Disaster Data / States / South Dakota
South Dakota: Federal Disaster Declarations
South Dakota has recorded 45 major disaster declarations since FY2000 (through FY2026), the federal government's fullest response to an event. Alongside those sit 5 emergency declarations and 19 fire management declarations, 69 in all. Its most common hazard is severe storm. It ranks #10 nationally by major disasters.
Totals: FY2000 to FY2026 · Page last rebuilt Oct 25, 2026 · the current in-progress fiscal year is not included in totals
Past 12 months
Recent declarations and aid so far
South Dakota has had 4 federal declarations in the past 12 months. The figures are what FEMA has reported to date and grow as recovery continues. All of them fall in complete fiscal years and are counted in the totals above.
| Declaration | Declared | Households approved | Individual Assistance | Public Assistance obligated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DR-4938-SDMajor disaster · Severe Storm | Sep 1, 2026Incident period Jun 28 to Jul 3, 2026 | None reported | None reported | None reported yet |
| DR-4941-SDMajor disaster · Severe Storm | Sep 1, 2026Incident period Jun 2 to 4, 2026 | 59of 609 registered | $315K | None reported yet |
| DR-4903-SDMajor disaster · Straight-Line Winds | Apr 7, 2026Incident period Dec 17 to 18, 2025 | None reported | None reported | $2.4M |
| FM-5622-SDFire management · Fire | Mar 13, 2026 | Not applicable | Not applicable | None reported yet |
DR-4941-SD has approved 59 households for assistance so far, the 9th most of any South Dakota disaster in FEMA's household assistance data, which begins in 2002. The most was DR-1702-SD in 2007, with 3,415. COVID-19 funeral assistance is left out of this comparison.
Individual Assistance is FEMA's Individuals and Households Program, from OpenFEMA's Housing Assistance data for owners and renters. Public Assistance is the obligated federal share from OpenFEMA's grant award activity, which usually starts posting weeks to months after a declaration. Select a declaration number to open its full event profile.
Federal Public Assistance obligated
$474M has been obligated to South Dakota in Public Assistance since FY2000.
$434M followed major disasters other than COVID-19. $209K followed emergency declarations, which cover debris removal and emergency protective work only. $40M, or 8% of the total, was COVID-19, which every state and county in the country received.
Obligated is the committed share, not necessarily spent, and can be revised as projects close out. Totals are summed from funded localities, so a declaration administered entirely at state level may not appear here.
Most common hazards
- Severe Storm 29
- Fire 19
- Flood 9
- Biological 5
- Winter Storm 3
- Snowstorm 2
- Straight-Line Winds 1
- Coastal Storm 1
All declarations on record
Major disaster (DR). The big one. Opens the full toolbox: repair money for public infrastructure, help for households, and mitigation funding to reduce the next loss.
Emergency (EM). Narrower and usually faster, for protective work before or during an incident. Capped, and rarely brings household assistance. Nearly every state and county has one from COVID-19.
Fire management (FM). Cost sharing to fight a wildfire as it burns. Not a disaster declaration, and it does not open recovery programs.
DR = Major disaster (Stafford Act) · EM = Emergency declaration · FM = Fire management assistance
Showing 69 declarations
| Date | Number | Type | Hazard | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 1, 2026 | DR-4938-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Sep 1, 2026 | DR-4941-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Apr 7, 2026 | DR-4903-SD | DR | Straight-Line Winds | Straight-Line Winds |
| Mar 13, 2026 | FM-5622-SD | FM | Fire | Qury Fire |
| Sep 11, 2025 | DR-4890-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Storm And Flooding |
| Nov 1, 2024 | DR-4842-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Aug 15, 2024 | DR-4807-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Jul 6, 2023 | DR-4718-SD | DR | Flood | Flooding |
| Feb 27, 2023 | DR-4689-SD | DR | Winter Storm | Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm |
| Feb 20, 2023 | DR-4687-SD | DR | Winter Storm | Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm |
| Feb 20, 2023 | DR-4688-SD | DR | Winter Storm | Severe Winter Storms And Snowstorm |
| Aug 2, 2022 | DR-4664-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Jun 29, 2022 | DR-4656-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storm, Straight-Line Winds, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Oct 4, 2021 | FM-5418-SD | FM | Fire | Auburn Fire |
| Mar 29, 2021 | FM-5384-SD | FM | Fire | Schroeder Fire |
| Apr 5, 2020 | DR-4527-SD | DR | Biological | Covid-19 Pandemic |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3475-SD | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3536-SD | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3513-SD | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Mar 13, 2020 | EM-3526-SD | EM | Biological | Covid-19 |
| Nov 18, 2019 | DR-4469-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Oct 7, 2019 | DR-4467-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Sep 23, 2019 | DR-4463-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Jun 20, 2019 | DR-4448-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding |
| Jun 7, 2019 | DR-4440-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding |
| Aug 12, 2018 | FM-5272-SD | FM | Fire | Vineyard Fire |
| Dec 13, 2017 | FM-5229-SD | FM | Fire | Legion Lake Fire |
| Feb 1, 2017 | DR-4298-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm |
| Aug 7, 2015 | DR-4237-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Jul 30, 2015 | DR-4233-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, Straight-Line Winds, And Flooding |
