Drought Information Statement for 
SE SD, SW MN, NW IA, Far NE Neb 
Valid April 17, 2025
Issued By: WFO Sioux Falls, SD
Contact Information: w-fsd.webmaster@noaa.gov
This product will be updated by the end of May or sooner if drought conditions change significantly.  
Please see all currently available products at https://drought.gov/drought-information-statements.
Please visit https://www.weather.gov/fsd/DroughtInformationStatement for previous statements. 
Please visit https://www.drought.gov/drought-status-updates for regional drought status updates.
WIDESPREAD ABNORMALLY DRY (D0) TO MODERATE (D1), LOCALLY SEVERE (D2), DROUGHT CONDITIONS CONTINUE ACROSS THE REGION INTO NEW GROWING SEASON


MEDIUM AND LONG RANGE OUTLOOKS FAVOR DROUGHT CONDITIONS PERSISTING
1

U.S. Drought Monitor
Link to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor for SE South Dakota, SW Minnesota, NW Iowa, far NE Nebraska
…WIDESPREAD DRYNESS TO DROUGHT REMAINS IN PLACE ACROSS THE REGION…

Drought Intensity and Extent

D2 (Severe Drought): Portions of southern and central South Dakota

D1 (Moderate Drought): Portions of southeast South Dakota, northwest Iowa, southwest Minnesota and northeast Nebraska
D0 (Abnormally Dry): Remaining areas not in Moderate or Severe drought

Precipitation - Past 30 Days
Beneficial moisture fell during March and April although with this timeframe is also climatologically a wetter period and thus overall precipitation departures were near to below normal.

Precipitation deficits over the entire water year (since October 1st) still reflect fairly significant deficits.

    Water Year Precip
          (October 1st-April 16th)

Sioux Falls: 6.15” (-2.71”)
Mitchell: 3.51” (-2.65”)
Sioux City: 8.35” (-0.86”)
Huron: 5.04” (-2.12”)

Summary of Impacts.
Links: See/submit Condition Monitoring Observer Reports (CMOR) and view the Drought Impacts Reporter
Hydrologic Impacts 
River and stream levels remain at or below normal.

Agricultural Impacts
There are no reported impacts at this time

Fire Hazard Impacts
Several days of critical fire danger have been observed thus far this spring as vegetation has not fully progressed through the green-up stage.

Other Impacts
There are no reported impacts at this time

Mitigation Actions
None reported 

Hydrologic Conditions and Impacts
Most waterways across the region are running at or below normal levels for this time of year. 

Groundwater well data east of the James River continues to show steady values.
Image Caption: USGS 7 day average streamflow HUC map valid 04/16/2025
Image Caption: USGS Groundwater Well near Renner, SD
Groundwater Wells Data: Renner, SD
Near Huron, SD
Windom, MN
USGS Streamflow Data: 
National Water Dashboard

Agricultural and Soil Moisture Impacts
SD
As of Apr 13th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
28%
44%
28%
0%
Subsoil
35%
45%
20%
0%
IA
As of Apr 13th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
7%
24%
68%
1%
Subsoil
9%
31%
59%
1%
MN
As of Apr 13th
Very Short Moisture
Short Moisture
Adequate Moisture
Moisture Surplus
Topsoil
4%
24%
63%
9%
Subsoil
6%
39%
50%
5%
USDA Crop Progress and Condition Reports
South Dakota
Minnesota
Iowa
Nebraska

Medium and Long-Range Outlooks
The latest medium range and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
Temperature
Precipitation
Outlooks through the end of April favor both above normal temperatures and above normal precipitation 
Medium Range Outlook
Outlooks through the end of July show no clear signal for temperature trends but show a slight favor toward below normal precipitation
Seasonal Outlook

Drought Outlook.
The latest monthly and seasonal outlooks can be found on the CPC homepage
Widespread drought conditions continue across the region as we enter a new growing season. 

While some improvement in drought conditions has occurred through early spring, overall temperature and precipitation outlooks favor at least some level of dryness or drought into early summer.

As the upcoming planting and growing season commences, additional Drought Information Statements will be published with additional details. The latest drought-related information can be found at: weather.gov/fsd/drought
The drought monitor is a multi-agency effort involving NOAA’s National Weather Service and National Climatic Data Center, the USDA, state and regional center climatologists and the National Drought Mitigation Center. Information for this statement has been gathered from NWS and FAA observation sites, cooperative and volunteer observations, USDAFS, the USDA and USGS.
Acknowledgements