South Dakota flood insurance and flood history
From FEMA's flood insurance and disaster data · Updated 2026-10-08
FEMA's National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) data lists 4,016 flood insurance claims in South Dakota since 1978. The NFIP paid $62.6 million on them (building, contents and Increased Cost of Compliance payments, in the dollars of the year paid).
The year with the most claims was 2011, with 927, mostly from Late spring storms.
In the last ten years (2017–2026) there were 627 claims, and the average paid claim was $42,522.
55% of the claims with a recorded flood zone came from buildings outside FEMA's high-risk zones (rated zones B, C and X).
About 0.5% of homes in South Dakota had an NFIP flood policy in FEMA's latest count (2,011 of 398,954 residential buildings). In the high-risk flood zones (Special Flood Hazard Areas), it was 14% (1,319 of 9,200).
Since 2000, FEMA has made 30 flood-related disaster declarations covering parts of South Dakota. The most recent was DR-4941-SD (Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding), declared September 1, 2026.
Open FEMA registration in South Dakota: DR-4941-SD (Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding): apply by October 31, 2026. See how to apply for FEMA assistance.
Flood insurance claims in South Dakota by year
Show as a table
| Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 2 | $28,169 |
| 2025 | 4 | $33,790 |
| 2024 | 73 | $5.9 million |
| 2023 | 10 | $255,409 |
| 2022 | 3 | $2,210 |
| 2021 | 1 | $0 |
| 2020 | 18 | $245,245 |
| 2019 | 494 | $15.7 million |
| 2018 | 19 | $129,493 |
| 2017 | 3 | $0 |
| 2016 | 6 | $197,508 |
| 2015 | 54 | $2.2 million |
| 2014 | 58 | $1.7 million |
| 2013 | 14 | $221,349 |
| 2012 | 47 | $453,466 |
| 2011 | 927 | $14.5 million |
| 2010 | 361 | $3.8 million |
| 2009 | 19 | $201,637 |
| 2008 | 50 | $454,064 |
| 2007 | 208 | $2.7 million |
| 2006 | 5 | $1,041 |
| 2005 | 3 | $4,724 |
| 2004 | 8 | $268,077 |
| 2003 | 11 | $6,544 |
| 2002 | 5 | $56,165 |
| 2001 | 139 | $978,013 |
| 2000 | 12 | $50,000 |
| 1999 | 122 | $1.4 million |
| 1998 | 45 | $316,773 |
| 1997 | 644 | $8.1 million |
| 1996 | 39 | $240,382 |
| 1995 | 33 | $212,758 |
| 1994 | 18 | $161,389 |
| 1993 | 120 | $781,424 |
| 1992 | 7 | $9,387 |
| 1991 | 8 | $3,249 |
| 1990 | 1 | $0 |
| 1989 | 2 | $500 |
| 1988 | 1 | $25 |
| 1987 | 11 | $36,688 |
| 1986 | 83 | $324,423 |
| 1985 | 3 | $445 |
| 1984 | 69 | $355,544 |
| 1983 | 25 | $40,914 |
| 1982 | 35 | $92,168 |
| 1981 | 1 | $0 |
| 1980 | 14 | $16,095 |
| 1979 | 59 | $39,350 |
| 1978 | 122 | $273,786 |
Biggest flood events by NFIP payments
The flood events FEMA's claims data names most often for South Dakota, ranked by what the NFIP paid. FEMA names events in its claims records; claims without an event name aren't included here.
| Event | Year | Claims | Paid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Late spring storms | 2011 | 568 | $8.4 million |
| Flooding | 1997 | 560 | $7.8 million |
| June Midwest Flooding | 2024 | 71 | $5.9 million |
| Severe flooding | 2001 | 110 | $812,137 |
| Midwest Flooding | 1993 | 99 | $723,760 |
| Late spring storms | 2012 | 6 | $0 |
Flood history by county
Every South Dakota county in FEMA's data, sorted by number of NFIP claims since 1978. "Insured" is the share of homes with an NFIP policy.
