135 flood insurance claims·$555,583 paid·7 federal flood & hurricane disasters
Share of the whole county outline, rivers and lakes included; parts FEMA hasn’t mapped count as zero.
Shaded areas are FEMA’s mapped flood hazard zones in and around Pennington County, South Dakota. Zoomed out they are simplified; at street level the map switches to FEMA’s exact layer. Tap anywhere to check that spot, or search an address above.
Flash flooding and river flooding from summer thunderstorms dominate the flood history of Pennington County, which recorded 48 flood events and 32 flash flood events over the last 30 years according to the NOAA Storm Events Database. Recent occurrences include a May 2023 storm system that produced heavy rain, blocked storm drains, and elevated stream levels on Rapid Creek east of Rapid City. Another multi-day rain event in May 2023 dropped three to five inches of rain, leading to flooding and flash flooding across the Cheyenne and White River basins. Additional runoff from heavy rain caused flooding along Box Elder Creek in June 2023, while heavy rain in June 2022 resulted in flash flooding across northeastern Pennington County.
Homeowners and real estate agents should pay the most attention to properties in Zone A, which accounted for the highest number of National Flood Insurance Program claims at 66, with an average payout of $9,483 and an average recorded water depth of 10 inches. Properties in shaded and unshaded Zone X designations also experienced claims, with Zone X averaging $12,949 per claim and an average recorded water depth of 2 inches across 24 claims, unshaded Zone X averaging $2,746 with an average water depth of 3 inches across 27 claims, and shaded Zone X averaging $1,438 with an average water depth of 12 inches across 9 claims. Zone D recorded 6 claims with an average payout of $0 and an average water depth of 1 inch.
Summary written from NOAA storm reports and NFIP claims for this county. Not a prediction.
35% of Pennington County’s flood insurance claims were on properties rated outside FEMA’s high-risk zones.
102 NFIP claims with a recorded rated flood zone, 1978 to date. The zone is the one FEMA used to rate that policy, which may not match today’s map. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
In flood insurance claims here that reported a flood depth, the average was 8 inches.
Drawn to scale against an 80-inch door. Even a few inches soaks flooring, the bottom of the drywall and anything plugged in near the floor.
Average of the depths reported on claims (zero and implausible values left out); FEMA’s record doesn’t say exactly where each depth was measured. Source: OpenFEMA NFIP claims.
The worst year was 1997, with 18 claims and $43,289 paid, the year of Severe Winter Storms and Blizzard Conditions and Severe Flooding, Sever Winter Storms,heavy Rains High Winds.
Bar height is scaled by square root so ordinary years stay visible next to the worst one. NFIP claims by year of loss. Source: OpenFEMA.
22 NOAA storm reports from Pennington County describe what happened, in the words of the forecasters who covered it. Read the South Dakota flood stories →
20 federal disaster declarations since 1965, 7 of them floods, coastal storms or hurricanes.
| Disaster | Began |
|---|---|
| Auburn Fire | Oct 4, 2021 |
| Schroeder Fire | Mar 29, 2021 |
| Severe Storms And Flooding | May 21, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding | Mar 13, 2019 |
| Severe Winter Storm | Dec 24, 2016 |
| Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding | Oct 3, 2013 |
| Hurricane Katrina Evacuation | Sep 6, 2005 |
| Sd Skyline #2 Fire 7/16/05 | Jul 16, 2005 |
Weather and water disasters only; most recent first. Source: OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations.
80 since 1996: 32 flash floods and 48 river or area floods.
| Event | Date | Damage |
|---|---|---|
| Flood | Jun 23, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 17, 2023 | — |
| Flood | May 12, 2023 | — |
| Flood | Jul 24, 2022 | — |
| Flood | Jun 12, 2022 | — |
| Flash Flood | Jul 1, 2022 | $1.0M |
| Flood | May 31, 2019 | — |
| Flash Flood | May 31, 2019 | $150,000 |
— = no damage estimate in the record. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Flood · Jun 23, 2023. A thunderstorm briefly became severe in the Rapid City area, producing hail mostly on the south and east sides of the city. Runoff from heavy rain caused flooding along Box Elder Creek.
Flood · May 17, 2023. A severe thunderstorm developed just northwest of Rapid City and slowly drifted north and east through portions of the Rapid City, Black Hawk, and Summerset areas; producing hail around quarter size and heavy rain. Brief heavy rain and large amounts of small hail blocked storm drains and caused minor flooding across parts of Rapid City, with elevated stream levels on Rapid Creek east of Rapid City.
Flood · May 12, 2023. A prolonged rain event over several days led to flooding and flash flooding over the Cheyenne and White River basins. Three to five inches of rain fell, with some locations receiving nearly four inches of rain within six hours on the evening of May 11. As the water flowed into larger rivers, minor flooding was observed.
Flood · Jul 24, 2022. Monsoonal moisture streaming into the area, combined with slow moving thunderstorms, produced a narrow area of heavy rain from Black Hawk to Rapid Valley. Runoff from this rainfall caused minor street flooding on a few city streets in Rapid City, flooded open agricultural fields in Rapid Valley, and caused high flows and minor flooding along Rapid Creek.
National Weather Service narratives, lightly trimmed. Source: NOAA Storm Events Database.
Every colour on the map above is a place on this drawing: where the ground sits relative to the flood FEMA plans for.
If a building in Pennington County is in a high-risk zone (A or V) and its mortgage comes from a federally regulated or insured lender, or is federally backed, flood insurance is required.
Outside those zones it is optional, and often worth having: from 2014 to 2024 nearly one-third of NFIP claims came from outside the high-risk Special Flood Hazard Area. Since Risk Rating 2.0, NFIP premiums are set for each building, so the only reliable price is a quote: FloodSmart.gov or a local agent.