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Rain Providing Some Relief to Drought-Stricken Southern U.S.

A storm tracking across the southern U.S. will continue to bring areas of heavy thunderstorms with risks for severe weather and excessive rainfall from Texas to Florida through this weekend. While much of this rainfall will be beneficial to the drought, excessive rainfall may bring areas of flash and urban flooding. Read More >

Overview

During the evening of July 13, 2024, a cluster of supercells moving southeastward out of Montana merged into a line of significantly severe thunderstorms that brought destructive winds to much of western and central South Dakota. Widespread measured wind gusts of 80 mph or greater were recorded from near the Montana/South Dakota state line eastward to near the Missouri River, with the highest gusts of over 100 mph observed in Butte County.

The Storm Prediction Center classified this line of storms as a "derecho", a term reserved for especially widespread, long-lived, and significant wind storms.

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Wind damage from 7 miles west of Redig, SD
(courtesy Ashley Secrest)
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