| County | Claims | Paid | Insured | Flood declarations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown County | 484 | $3.3 million | 0.7% | 7 |
| Codington County | 472 | $6.6 million | 1.9% | 8 |
| Union County | 443 | $7.6 million | 2.5% | 10 |
| Minnehaha County | 425 | $8.9 million | 0.3% | 7 |
| Hamlin County | 347 | $4.5 million | 1.7% | 7 |
| Lake County | 291 | $7.7 million | 2.1% | 8 |
| Day County | 257 | $4.2 million | 0.3% | 10 |
| Brookings County | 143 | $1.2 million | 0.4% | 6 |
| Pennington County | 135 | $555,583 | 0.6% | 4 |
| Stanley County | 117 | $2.6 million | 7.4% | 4 |
| Hughes County | 88 | $695,172 | 0.5% | 6 |
| Spink County | 74 | $970,159 | 0.2% | 8 |
| Yankton County | 62 | $1.5 million | 0.9% | 6 |
| Moody County | 59 | $759,863 | 0.4% | 9 |
| Custer County | 50 | $645,518 | 0.8% | 3 |
| Roberts County | 49 | $577,867 | 0.5% | 8 |
| Kingsbury County | 47 | $620,897 | 0.2% | 9 |
| Grant County | 41 | $329,139 | 0.2% | 7 |
| Lincoln County | 39 | $2.1 million | 0.3% | 6 |
| Lawrence County | 38 | $276,733 | 0.6% | 4 |
| Davison County | 30 | $2.0 million | 0.5% | 4 |
| McCook County | 29 | $575,857 | 0.4% | 8 |
| Turner County | 26 | $1.1 million | 0.4% | 11 |
| Beadle County | 24 | $368,084 | 0.1% | 9 |
| Meade County | 23 | $52,781 | 0.5% | 4 |
| Lyman County | 16 | $392,829 | 0.1% | 6 |
| Clark County | 15 | $192,538 | 0.7% | 7 |
| Hutchinson County | 14 | $308,702 | 0.3% | 8 |
| Butte County | 13 | $14,317 | 0.7% | 8 |
| Clay County | 13 | $52,953 | 0.1% | 8 |
| Marshall County | 13 | $155,059 | 0.0% | 8 |
| Charles Mix County | 11 | $504,260 | 0.0% | 6 |
| Sanborn County | 11 | $43,055 | 0.0% | 9 |
| Hanson County | 10 | $166,928 | 0.2% | 11 |
| Hand County | 8 | $121,899 | 0.1% | 8 |
| Brule County | 7 | $252,857 | 0.0% | 10 |
| Edmunds County | 6 | $3,269 | 0.0% | 5 |
| Sully County | 5 | $22,793 | 0.0% | 3 |
| Todd County | 4 | $1,937 | 0.0% | 4 |
| Faulk County | 3 | $5,206 | 0.1% | 4 |
| Gregory County | 3 | $167,335 | 0.0% | 10 |
| McPherson County | 3 | $14,911 | 0.0% | 4 |
| Ziebach County | 3 | $3,427 | 0.2% | 7 |
| Aurora County | 2 | $99,980 | 0.1% | 9 |
| Bon Homme County | 2 | $24,184 | 0.0% | 5 |
| Haakon County | 2 | $0 | 0.5% | 6 |
| Campbell County | 1 | $165,942 | 0.0% | 3 |
| Corson County | 1 | $450 | 0.0% | 4 |
| Douglas County | 1 | $520 | 0.1% | 5 |
| Fall River County | 1 | $25 | 0.2% | 6 |
| Harding County | 1 | $0 | 0.0% | 2 |
| Hyde County | 1 | $0 | 0.0% | 4 |
| Bennett County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 5 |
| Buffalo County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 9 |
| Deuel County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 7 |
| Dewey County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 6 |
| Jackson County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 11 |
| Jerauld County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 8 |
| Jones County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 4 |
| Mellette County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 5 |
| Miner County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 8 |
| Oglala Lakota County (46102) | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 0 |
| Perkins County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 7 |
| Potter County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 3 |
| Tripp County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 9 |
| Walworth County | 0 | $0 | 0.0% | 2 |
| Oglala Lakota County (46113) | 0 | $0 | n/a | 4 |
Flood-related FEMA disaster declarations in South Dakota
Declarations since 2000 that FEMA lists as involving flooding. "Help for individuals" means FEMA's Individual Assistance was approved for at least part of the area.
| Declaration | Declared | Event | Help for individuals |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR-4941-SD | Sep 1, 2026 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | Apply by Oct 31, 2026 → |
| DR-4938-SD | Sep 1, 2026 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4890-SD | Sep 11, 2025 | Severe Storm and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4842-SD | Nov 1, 2024 | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4807-SD | Aug 15, 2024 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4718-SD | Jul 6, 2023 | Flooding | No |
| DR-4664-SD | Aug 2, 2022 | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4656-SD | Jun 29, 2022 | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4469-SD | Nov 18, 2019 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4467-SD | Oct 7, 2019 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4463-SD | Sep 23, 2019 | Severe Storms and Flooding | No |
| DR-4448-SD | Jun 20, 2019 | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4440-SD | Jun 7, 2019 | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4237-SD | Aug 7, 2015 | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4233-SD | Jul 30, 2015 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4186-SD | Jul 28, 2014 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4155-SD | Nov 8, 2013 | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, and Flooding | Yes |
| DR-4137-SD | Aug 2, 2013 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-4125-SD | Jun 28, 2013 | Severe Storms, Tornado, and Flooding | No |
| DR-1984-SD | May 13, 2011 | Flooding | Yes |
| DR-1947-SD | Nov 2, 2010 | Severe Storms and Flooding | No |
| DR-1938-SD | Sep 23, 2010 | Severe Storms and Flooding | No |
| DR-1929-SD | Jul 29, 2010 | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, and Flooding | No |
| DR-1915-SD | May 13, 2010 | Flooding | No |
| DR-1844-SD | Jun 16, 2009 | Severe Storms and Flooding | No |
Showing the 25 most recent of 30.
What to do with this
A county's history doesn't tell you your own building's risk. To see your property's flood zone, use FEMA's flood map lookup. To weigh coverage, start with do I need flood insurance? and what flood insurance costs.
Where these numbers come from
All figures on this page are calculated from FEMA's public OpenFEMA datasets:
- NFIP Redacted Claims (v3) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP claims since 1978, downloaded 2026-10-08. Dollar amounts are what the NFIP paid, not adjusted for inflation. Claims filed under private flood insurance aren't included.
- NFIP Residential Penetration Rates (v1) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): NFIP residential policy contracts in force (as of August 3, 2026) divided by FEMA's count of residential buildings from the National Structure Inventory. FEMA notes that inventory is incomplete in some counties, which can inflate the rate. Private flood policies aren't counted.
- Disaster Declarations Summaries (v2) (FEMA (OpenFEMA)): disaster declarations, downloaded 2026-10-08. We count a declaration as flood-related when FEMA lists flooding (or a dam or levee break) as its incident type or a designated incident type, or the declaration's title mentions flooding.
FEMA's redacted claims data doesn't identify properties, and FEMA notes that some records lack a county or flood zone. See how we use the data.