from official warnings and verified reports.
Monday, September 7, 2026
2 NWS warnings — hail up to 0.25"
“At 1216 PM CDT /1116 AM MDT/, Doppler radar was tracking an area of strong thunderstorms 5 miles west of Ree Heights, or 7 miles east of Highmore, moving northeast at 40 mph. Also, strong thunderstorms were located near Murdo to Presho to Grey Hill Rec Area. Hazard: Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and pea size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects.”
“At 1152 AM CDT /1052 AM MDT/, Doppler radar was tracking an area of strong thunderstorms 11 miles south of Holabird, or 11 miles southwest of Highmore, moving northeast at 40 mph. Also, strong thunderstorms were located from near Murdo to Presho to Grey Hill Rec Area. Hazard: Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and pea size hail.”
- Hail 0.25" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Hail 0.25" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Tuesday, August 18, 2026
1 SPC verified storm report · 2 NWS warnings — hail up to 0.25", wind gusts up to 63 mph
“Mesonet station 201 Gann Valley (SDDOT). (ABR)”
“At 1227 AM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a line of strong thunderstorms extending from 6 miles southwest of Vayland to 6 miles northeast of Byre Lake, or extending from 9 miles southeast of Miller to 10 miles southwest of Lower Brule, moving southeast at 45 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts up to 50 mph and pea size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects.”
- Wind 63 mph 3 N Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Hail 0.25" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Hail 0.25" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Monday, July 6, 2026
1 NWS warning — hail up to 0.88"
“At 300 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a strong thunderstorm over Counselor Creek Boat Access Area, or near Fort Thompson, moving east at 20 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts up to 50 mph and nickel size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is possible. Locations impacted include...”
- Hail 0.88" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Friday, July 3, 2026
2 NWS warnings — hail up to 0.75"
“At 327 AM CDT, trained weather spotters reported a cluster of strong thunderstorms along a line extending from 6 miles southwest of Highmore to near Etbauer Hill to near Chamberlain. Movement was east at 35 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and penny size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is possible.”
“At 255 AM CDT, trained weather spotters reported a cluster of strong thunderstorms along a line extending from near Lake Sharpe to 7 miles north of Colome. Movement was northeast at 25 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and penny size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is possible.”
- Hail 0.75" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Hail 0.75" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Thursday, July 2, 2026
7 SPC verified storm reports — hail up to 3", wind gusts up to 81 mph, 2 tornado reports
“Several photos on X of a tornado on the ground near Gann Valley. Location estimated via radar. (ABR)”
“Photo relayed via text... included spotter ruler card. (ABR)”
- Tornado Tornado 2 E Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Tornado Tornado 6 S Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Hail 3" 7 SSW Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Hail 2.75" 7 WNW Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Hail 1.75" 7 SSW Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Wind 81 mph 3 N Gann Valley SPC verified report
- Wind 62 mph 1 NNW Lees Corner SPC verified report
Saturday, June 27, 2026
4 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 50 mph
“At 1129 PM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking a cluster of strong thunderstorms along a line extending from 10 miles west of Polo to near Highmore to Stephan to near Lower Brule. Movement was northeast at 45 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts up to 50 mph. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Locations impacted include... Miller, Highmore, Lower Brule, St.”
“WHAT...Southeast winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...Until 7 PM CDT /6 PM MDT/ this evening. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result.”
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Wednesday, June 17, 2026
1 NWS warning — wind gusts up to 50 mph
“WHAT...Northwest winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Sully, Faulk, Potter, Walworth, and Spink Counties. WHEN...Until 9 PM CDT this evening. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result.”
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Tuesday, June 16, 2026
1 NWS warning — wind gusts up to 50 mph
“WHAT...Northwest winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Sully, Faulk, Potter, Walworth, and Spink Counties. WHEN...From 10 AM to 9 PM CDT Wednesday. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result.”
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Tuesday, June 2, 2026
1 NWS warning — wind gusts up to 50 mph
“At 819 PM CDT, trained weather spotters reported a cluster of strong thunderstorms near Degrey Rec Area, or 13 miles south of Blunt, moving northeast at 20 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts up to 50 mph. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Locations impacted include...”
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Sunday, May 31, 2026
1 NWS warning — hail up to 0.25"
“At 1248 AM CDT, Doppler radar was tracking strong thunderstorms along a line extending from 7 miles northeast of Degrey Rec Area to 9 miles east of Stephan to near Gann Valley. Movement was north at 40 mph. Hazard: Wind gusts of 50 to 55 mph and pea size hail. Impact: Gusty winds could knock down tree limbs and blow around unsecured objects. Minor hail damage to vegetation is possible.”
- Hail 0.25" Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Thursday, May 14, 2026
3 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 50 mph
“Strong wind gusts up to 50 mph are expected to persist through the afternoon hours today. Localized stronger wind gusts of more than 50 mph will be possible as the result of sprinkles or brief showers moving through this morning into the afternoon. This will lead to patchy to areas of blowing dust and reduced visibilities between 1 to 3 miles.”
“AFFECTED AREA...In South Dakota, Spink, Clark, Codington, Hamlin, Deuel, Stanley, Sully, Hughes, Hyde, Hand, Jones, Lyman and Buffalo. WINDS...West 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 14 percent. IMPACTS...Any fires that ignite will spread rapidly and become difficult to control or suppress.”