| Jul 28, 2014 | DR-4186-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Nov 8, 2013 | DR-4155-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding |
| Aug 2, 2013 | DR-4137-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Jun 28, 2013 | DR-4125-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornado, And Flooding |
| May 10, 2013 | DR-4115-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm |
| Sep 1, 2012 | FM-5010-SD | FM | Fire | Wellnitz Fire |
| Jul 20, 2012 | FM-2996-SD | FM | Fire | Myrtle Fire |
| May 13, 2011 | DR-1984-SD | DR | Flood | Flooding |
| Nov 2, 2010 | DR-1947-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Sep 23, 2010 | DR-1938-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Jul 29, 2010 | DR-1929-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| May 13, 2010 | DR-1915-SD | DR | Flood | Flooding |
| May 13, 2010 | DR-1914-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm |
| Mar 10, 2010 | DR-1887-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm |
| Mar 9, 2010 | DR-1886-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm And Snowstorm |
| Jun 16, 2009 | DR-1844-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Dec 12, 2008 | DR-1811-SD | DR | Snowstorm | Severe Winter Storm And Record And Near Record Snow |
| Jul 9, 2008 | DR-1774-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| May 22, 2008 | DR-1759-SD | DR | Snowstorm | Severe Winter Storm And Record And Near Record Snow |
| Jul 21, 2007 | FM-2716-SD | FM | Fire | Box Elder Fire |
| Jul 8, 2007 | FM-2710-SD | FM | Fire | Alabaugh Canyon Fire |
| May 22, 2007 | DR-1702-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms, Tornadoes, And Flooding |
| Jul 27, 2006 | FM-2658-SD | FM | Fire | East Ridge Fire |
| Jun 5, 2006 | DR-1647-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm |
| Dec 20, 2005 | DR-1620-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm |
| Sep 10, 2005 | EM-3234-SD | EM | Coastal Storm | Hurricane Katrina Evacuation |
| Jul 22, 2005 | DR-1596-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storm |
| Jul 16, 2005 | FM-2569-SD | FM | Fire | Sd Skyline #2 Fire 7/16/05 |
| Jul 10, 2005 | FM-2565-SD | FM | Fire | Sd Ricco Fire |
| Apr 19, 2005 | FM-2557-SD | FM | Fire | Sd Wildfire Camp Five |
| Jul 20, 2004 | DR-1531-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Storms And Flooding |
| Nov 20, 2003 | FM-2513-SD | FM | Fire | Sd - Mill Road Wildfire - 11/19/2003 |
| Aug 18, 2002 | FM-2458-SD | FM | Fire | Sd - Battle Creek Fire - 08/18/02 |
| Jun 29, 2002 | FM-2434-SD | FM | Fire | Grizzly Gulch Fire |
| Aug 1, 2001 | FM-2369-SD | FM | Fire | Sd - Elk Mountain Fire Complex - 08/01/01 |
| May 17, 2001 | DR-1375-SD | DR | Flood | Severe Winter Storms, Flooding, And Ice Jams |
| Aug 25, 2000 | FM-2324-SD | FM | Fire | Sd Jasper Fire Ir #3 |
| Aug 13, 2000 | FM-2319-SD | FM | Fire | Flagpole Fire Complex |
| May 19, 2000 | DR-1330-SD | DR | Severe Storm | Severe Winter Storm, Flooding, Landslides And Mudslides |
Individual Assistance to households
FEMA Individual Assistance to households across South Dakota, combined across the Housing Assistance owner and renter programs. Valid registrations are households that applied within a designated Individual Assistance area; approved figures are those FEMA found eligible under the Individuals and Households Program. Self-reported, drawn from NEMIS through OpenFEMA, and present only where Individual Assistance was designated.
| Assistance type | Approved amount |
|---|---|
| Repair and replacement | $24M |
| Rental assistance | $3M |
| Other needs | $16M |
Hazard mitigation funded
Federal Hazard Mitigation Assistance obligated across South Dakota to reduce future disaster losses, by program. Figures are federal share obligated, reported through OpenFEMA and not audited.
| Program | Projects | Federal share obligated |
|---|---|---|
| Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) | 622 | $87M |
| Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) | 87 | $4M |
| Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) | 15 | $811K |
| Flood Mitigation Assistance (FMA) | 18 | $604K |
Denied requests
FEMA turned down 9 declaration requests from South Dakota since FY2000, a declaration-request denial rate of 11.5%. This is the President denying a governor or tribal leader's request for a declaration, tracked in a separate FEMA dataset from approved declarations, and is not the same thing as an individual being denied assistance under an approved declaration.
| Date | Type | Hazard |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 26, 2025 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
| Sep 10, 2019 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
| Aug 27, 2018 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
| Aug 17, 2018 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
| Jun 14, 2018 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
| Jan 25, 2017 | Major Disaster | Severe Ice Storm |
| May 27, 2015 | Major Disaster | Tornado |
| Jul 2, 2014 | Major Disaster | Flood |
| Sep 10, 2013 | Major Disaster | Severe Storm |
How these numbers are built
Every figure is drawn from FEMA's OpenFEMA datasets: the Disaster Declarations Summaries for declarations and the Declaration Denials dataset for turndowns, rebuilt automatically each week. A "declaration" is one unique combination of declaration type (DR / EM / FM), disaster number, and state, so a single disaster affecting five states counts as five declarations. Years are federal fiscal years (Oct 1 to Sep 30). Totals, ranks, and rates on this page cover complete fiscal years only. Declarations from the fiscal year still in progress are listed in each state's declaration tables and its recent-declarations panel, but are not counted in any total until the year is complete. Uses OpenFEMA data but is not endorsed by or affiliated with FEMA.