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Saturday, March 28, 2026
3 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 55 mph
“AFFECTED AREA...In South Dakota, Faulk, Spink, Hyde, Hand, Lyman and Buffalo. WINDS...Southwest 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 55 mph. RELATIVE HUMIDITY...As low as 18 percent. IMPACTS...Any fires that ignite will spread rapidly and become difficult to control or suppress.”
“WHAT...Southwest winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hyde, Lyman, and Spink Counties. WHEN...Until 4 PM CDT this afternoon. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result. Gusty winds may also cause blowing dust to occasionally reduce visibility, especially near open fields.”
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Thursday, March 12, 2026
5 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 80 mph
“WHAT...Northwest winds 45 to 55 mph with gusts up to 80 mph expected. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...Until 1 AM CDT /midnight MDT/ Friday. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
“AFFECTED AREA...In South Dakota, Corson, Campbell, McPherson, Walworth, Edmunds, Dewey, Potter, Faulk, Stanley, Sully, Hughes, Hyde, Hand, Jones, Lyman and Buffalo. WINDS...West 45 to 55 mph with gusts up to 80 mph. RELATIVE HUMIDITY...20 to 35 percent across south central South Dakota. 35 to 50 percent over north central South Dakota.”
- Wind 80 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 80 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 80 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 70 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 70 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Wednesday, March 11, 2026
5 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 65 mph
“The National Weather Service in Aberdeen has issued a Red Flag Warning for wind and low relative humidity, which is in effect from noon CDT /11 AM MDT/ to 9 PM CDT /8 PM MDT/ Thursday. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect. AFFECTED AREA...In South Dakota, Corson, Campbell, McPherson, Walworth, Edmunds, Dewey, Potter, Faulk, Stanley, Sully, Hughes, Hyde, Hand, Jones, Lyman and Buffalo.”
“AFFECTED AREA...In South Dakota, Corson, Campbell, McPherson, Walworth, Edmunds, Dewey, Potter, Faulk, Stanley, Sully, Hughes, Hyde, Hand, Jones, Lyman and Buffalo. WINDS...West 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 65 mph. RELATIVE HUMIDITY...Down to between 20 and 35 percent. IMPACTS...Any fires that ignite will spread rapidly and become difficult to control or suppress.”
- Wind 65 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 65 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 65 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 60 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 60 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Tuesday, March 10, 2026
2 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 55 mph
“WHAT...Northwest winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 55 mph possible. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...From Thursday afternoon through late Thursday night. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
“WHAT...Northwest winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 55 mph possible. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...From Thursday afternoon through late Thursday night. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Wednesday, February 18, 2026
5 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 65 mph
“WHAT...West winds 30 to 40 mph with gusts up to 65 mph. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Jones, Lyman, Stanley, Sully, Dewey, and Potter Counties. WHEN...Until noon CST /11 AM MST/ today. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
“WHAT...Northwest winds 35 to 45 mph with gusts up to 60 mph. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Jones, Lyman, Stanley, Sully, Dewey, and Potter Counties. WHEN...Until noon CST /11 AM MST/ today. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
- Wind 65 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 60 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 60 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Tuesday, February 17, 2026
3 NWS warnings — wind gusts up to 55 mph
“WHAT...West winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 55 mph. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...Until noon CST /11 AM MST/ Wednesday. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result.”
“WHAT...West winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected. WHERE...Portions of central and north central South Dakota. WHEN...From 9 PM CST /8 PM MST/ this evening to noon CST /11 AM MST/ Wednesday. IMPACTS...Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects and a few power outages may result.”
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
- Wind 50 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Friday, January 16, 2026
1 NWS warning — wind gusts up to 55 mph
“Wind gusts will generally remain below 60 mph through the evening hours. A Winter Weather Advisory remains in effect until 12 AM CST /11 PM MST/ this evening. Wind gusts ranging from 35 to 55 mph this evening with areas of light snow and blowing snow.”
- Wind 55 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Thursday, December 18, 2025
1 NWS warning — wind gusts up to 70 mph
“WHAT...Northwest winds 40 to 50 mph with gusts up to 70 mph. WHERE...Buffalo, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Jones, Lyman, Stanley, and Sully Counties. WHEN...Until 3 PM CST /2 PM MST/ this afternoon. IMPACTS...High winds may move loose debris, damage property and cause power outages. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.”
- Wind 70 mph Buffalo County NWS severe weather mention
Today's severe weather outlook
Common questions
When was the last severe storm in Buffalo County, SD?
The most recent recorded event was on Sep 7, 2026. Official NWS and SPC records show 51 severe weather events in Buffalo County over the last 12 months. Exact dates and locations for recent storms are available in the app with a free account.
Did it hail in Buffalo County recently?
Yes — 11 hail reports in the last 12 months, with hail up to 3" recorded. The hail map above shows where reports clustered; the storm log lists each day.
How do I see hail history for a specific address in Buffalo County?
Create a free IDOLCheck account and run an address check. It shows verified storm reports and official NWS warning boundaries around any specific property, including the most recent 30 days — county-level pages like this one only tell part of the story.
Most active South Dakota counties
50% Off Pro — First Year
Until November 1, lock Pro at $14.50/mo for the first 12 months, then $29. Cancel drops the rate.
Lock in 50% off →